Tilak Richard Weerasooriya ( Sinhala :තිලක් රිචඩ් වීරසූරිය) (20 November 1950 – 20 February 2022) was a Sri Lankan physician, academic, and professor emeritus. He was a pioneer in the field of Andrology in Sri Lanka. He was also the former dean of the

University of Ruhuna The University of Ruhuna ( si, රුහුණ විශ්වවිද්‍යාලය, රෝහණ සරසවිය (Ruhuṇa Viśvavidyālaya, Rohana sarasaviya),; ta, ருகுண பல்கலைக் கழகம்) is a publ ...

Faculty of Medicine, Senior Lecturer - University of Peradeniya (Anatomy -

Faculty of Medicine A medical school is a tertiary educational institution, or part of such an institution, that teaches medicine, and awards a professional degree for physicians. Such medical degrees include the Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS, M ...

), and Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic) - Kotelawala Defence University.

Biography

Weerasooriya was born on 20 November 1950, in Gampola, to Maurice Weerasooriya (1907–1990), Chief Education Officer, and Emily Weerasooriya (1926–2017). He had 4 siblings, Nandani, Nisala, Deepa and Asoka Weerasooriya. He attended

Richmond College, Galle Richmond College ( si, රිච්මන්ඩ් විද්‍යාලය) is a primary and secondary school in Galle, Sri Lanka which was established as Galle High School in 1876. The founder of school was the Wesleyan Missionary George B ...

for his primary & secondary education, and later entered the University of Peradeniya where he obtained his

MBBS Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery ( la, Medicinae Baccalaureus, Baccalaureus Chirurgiae; abbreviated most commonly MBBS), is the primary medical degree awarded by medical schools in countries that follow the tradition of the United King ...

in 1977. After completing his

at the University of Peradeniya, Weerasooriya later joined Kyushu University's Department of Anatomy, Fukuoka, in the island of

Kyushu is the third-largest island of Japan's five main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands ( i.e. excluding Okinawa). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regional name referred to Kyushu and its surroun ...

in Japan, in order to obtain his

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * ''Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. albu ...

. His PhD was on the Micro vasculature of the testis, using electron microscopy. He specialised in Andrology. During his career, Weerasooriya established Sri Lanka's first Andrology clinic, sperm bank, and IVF lab. Weerasooriya died on 20 February 2022, aged 71.

Personal life

Tilak married Mirani Weerasooriya in 1980, they had three children; Senal, Sahan and Semali.

Selected publications

* Weerasooriya, Tilak R., and Torao Yaniamoto. "Three-dimensional organisation of the vasculature of the rat spermatic cord and testis." Cell and tissue research 241.2 (1985): 317–323. * T.R. Weerasooriya, & Wattage, A. P. P. (1997). An analysis of the pregnancies that occurred following in-utero insemination. * Ilayperuma, I., W. D. Ratnasooriya, and T. R. Weerasooriya. "Effect of Withania somnifera root extract on the sexual behaviour of male rats." Asian Journal of Andrology 4.4 (2002): 295–298. * Weerasooriya, Tilak R. "Laboratory assistance in the management of infertility." (1997). * Fernando, L., J. Gromoll, T. R. Weerasooriya, E. Nieschlag, and Manuela Simoni. "Y‐chromosomal microdeletions and partial deletions of the Azoospermia Factor c (AZFc) region in normozoospermic, severe oligozoospermic and azoospermic men in Sri Lanka." Asian journal of andrology 8, no. 1 (2006): 39–44. * Weerasooriya, M. V., T. R. Weerasooriya, N. K. Gunawardena, W. A. Samarawickrema, and E. Kimura. "Epidemiology of bancroftian filariasis in three suburban areas of Matara, Sri Lanka." Annals of Tropical Medicine & Parasitology 95, no. 3 (2001): 263–273. * Weerasooriya, M. V., E. Kimura, D. A. Dayaratna, T. R. Weerasooriya, and W. A. Samarawickrema. "Efficacy of a single dose treatment of Wuchereria bancrofti microfilaria carriers with diethylcarbamazine in Matara, Sri Lanka." The Ceylon Medical Journal 43, no. 3 (1998): 151–155. * Karunarathne, Y. A. U. D., L. D. A. M. Arawwawala, A. P. G. Amarasinghe, T. R. Weerasooriya, and U. K. A. Samarasinha. "Physicochemical, phytochemical, and nutritional profiles of root powder of Asparagus racemosus (Willd) of Sri Lankan origin." Asian J. Pharmacogn 3, no. 3 (2019): 29–35. * Ilayperuma, I., W. D. Ratnasooriya, and T. R. Weerasooriya. "Methanol and water extracts of Withania somnifera roots has no abortifacient effect in rats." (2002). * T.R Weerasooriya, and I. M. R. Goonewardene. "Sperm preparation and in utero insemination in the management of subfertility." Ceylon Medical Journal 41 (1996): 54–56. * Fernando, H. H. L. K., R. Senevirathne, and T. R. Weerasooriya. "Can varicocelectomy Improve the Seminal Fluid Parameter Abnormalities?." (2012). * Fernando, H. H. L. K., R. Senevirathne, P. M. Rodrigo, and T. R. Weerasooriya. "Can Clomiphene Citrate Improve the Quality of Seminal Fluid Parameters in Idipathic Oligoasthenoteratozoospermic Males." (2014). * WEERASOORIYA, TR, and T. YAMAMOTO. "POSTNATAL-DEVELOPMENT AND THE 3-DIMENSIONAL ORGANIZATION OF THE TESTICULAR LYMPHATICS IN THE RAT." In JOURNAL OF ELECTRON MICROSCOPY, vol. 35, no. 1, pp. 95–95. WALTON ST JOURNALS DEPT, OXFORD, ENGLAND OX2 6DP: OXFORD UNIV PRESS UNITED KINGDOM, 1986. * Fernando, L., J. Gromoll, T. R. Weerasooriya, E. Nieschlag, and S. Simoni. "Frequency of Y-chromosome microdeletions and partial deletions of AZFc region in normozoospermic, severe oligozoospermic and azoospermic groups in Sri Lanka." In INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ANDROLOGY, vol. 28, pp. 92–92. COMMERCE PLACE, 350 MAIN ST, MALDEN 02148, MA USA: WILEY-BLACKWELL, 2005. * Amarasinghe, D. M. Y., T. R. Weerasooriya, and I. M. R. Goonewardene. "Oocyte cryopreservation-a cost effective method."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Weerasooriya, Tilak 1950 births 2022 deaths People from Colombo People from Galle Sri Lankan medical doctors Alumni of Richmond College, Galle Alumni of the University of Peradeniya Alumni of the University of Sri Lanka (Peradeniya) Sinhalese people Sri Lankan medical researchers Kyushu University alumni Sri Lankan academics Academic staff of the University of Peradeniya People associated with the University of Peradeniya Academic staff by university or college in Sri Lanka Research in Asia by country Academia in Sri Lanka Sri Lankan health professionals Sri Lankan educators Academics from Galle