Kaiming Tan, an undergraduate working with Professor Walter Leal at the UC Davis Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, recently put a home-brewed clove repellent to the test against DEET. Their paper was just published in PLOS One.

While we know certain plant-derived compounds act as insect repellents, much of the molecular science behind insect olfaction remains a mystery. In a study published in iScience, UC Davis researchers exposed further layers of complexity in the mosquito olfactory system.

To inform pest management techniques and fight threats like Citrus Greening disease, Walter Leal and his colleagues use reverse chemical ecology to identify sex pheromones in insects. From Brazil to Japan to Davis, Calif., Leal's research path has been unique. 

Ian Haydon’s entrance into science writing occurred in whirlwind fashion. As a graduate student, he was intent on obtaining a Ph.D. but also knew he was more interested in careers outside of academic research. He then found science writing.

A new study appearing in Molecular Ecology delves into the sexual selection behaviors of Leach's storm-petrels, a seabird that may be able to sniff out a suitable mate.