Shaun Davis

Shaun Davis

Assistant Professor

Shaun Davis Shaun Davis official headshot

I am a neurogeneticist who is broadly interested in the how and why natural behaviors exists. I am particularly interested in the biology of fear and how this trait can drive behavioral and physiological adaptations to protect oneself or their offspring from the threat of danger. My work focuses on the interactions between vinegar flies, Drosophila melanogaster, and their natural biological threats from parasitoid wasps. These wasps lay their eggs inside the body of flies and, once hatched, consume the fly from the inside out. My lab aims to uncover the genetic and neuronal basis of how flies detect these threats, and how the range of defensive phenotypic traits are triggered. We are currently investigating altered larval cuticular characteristics and adult oviposition behaviors.

Courses Taught

  • BIOL 236 Molecular and Cell Biology
  • BIOL 314 Genetics
  • BIOL 322 Developmental Biology
  • BIOL 350 Cellular Neuroscience

Areas of Expertise

  • Genetics, Neuroscience, Cell biology, Animal behavior, and Biotechnology

Research Interests

  • Adult fly oviposition changes triggered by exposure to parasitoid wasps
  • Adult brain neurocircuitry involved in wasp detection and behavioral alterations
  • Larval cuticle characteristics to prevent parasitoid wasp attacks

Education

  • PhD – Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine
  • BA – Biology, Lake Forest College

Publications & Articles

  • Cimetta AD, Friesen RS, Davis SM, Bhattacharya MRC. (2025). Neuroscience Vertically Integrated Projects Benefit STEM Student Self-Efficacy and Identity. Scholarship and Practice of Undergraduate Research 8 (3): 21-31. https://doi.org/10.18833/spur/8/3/4
  • Davis SM and Schlenke TA. (2022). Behavioral defenses against parasitoids: genetic and neuronal mechanisms. In Animal Behavior and Parasitism. Ezenwa VO, Altizer S, Hall RJ (Ed.). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780192895561.003.0016
  • Davis SM, Thomas AL, Liu L, Campbell IM, and Dierick HA. (2018). Isolation of aggressive behavior mutants in Drosophila using a screen for wing damage. Genetics 208(1): 273-282. https://doi.org/10.1534/genetics.117.300292