PhD student
email: iman.j.muktar@durham.ac.uk
I completed my integrated masters (MBiol) at Durham University. My project investigated anatomy of the olfactory system in bumblebees of different species, local to Durham, UK. I presented a poster with the results of this project at the Federation of European Neuroscience Societies conference in Paris in July 2022. The attendance of this conference (my first international conference) was funded via the BNA scholar programme. Through my previous summer studentship and MBiol project, I have come to enjoy the lab environment and support research student developing the lab skills. I continued to develop my experimental neuroscience skills through a 4-months lab technician position in summer 2022, working on a project that investigated olfactory coding in Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes. I used transgenic mosquitoes to conduct live calcium imaging on olfactory receptor neurons, to investigate how they respond to behaviourally repellent compounds. I was awarded the BBSRC NLD DTP PhD studentship, and started my PhD in October 2022. During my PhD, I will continue my work on the olfactory coding of larval and adult mosquitoes. This project will focus on identifying olfactory receptors and cells that sense pheromones candidates in genetical modified adult mosquitoes. The project will also investigate pheromone-mediated behaviours in Anopheles gambiae. I look forward to working on this important insect that transmits deadly malaria, and the potential of investigating new strategies for vector control.