THE GAZETTE

BRAVO! Introduces Vaclav Hypsa...

A large number of BRAVO! introductory articles certainly have been published in this bulletin. It is my great pleasure now to add another chapter to it, and an even greater pleasure to visit the University of Arizona in the spring. In 1996, I began a trip around the southwest US with a three-day visit to Tucson, and since then I recall Tucson and Arizona as one of the most enjoyable places I have ever been. Although this in itself might serve as a good reason to return one day, I must confess that the main purpose of my visit is rather more professional. I always knew that the Center for Insect Science is an institution with an eminent scientific reputation, so I did not hesitate a moment when I was offered a chance to apply for a visit under the auspices of BRAVO!

	The Insititute of Parasitology at Ceske Budejovice

Since my graduation in 1988 from Charles University in Prague with a degree in parasitology, I have been interested in parasitic arthropods. During my PhD studies and research at the Institute of Parasitology of the Czech Academy of Sciences in Ceske Budejovice, I split my research activities into two fields: the function and significance of lectins in bloodsucking insects, and the relationship between insects and symbiotic bacteria, particularly their phylogeny and evolution. The latter field underwent after almost a century of descriptive agony, a great change and development thanks to new molecular and phylogenetic methods. In 1996, after a six-month fellowship at the Center of Molecular Parasitology, Yale University, I finally decided on the molecular evolution and phylogeny as the main topic of my research. No wonder I was delighted when I was given the opportunity to work in Dr. Nancy Moran's laboratory (Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology) -- one of the top laboratories in this field.

Soon after I left Charles University and began working at the Institute of Parasitology, I realized how important and inspirational it was to be in touch with young people and the university spirit. When the Faculty of Biological Science was established as part of the University of South Bohemia at Ceske Budejovice in 1992, I took the first opportunity to become part of the faculty. Currently, I work in the Department of Parasitology and lecture on the biology of parasitism and of parasitic arthropods. Three of my students are preparing theses on the molecular phylogeny of bloodsucking insects and their symbionts. I am delighted the main purpose of BRAVO! is a collaboration with students, and I am really looking forward to meeting new people -- talking, working and sharing with them.

However exciting the profession may be, I strongly believe one needs to relax from time to time. I love painting, and I hope I will have a chance to create a few paintings of the Sonoran Desert, which is so different from anything else I have ever seen and tried to transfer to canvas. Besides this quiet and reasonably safe hobby, I discovered scuba diving a few years ago and became addicted. We go to the Adriatic Sea with our students each year and organize a lecture on the biology of marine invertebrates. It is unnecessary to say that it is always tempting for any scuba diver to visit places like the Mexican Gulf!

Vaclav Hypsa, BRAVO! Foreign Faculty Sponsor, The Czech Republic

Note: Dr. Hypsa will be arriving at the UA in March 3, 1998.

GAZETTE Front Page