Clarence James Peters, Jr (born September 23, 1940, Midland, Texas) is a physician, field virologist and former U.S. Army colonel.
At Rice University, he initially majored in chemical engineering, but switched to chemistry his junior year after taking courses with Thomas Brackett.
He developed an interest in tropical medicine and virology while serving five years as a research associate at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease intramural laboratory in Panama.
He led the team that controlled a 1989 Ebola introduction into a monkey facility in Reston, Virginia (a story recounted in Richard Preston’s best-selling 1994 book The Hot Zone).
He has served on numerous committees dealing with disease problems worldwide and has been called back as a consultant to CDC and USAMRIID on influenza, vaccines, and other issues after his departure.