Posts Tagged: DEET

Unraveling the Mystery of DEET

You spray DEET on your arms, and those pesky mosquitoes leave you alone. It works. However,  not everyone wants to use DEET, a synthetic insect repellent. There's that smell, for one thing. "Properties that people do not like in addition to the...

UC Davis scientists in the Walter Leal lab have discovered the odorant receptor in the Culex mosquito that repels DEET. From left are project scientist Pingxi Xu; postdoctoral scholar Young-Moo Choo; AgChem graduate student Alyssa De La Rosa; and Professor Leal. (Photo credit: Academic Technology Services/Mediaworks)

UC Davis scientists in the Walter Leal lab have discovered the odorant receptor in the Culex mosquito that repels DEET. From left are project scientist Pingxi Xu; postdoctoral scholar Young-Moo Choo; AgChem graduate student Alyssa De La Rosa; and Professor Leal. (Photo credit: Academic Technology Services/Mediaworks)

A Dynamo, a Maverick and an Inspiration

 The competition was fierce. We're talking 800 postdoctoral scholars on the UC Davis campus, 12 finalists and two winners. Chemical ecologist Zain Syed, who helped discover the mode of action...

Congratulations!

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)

Blood-fed mosquito

BLOOD-FED MOSQUITO, Culex quinquefasciatus, in the Walter Leal lab, UC Davis Department of Entomology. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The Secret's Out

We know it works, but how? Just how does DEET work? Does it jam the senses of a mosquito? Does it mask the smell  of the host? You spray the chemical repellent on your arm and thankfully, those darn skeeters leave you alone.  They need a...

Culex quinquefasciatus, the Southern house mosquito, finishes feeding on non-DEET treated skin. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

UC Davis researcher Zain Syed (right) sprays DEET on the arm of chemical ecologist Walter Leal. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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