About us

Current Students

The first cohort of Insect Honors students on Carpenter Ridge, September 2011.

	Patrick Lahey - Yang Lab with Louie Yang The project I am working on now involves soil fertility. My question is the following: how does microbial diversity affect plant production? To pursue the answer I am raising my focal plant species, Achyrachaena mollis, in a predominantly sterile soil media. The treatment will be adding soil, and consequently the microbes, of different habitats and a single treatment receiving all three inoculations. I am analyzing the soil to be added to supplement nutrient poor soils to equalize the nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium content across all soil treatments. Depending on the ratio of mutualistic and parasitic interactions between the plant and its introduced microbial diversity the plants productivity is likely to vary.
	Daniel Friedman - Kopp Lab with Olga Barmina I am interested in the genetic basis of sexually dimorphic neural circuits in Drosophila melanogaster. These circuits give rise to sex-specific behavior, and rely heavily on input from sexually dimorphic sensory structures. The primary techniques that I use are microdissection, immunohistochemistry, confocal microscopy, and fly husbandry.
	Shant Stephanian - Dehesh Lab with Changquan Wang The transformation of sugars to ethanol is a very energy intensive process. Our research focuses on reducing that energy loss by utilizing oil biosynthesis pathways in the embryo of oat. My project aims at identifying the genetic switches in glucose utilization for starch synthesis and re-directing the reduced carbon to oil biosynthesis in cereals. Our goal is to transform these genetic switches into other quick growing plants in order to provide a new and viable source of green energy for the future.
	Jason Wei - Hammock Lab with Hua Dong Analysis of lipids from plasma extracted from animal models after treatment with soluble epoxide hydrolase inhibitor (sEHi). Looking at these lipids in relation to lipidomics and pharmacokinetics. Usage of liquid-liquid extraction and solid phase extraction into liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) to separate the lipids from the proteins.
	Don Hoang - Kopp Lab with Joel Atallah I am currently investigating sex comb development in Drosophila melanogaster. Through genetic manipulations and visual analysis the formation of this sexually dimorphic trait is investigated.
	Kristina Tatiossian - Seybold Lab with Steve Seybold I am conducting a behavioral assay using an olfactometer to study the walking behaviors of walnut twig beetles. I will be trying to find out what pheromone concentrations, dilutions, and other variables affect the walking behavior of the beetles.
	Vickie Chung - Chiu Lab with Ying Li I am currently working on transcription factor involved in the circadian rhythm. I am still in the juvenile stage of the project; I still trying to make an antibody specific to my protein. I will analyze its interaction with other proteins and its effect on the circadian rhythm through various assays.
	Sarah Staley - Cornel Lab with Jenny Carlson The overall goal of my research is to assess whether a black fly population from Washington and a mosquito population from Fresno are infected with three genera of parasites (Plasmodium, Leucocytozoan, and Haemoproteus) that cause avian malaria. To accomplish this, I have dissected my samples, performed DNA extractions, and am currently in the process of running nested PCRs (using specific primers that amplify parasite mitochondrial gene sequences). The final step is using gel electrophoresis to check whether parasite DNA is present. The results of my research will provide background information as to the prevalence of these parasites within the suspected vector populations, and will serve as a reference frame for future work measuring the effect of climate and habitat change on parasite transmission.
	Catherine Deng - Hammock Lab with Aaron Wecksler I am currently working with sEH, soluble epoxide hydrolase, a protein that, when inhibited, can improve one’s well-being in many different ways. Inhibition of sEH can lead to reduced inflammation, reduced pain, etc. I am currently purifying the different variations of sEH that are present in people and will learn how their properties differ.
	Alejandro Aguirre - Luckhart Lab with Bo Wang My host lab centers on cell signaling cascades within the innate immune systems of mosquito vectors that have been infected with the malaria-inducing protist Plasmodium falciparum. My post doc specifically studies why inhibition of the p38 immunity protein (a signaling protein that is supposed to be involved immune response) in mosquitoes also inhibits malaria parasite growth. Activities in my position include cell culturing; Western Blots (electrophoresis and protein detection); RNA extraction; mosquito blood feeding, aspiration, and dissection; and polymerase chain reaction (PCR); with possibility of other techniques. Other labmember projects include co-infections of malaria with other diseases including diabetes, HIV/AIDS, and Salmonella. Good matches for this lab might include those interested in biomedical research: immunology, diseases, cell biology, microbiology, entomology, or biochemistry and molecular biology. This would also be a good biomedical lab experience on a resumé for those considering medical school or an MD/PhD dual degree.
	Liza Luchkovska - Hammock Lab with Guodong Zhang I am a second year biochemistry major currently working in Bruce Hammock's Lab with Guodong Zhang. Our research forcuses on experimenting with various lipid mediators and their impacts on angiogenesis, as it pertains to the growth of cells and the spread of cancer tissue. We are also studying tumor growth and metastasis, both in vitro on a cellular level and in mice.
	Rebecca Campbell - Reisen Lab with Tara Thiemann We extract DNA from the bloodmeal of Culex sp. mosquitoes in California to analyze the host they fed upon. We are seeking to identify the feeding patterns of the mosquitoes based on location and time of year in Sutter and Yuba counties. This data will also be compared with WNV prevalence of a region to see what affect the feeding patterns of the mosquitoes has upon virus prevalence at each site.