Principal Investigator

Amro Zayed is a Professor of Biology and York University’s Research Chair in Genomics. He completed his doctorate in Biology (PhD 2006) at York University, then held a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada’s Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Illinois’ Department of Entomology (2006-2008). Dr. Zayed later served as a Fellow for the Institute for Genomic Biology’s Genomics of Neural & Behavioral Plasticity Theme at the University of Illinois (2008-2009). Dr. Zayed rejoined York University’s Department of Biology in 2009, where he leads a research program on the genetics, genomics and behaviour of social insects using the honey bee as a model organism. Zayed received the Governor General’s Gold Medal in 2007, the Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation’s Early Researcher Award in 2010, and the Faculty of Science’s Early Career Researcher Award in 2014, a York Research Chair in 2015, and YorkU’s President Emerging Research Leadership Award in 2017. He was recently awarded the Entomological Society of Canada’s Gordon C. Hewitt Award for outstanding contributions to the field of entomology.

Amro Zayed is a Professor of Biology and York Research Chair in Genomics at York University. His research explores the evolutionary, behavioural, and conservation genomics of social insects, using bees to understand how complex societies evolve and respond to environmental change. His group connects fundamental discoveries about genetics and behaviour with practical approaches to improving honey bee health and conserving wild pollinators.

Dr. Zayed earned his PhD in Biology with distinction from York University in 2006. He subsequently held an NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowship in the University of Illinois’ Department of Entomology (2006–2008) and a fellowship at its Institute for Genomic Biology (2008–2009). He returned to York in 2009 to establish his research group.

He has authored approximately 100 publications, including research in Science, Nature, Nature Reviews Genetics, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, and Current Biology. He has led or co-led research grants collectively valued at more than CAD $23 million, including the $9.9-million BeeCSI project to develop molecular tools for assessing honey bee health. He also co-leads the Honeybee Pangenome Project with collaborators at the United States Department of Agriculture.

Dr. Zayed established and served as the inaugural Director of York’s Centre for Bee Ecology, Evolution and Conservation (BEEc). He has served as President of the Entomological Society of Ontario and contributes expert advice to federal committees on pollinator health. An active mentor and science communicator, he has trained more than 100 undergraduate researchers and delivered over 90 invited presentations nationally and internationally.

His honours include the Governor General’s Academic Gold Medal (2007), Ontario’s Early Researcher Award (2010), York’s Faculty of Science Early Career Researcher Award (2014), the Entomological Society of Canada’s C. Gordon Hewitt Award (2016), York’s President’s Emerging Research Leadership Award (2017), and York’s Postdoctoral Supervisor Award (2023).

Current Lab Members

• Dr. Christopher Allen — Postdoctoral Fellow. Honey bee population genomics.
• Hadil Elsayed — PhD student. Effects of landscape protection on biodiversity.
• Mariana Rodriguez Lopez — PhD student. Effects of air pollution on bee biology.
• Aidan Jamieson — PhD student. Genetics and molecular biology of honey bee detoxification.
• Wakely Jibb — MSc student. Investigating larval locomotion under starvation in honey bees.
• Maria Camila Garcia Zapata — MSc student. Genetics of grooming behaviour in honey bees.

A few of our alumni

• Dr. Brock Harpur — MSc and PhD, Biology. Associate Professor, Department of Entomology, Purdue University, USA.
• Dr. Kathleen Dogantzis — MSc and PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow. Postdoctoral Associate, University of Calgary, and Visiting Scholar, National Research Council Canada.
• Dr. Nadia Tsvetkov — MSc and PhD, Biology. Postdoctoral Fellow, Foster Lab, University of British Columbia.
• Kathryn Galang — MSc, Biology. Associate Medical Manager, Biogen Canada.
• Caroline Ritchie — MSc, Biology. PhD student, Schott Lab, Department of Biology, York University.
• Dr. Matthew Betti — Postdoctoral Fellow. Associate Professor, Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Mount Allison University.
  
• Dr. Mateus Pepinelli — Research Associate and Postdoctoral Fellow. Assistant Professor, School of Natural Sciences, Laurentian University.
  
• Dr. Syed Abbas Bukhari — Postdoctoral Fellow. Staff Scientist, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, USA.
  
• Dr. Sydney Wizenberg — Postdoctoral Fellow. Postdoctoral Fellow, Evolutionary Ecology, Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Netherlands.
  
• Dr. Sarah French — Postdoctoral Fellow. Research Analyst, Ecosystem and Climate Science, Toronto and Region Conservation Authority.
  
• Dr. Alivia Dey — Postdoctoral Fellow and Research Project Manager. Research Project Manager, Simon Fraser University.

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