Biological Chemistry

Emma Weeks

Career summary

2000 – 2003    BSc Zoology University of Swansea, UK.
2003 – 2005    Laboratory Technician, Becton and Dickinson, UK. Responsibilities: tissue culture, cell testing and microbiology.
2005 – 2006    MSc Biology and Control of Disease Vectors, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Taught masters including a field based research project ‘Evaluation of methods for monitoring domestic infestation and detection of sylvatic populations of Triatoma dimidiata in Guatemala’.
2007    Research Scientist, Biological Chemistry Department, Rothamsted Research. Responsibilities: insect rearing (mosquitoes and tsetse flies), analytical chemistry and assisted in research projects on differential attraction of humans to the yellow fever mosquito, Aedes aegypti, repellency trials with both Aedes aegypti in the laboratory and Culicoides midges in the field, in Scotland.
2007 – present PhD Student, Biological Chemistry Department, Rothamsted Research. PhD                     project ‘Identification of semiochemicals for bedbug, Cimex lectularius (Cimicidae), monitoring and control’.

Research Interests

Since finishing my undergraduate degree in Zoology I have had a strong interest in Entomology, specifically in the interactions between humans and insects whether beneficial or detrimental. I am a dedicated medical entomologist and have completed a masters degree in the subject of biology and control of disease vectors which has allowed me to specialise in this area. I have a passion for the study of neglected tropical diseases vectored by insects in particular the Triatominae/Chaga’s disease system in South America. During my masters I completed my research project in Guatemala evaluating sampling methods for monitoring of a native Triatominae species for the Centre for Disease Control and prevention (CDC). In addition, since starting at Rothamsted in 2007 I have been working within the chemical ecology group and have developed a good understanding and keen interest in insect chemical ecology. Before starting my PhD I assisted in chemical ecology studies of a variety of medically important insects including the yellow fever mosquito Aedes aegypti and more recently the common bed bug Cimex lectularius. Currently I am working exclusively with bed bugs for my PhD. My project involves the use of the latest techniques in chemical ecology to identify putative semiochemicals that could be used to monitor and/or control this pest through behavioural manipulation. I am using laboratory-based behavioural experiments, coupled gas chromatography-electroantennography and analytical chemistry (including GC and GC-mass spectrometry) to give a better understanding of how bed bugs use semiochemicals and how they could be exploited for control.

Achievements
2003    Ellis Wyn Knight Jones prize in Zoology, University of Swansea.
2006    Distinction, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
2008    Poster presentation prize, 3rd, ENTO ’08, Royal Entomological Society National Meeting 2008 ‘Chemical ecology of the bedbug, Cimex lectularius (Cimicidae)’.
2009    Oral presentation prize, 1st, ENTO ’09, Royal Entomological Society National Meeting 2009 ‘The search for bed bug pheromones: a behavioural and electrophysiological study of the common bed bug, Cimex lectularius’.

Photo album

Aggregating bed bugs, my PhD focuses on identification of semiochemicals used for conspecific location for aggregation behaviour.

Electroantennography with bed bugs, the bed bug antenna is used as a detector to identify potential semiochemicals from an extract or to test potential attractants.

At ENTO ’08 with my poster for which I won 3rd prize

Setting up pheromone traps in Uruguay with University of Montevideo during a trip to visit a chemical ecology group in the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Field trials testing midge repellents in Loch Ness, with competitors of the First Monster Challenge 2008