Biochemist Begins Work At Lincoln

Press, Volume C, Issue 29621, 18 September 1961, Page 13

Biochemist Begins Work At Lincoln

Dr. D. E. Wright, who has just returned to New Zealand after spending a year at the McGill University in Montreal under a grant from that institution, is now senior lecturer in biochemistry at Canterbury Agricultural College, Lincoln. It is hoped that a further biochemist will join the staff at Lincoln next year.

In the meantime Dr. Wright is under Professor I. E. Coop, head of the animal husbandry department, for administration. Professor Coop said at the week-end that the college had hopes of building up biochemistry as one of the most important fundamental disciplines in agricultural science. Dr. Wright was born in Auckland and attended Wellington College. In 1954 he

graduated master of science in chemistry from the University of O'ago and tn 1958 gained a doctorate of philosophy. From 1955 until he left New Zealand last year for Canada Dr. Wright was a member of the Defence Science Cofps. For the first three years of this period he served with the Air Force and was stationed at the Otago Medical School. During that period he did his doctorate and undertook studies in bacterial metabolism under Professor N. L. Edson. For the next two years and a half Dr. Wright was with the Plant Chemistry Division of the Department of Scientific and Indus-

trial Research at Palmerston North, working on metabolism of rumen bacteria and protozoa in connexion with various bloat projects. At McGill University, working under Professor J. H. Quastel, an internation-ally-known biochemist, Dr. Wright studied the amino acid uptake of plant roots and the effect of herbicides on this process. Discussing the type of work he would do at Lincoln, Dr. Wright said he would almost certainly study rumen metabolism in connexion with animal nutrition. He would also like to do some soil and wool microbiology. Next year he would be helping a masterate student- who would investigate the solids-not-fat problem in dairy cattle and effects of various diets on it.