There isn't much that she can't do or hasn't done!
UC Davis alumna Nazzy Pakpour is a PhD, a biotech company founder, an entomologist, a children's book author, a mother of two children, a former professor and a research scientist.
Pakpour, co-founder and chief executive officer of Yeast Bay Bio, will present a seminar hosted by the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology on "Curiosity Made the Scientist" at 12:10 p.m., Wednesday, March 11 in 122 Briggs Hall.
It also will be on Zoom. The link: https://ucdavis.zoom.us/j/95882849672
Pakpour, who grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and now lives in Davis, will chart her unique, non-linear career path from academia to founding a biotech venture. She will begin by discussing her foundational years at UC Davis, both as an entomology undergraduate and later as a postdoctoral researcher, and explain how her subsequent tenure as a professor at California State University (CSU), East Bay, fueled her passion for applied science.
She will then detail her pivot from university life to industry, covering her experiences as a research scientist at Novonesis and the critical lessons learned while launching her current company, Yeast Bay Bio..
"I will walk through the scientific and entrepreneurial path that led to the founding of Yeast Bay Bio, a startup developing species specific home pest control using RNA interference delivered in yeast," she said. "I will unpack the science behind the technology, describe the earliest steps of turning a research idea into a potential product, and explain why building a company is somehow both simpler and far more complicated than it first appears."
Pakpour quipped that "I decided the best way to kill cockroaches might be to start a biotech company."
Pakpour, who holds a bachelor of science degree in entomology, with a minor in English (1999) from UC Davis, received her doctorate in microbiology, virology and parasitology in 2008 from the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.
She co-founded Yeast Bay Bio, headquartered in Davis, in 2025. On her website, she writes that she started the company "because I believe our homes should be safe, healthy spaces that are not filled with toxic chemicals. I’ve always been fascinated by bugs and microbiology, and now I get to combine those passions to build an innovative yeast-based solution that controls insect pests without harming people, pets, or the planet."
"We are developing powerful, species-specific biocontrols using innovative yeast technology. Finally, you can eliminate pests from your home without the risk to people, pets, or the surrounding ecosystem."
Pakpour served as a postdoctoral scholar and project scientist in the UC Davis School of Medicine laboratory of mosquito researcher Shirley Luckhart from 2008-2015. Her career then took her to CSU, East Bay, where she became an assistant professor in the Department of Biological Sciences from 2015 to 2021. Next: senior scientist with Novonesis (formerly Novozymes), Davis. Her research involved molecular engineering of yeast, fungal, and bacterial species; optimization and scale-up of microbial fermentation processes, including parameter development for improved titer, yield, and productivity.
On her website, Pakpour relates "I love bugs of all varieties, whether they are six-legged or microscopic. I once spent a summer doing tarantula feedings at the Smithsonian Insect Zoo!" She has also volunteered for years at the Bohart Museum of Entomology. Read her full story in the UC Davis Alumni newsletter.
The entomologist is the author of the children's book, 'Please Don't Bite Me!' Of the book, she writes; "Mosquitos, wasps, flies and fleas… Buzzing, biting, and causing irritating lumps on your skin. But what if there is more to these irritating insects than meets the eye This question and more are answered in this book that explores the lives of some of the most irritating buzzing, biting and stinging insects."
For more information on the UC Davis seminar or to resolve any technical Zoom issues, contact seminar coordinator Marshall McMunn, assistant professor at https://ucdavis.zoom.us/j/95882849672.
Cover image: Nazzy Pakpour at Bohart Museum of Entomology. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)