June 8, 2009
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| Zain Syed and Izumi Maezawa (center) were named the 2009 UC Davis outstanding postdoctoral research scholars from a pool of 800 postdoctoral scholars and 12 finalists. From left are Jeffery Gibeling, dean of Graduate Studies; neuropathologist and neuroscientist Lee-Way Jin, who is Maezawa's mentor; postdoctoral scholars Maezawa and Syed; chemical ecologist Walter Leal, mentor for Zain Syed; and
Joanna Friesner, chair of the Postdoctoral Scholars' Association. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey) |
DAVIS—Chemical ecologist Zainulabeuddin “Zain” Syed, who helped discover the mode of action for the insect repellent DEET in the Walter Leal laboratory at the University of California, Davis, has received a coveted campuswide award for excellence in postdoctoral research.
The sixth annual award, sponsored by the UC Davis Postdoctoral Scholars’ Association and the Office of Graduate Studies, is given annually to “up to two postdocs” for outstanding research accomplishments.
Also receiving an award was Izumi Maezawa of the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, UC Davis Health System, who works with neuropathologist Lee-Way Jin. (See sidebar below.)
Each received a certificate and $500 at a recent ceremony in the University Club. Syed and Maezawa were among the 12 finalists from a pool of 800 postdocs at UC Davis. Of the postdocs, 71 percent are from overseas and 41 percent are women, noted Jeffery Gibeling, dean of Graduate Studies.
“I can’t imagine anyone more deserving of this honor than Zain since the award is to recognize the vital role that postdoctoral scholars play in maintaining the reputation of excellent research at UC Davis,” Leal said following the ceremony. “During his four years in Davis, Zain has demonstrated his commitment to excellence in science, particularly with last year’s publication in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science showing how the insect repellent DEET works.
“Zain has an encyclopedic knowledge of the literature and he designs well-thought experiments,” said Leal, also praising him as “a good mentor to students in the department, college and elsewhere on campus.”
Zain’s research involves understanding the sensory physiological basis of host and habitat selection of blood and plant-feeding insects.
Judges scored the 12 finalists on their outstanding research accomplishments, including innovation in research and impact on the field, research productivity and quality as a UC Davis postdoctoral scholar. Each finalist also submitted an abstract of research accomplishments, a curriculum vitae, up to two additional letters of support, and supporting materials, including up to three reprints of publications.
“Zain is the type of postdoc that every principal investigator dreams about one day having in their own laboratory,” wrote professor Gabrielle Nevitt of Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior, College of Biological Sciences, in her letter of support. “He is a dynamo, a maverick and an inspiration to be around….he is one of the most talented, smart and inquisitive individuals I have come across at UC Davis.”
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| Members of the Walter Leal lab congratulate Zain Syed on his award. From left are Walter Leal, professor of entomology; Zhao Liu, graduate student; Zain Syed; Julien Pelletier, postdoctoral scholar; and Wei Xu, ag chemistry graduate student. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey) |
Professor Penelope Gullan, who supported the nomination, said: "As a faculty member in the same department as Dr. Syed, I have watched his research progress and accomplishments over the past four years. His recent achievements have been truly outstanding in terms of significant research findings and publications in highly rated journals."
The Leal-Syed groundbreaking research unveiled why mosquitoes avoid DEET. They found that DEET doesn’t jam the smell of mosquitoes or mask the smell of the host, as previously surmised for the past 50 years. Mosquitoes actually smell the repellent and avoid it because “it smells bad,” the chemical ecologists said. Their research identified the olfactory receptor neuron in the antenna that detects the repellent. Their work led to one of the most popular research articles ever published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). The research paper has been loaded 9317 times from August 2008 through April 2009.
Colleagues hailed the research as not only pinning down the elusive mode of action of DEET but giving new direction to the development of novel and promising insect repellents. Globally, more than 200 million use DEET to ward off vectorborne diseases.
Syed, who joined the Leal lab in 2005, also researches the function of pheromone binding proteins in insects that are detrimental to agricultural crops and livestock. Noted neurobiologist John Hildebrand of the University of Arizona, nominated their research, “Pheromone Reception in Fruit Flies Expressing a Moth’s Odorant Receptor,” published in PNAS in 2006, for the “Faculty of 1000.”
Other key work by Leal and Syed involves pest control of the Culex mosquito, which transmits West Nile disease. The scientists published a paper on “Maxillary Palps in Culex quinquefasciatus Say (Diptera: Culicidae): Broad Spectrum Detectors for Host and Habitat-Related Chemostimuli” in the journal Chemical Senses in 2007.
A native of India, Syed received his bachelor of science degree in combined sciences (botany, zoology and chemistry) and his master’s degree in agricultural entomology from universities in India. He earned his doctorate in sensory physiology and behavior at the University of Neuchâtel, Switzerland.
Izumi Maezawa: Researching Alzheimer's Disease and Autism
Outstanding postdoctoral scholar Izumi Maezawa (see above) received her doctorate from the University of Washington, Seattle, studying Alzheimer’s disease. She joined the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, UC Davis Health System, in 2005. She works in a lab in the M.I.N.D. Institute (Medical Investigation of Neurodevelopmental Disorders, an international, multidisciplinary research organization).
Of her work: “She found a few candidate compounds for the treatment of Alzeheimer’s disease,” said neuropathologist and mentor Lee-Way Jin, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor, M.I.N.D. Institute and Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, UC Davis Health System.“ She discovered glia cell abnormalities in Rett syndrome, an autism spectrum disorder. Her finding points to a new direction of autism research.”
Maezawa's work, published in the Journal of Neuroscience, demonstrates a novel astrocyte-based mechanism for disease onset in Rett syndrome with implications for autism. |
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--Kathy Keatley Garvey
Communications specialist
UC Davis Department of Entomology
(530) 754-6894
