New Breed of Scientists

William C. Reeves (1916-2004) would have been proud.

Remember William "Bill" Reeves? A renowned entomologist, professor and dean at UC Berkeley, he was widely regarded as the world's foremost authority on the spread and control of mosquito-borne diseases.

His legendary work continues in the form of the William C. Reeves New Investigator Award, a statewide award given to the best scientific paper submitted and presented at the annual Mosquito and Vector Control Association of California conference.

This year the winner of the Reeves New Investigator Award holds special significance.

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Tara Thiemann, the 2010 recipient of the Reeves New Investigator Award, studies with Reisen, her major professor.

Thiemann, a doctoral candidate in the UC Davis Department of Entomology, won the award for her work,  “Evaluating Trap Bias in Blood Meal Identification Studies,” She received $1000 and a plaque at the 78th annual MVCAC meeting, held in Sacramento.

Thiemann’s research involves analyzing the blood meals of Culex mosquitoes throughout California and identifying host prevalence and feeding patterns.

This is crucial research, as infected Culex mosquitoes transmit West Nile virus and other killer diseases.

Thiemann, who joined the Entomology Graduate Program in 2004, received her bachelor's and master's degree in biology from Truman State University, Kirksville, Mo.  In 2008 she won a William Hazeltine Student Research Fellowship for her Culex mosquito studies.

Two other graduate students, also affiliated with CVEC, received second and third-place awards in the Reeves New Investigator Award competition.

M. Veronica Armijos, a doctoral student in comparative pathology, won second place with her presentation on “Distribution and Prevalence of Novel Flaviviruses in California.” She received $500.

Christy Andrade, a doctoral candidate in the Microbiology Graduate Group, won third for her presentation on "Effect of Temperature on West Nile Virus Replication in Different Host Cell Types:  Potential for Altered Transmission Cycles in California." She received $250.

The students are advised by Reisen and Aaron Brault of the CVEC faculty. Brault is an adjunct associate professor in the Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology, UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, and a research microbiologist, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

CVEC faculty member Bruce Eldridge, emeritus professor of entomology and former director of the UC Mosquito Research Program--and also one of Reeves' colleagues--presented the awards.