Peter Bergquist
Emeritus Professor Peter Bergquist, of Auckland, received the Insignia of an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit,for services to science. Professor Bergquist is a world-renowned molecular biologist, who has pioneered techniques in cloning and expressing genes from thermophilic organisms and extremophiles—organisms that thrive in high temperatures such as geothermal areas. He is Honorary Professor of Molecular Medicine and Emeritus Professor of Molecular Genetics in the Department of Molecular Medicine and Pathology at the University of Auckland, Adjunct Professor of Biological Sciences at Waikato University and Emeritus Professor of Biology at Macquarie University. He was a founding scientist when the ZyGem Corporation was formed in 2004. This successful biotechnology company has developed products that use thermophilic enzymes for DNA profiling in human forensics and animal livestock genetic testing.