OVC is sad to report that Dr. Bruce Wilkie, Professor Emeritus, passed away on February 25, 2019.
After graduating from the Ontario Veterinary College (OVC) as the Andrew Smith gold medalist in 1965, Wilkie joined the OVC faculty in 1973 following postdoctoral studies on pulmonary allergy in Bern, Switzerland. He served as chair of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology from 1987 to 1992 and at the same time was Director of the Animal Biotechnology Centre of Guelph-Waterloo Biotech.
Dr. Wilkie is widely recognized for his work along with colleague Dr. Patricia Shewen, Professor Emerita, in developing and commercializing the shipping fever vaccine Presponse®.
After entering the market in 1988, the Presponse® vaccine quickly became the most effective method of shipping fever pneumonia prevention, protecting cattle from mortality and morbidity, while reducing the need to use antibiotics and enhancing animal welfare.
A major Canadian innovation in the field of cattle health management, Presponse® has become the foundation for all vaccines against this major disease.
In 1988, Wilkie and Shewen were co-recipients of a bronze award for Presponse® in the Inventions Category, Canada Awards for Business Excellence of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology. In 2012, they were also nominated for the Ernest C. Manning Award for Innovation for their development of the shipping fever vaccine.
In 2015, the U of G discovery was included among 50 innovations from Ontario universities over 100 years in Council of Ontario Universities (COU)’s Research Matters campaign, which included a contest with the public voting.
Dr. Wilkie later teamed up with Prof. Bonnie Mallard, OVC Department of Pathobiology, to develop effective methods for identifying and selecting for generalized disease resistance in cattle and pigs.
Dr. Wilkie was the inaugural recipient of the International Union of Immunological Societies/ Pfizer Animal Health Distinguished Service Award in 2004. He was awarded the OVC Alumni Association Distinguished Alumnus award in 2015. He published over 160 refereed articles in science journals as well as numerous book chapters and papers in conference proceedings. He has been recognized as a leader in the international veterinary immunology community and organized several international symposia.
A celebration of life is planned for a later date.