Prabhat Sehgal, retired HMS assistant professor of pathology at the New England Primate Research Center (NEPRC), died on Aug. 29 at age 70.
Sehgal received his veterinary medicine degree from Punjab Agricultural University in India in 1964. He joined the HMS community as an assistant veterinarian at NEPRC in 1969. He advanced to instructor in pathology in 1986 and to assistant professor of pathology in 1991.
During his 36-year career at NEPRC, Sehgal contributed to nonhuman primate research in the areas of normal physiological functions, the development of new animal models for human disease and the study of spontaneous diseases in primate colonies. His clinical work led to the initial recognition of the simian immunodeficiency virus as a cause of an AIDS-like illness in nonhuman primates; this model is now widely used in HIV pathogenesis and prevention research. In 2006, the NEPRC named its newly constructed research building in his honor.
He is survived by his wife, Neena; daughter, Anupama, and son-in-law, Thomas Sealey; daughters, Neetu and Renika; and three grandchildren.
