Oct. 25, 2007
See list of UC Davis Entomology Department's AAAS Fellows (below)
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Thomas Scott |
DAVIS—Thomas Scott, professor and vice chair of the Department of Entomology at the University of California, Davis, and director of the UC Mosquito Research Laboratory, has been named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) for his "distinguished contributions to the biology and ecology of mosquitoes and his leadership in developing strategic concepts for preventing dengue fever and other mosquito-borne diseases."
AAAS officials announced Thursday, Oct. 25 that Scott is one of 471 Fellows elected this year for the prestigious award, and one of only four UC Davis faculty members on this year's list of recipients.
Scott will receive the award on Feb. 16 in Boston at the AAAS annual meeting.
"This is a well-deserved honor for Professor Scott who continues to make one of the most significant contributions towards prevention of dengue, a disease transmitted by the yellow fever mosquito," said Walter Leal, professor and chair of the UC Davis Department of Entomology. " I am particularly interested in Dr. Scott’s research because the yellow fever mosquito was eradicated from my native country of Brazil in the '70s and is now causing an epidemic by transmitting four serotypes of the dengue virus. His research will help prevention overseas and better surveillance at home."
Scott's current research focuses on the epidemiology and prevention of dengue, a disease commonly found in the tropics, and the ecology of the mosquito, Aedes aegypti, that transmits the virus that causes the disease. Considered the world's worst insect-transmitted virus, dengue has two forms: self-limiting dengue fever (afflicting more than 50 million people annually) and the potentially fatal dengue
haemorrhagic fever (afflicting some 100,000 people a year). Globally, some 3.6 million people are at risk.
Scott maintains dengue field research projects in Khamphaeng Phet, Thailand, Iquitos, Peru, and Tapachula, Mexico. He also researches West Nile virus, transmitted by Culex mosquitoes.
A recognized leader in the area of mosquito-borne diseases, Scott "is a pioneer in using longitudinal, field based studies to generate unprecedented detailed data that test and refine assumptions about a mosquito's role in transmission of viral pathogens," said UC Davis entomology professor James Carey in nominating him for the award.
Scott discovered that Aedes aegypti gains a "fitness advantage" from feeding frequently and preferentially on human blood. Its unusual biting behavior makes "prevention of disease transmitted by this mosquito a formidable challenge for public health officials," Carey noted.
Co-nominator Robert Page Jr., former chair of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and now a founding director and foundation professor at the School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, praised Scott's research, publications and his teaching. Scott
has published more than 140 research papers, mentored numerous graduate students and postdoctoral researchers, and has given more than 35 invited presentations nationally and internationally.
Scott is the principal investigator or collaborator on seven research projects, funded by the National Institutes of Health; Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; and the World Health Organization. Since 1984,
funding--from projects he's been associated with--has totaled $86 million, with $16.7 million going directly to his lab.
Scott received his master's degree in biology from Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, Ohio, and his doctorate in ecology from Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pa. He did post-doctorate work in epidemiology at the Yale School of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, Conn.
Other UC Davis faculty selected as 2007 Fellows are Gang-yu Liu, Department of Chemistry; Bruno Nachtergaele, Department of Mathematics; Peter J. Richerson, Environmental Science and Policy; and David M. Rocke, Public Health Sciences.
The tradition of AAAS Fellows began in 1874. They are nominated and elected by their peers.
AAAS is the world's largest general scientific society, and publisher of the journal, Science. Founded in 1848 to "advance science and serve society," AAAS includes some 262 affiliated societies and academies of science, serving 10 million individuals.
Searchable List of AAAS Fellows
UC Davis Department of Entomology's AAAS Fellows:
James Carey, elected in 2000
Bruce Eldridge, elected in 1981
Walter Leal, elected in 2006
Robert Page (now at Arizona State University), elected in 2006
Thomas Scott, elected in 2007
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--Kathy Keatley Garvey
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