Betty Ida Roots

Betty Ida Roots (21 October 1927 – 24 October 2020) was a British-born zoologist and neurobiologist based at the University of Toronto in Canada. Her research examined how animals respond to changes in their environment, with particular reference to the nervous system, glial cells, and neuron–glia relationships from a comparative perspective. At Toronto she held several senior academic and administrative roles, helped establish an electron microscope facility at the Mississauga campus, and initiated the university's collaborative PhD program in neuroscience. She was elected a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and served as president of the Royal Canadian Institute for Science in 1994.