Willis Avery “Woody” Wood (August 6, 1921 – January 17, 2021)[1] was an American microbiology professor, an inventor, and an entrepreneur.
At MSU, many collaborators after years of research found that adenosine monophosphate (AMP) acts as an allosteric ligand promoting dimerization of the identical subunits of the coenzyme pyridoxal phosphate.
[2] At Michigan State, Wood developed a recording spectrophotometer with a new photomultiplier arrangement and an automatic cuvette changer that was programmable.
In 1981, Neogen Corporation was founded, with some investment from MSU, to promote biotechnology in Lansing and the rest of Michigan.
[2] From 1982 to 1990, he was the director of microbiology at the Salk Institute Biotechnology Industrial Associates (SIBIA) in La Jolla.