Two UC Davis students from Livermore and Davis both recently netted a total of three prestigious awards for research and service. Sophomore Nicole Sadler of Livermore and junior Eisha Zaid of Davis are both recipients of the Goldwater Scholarship, a $7,500 award given to exceptional, high-achieving students who plan a career in research. Zaid also received a Donald A. Strauss Scholarship, a $10,000 award given to an outstanding junior who is planning to participate in a senior-year community service project.

The students will be recognized at a campus reception on the afternoon of Wednesday, May 17.

Zaid says that she applied for the Goldwater and Strauss Scholarships because they reflect the two halves of her personality: the problem-solver and the humanitarian. After experiencing the personal effects of breast cancer in her family, Zaid, a genetics major and Regents Scholar, became especially passionate about cancer research. She is currently studying the regulation of a protein involved in apoptosis, or programmed cell death, in breast cancer cells in associate professor Maria Mudrjy's medical microbiology and immunology lab.

"To call myself a student researcher is an honor," Zaid says. "I hope I can contribute to that pool of knowledge about understanding how breast cancer works on the cellular level." Zaid also helps foster her peers' understanding of biology as a teaching assistant for an introductory biology course. "I find the key is to use humor," says Zaid, in explaining the material to her peers. "I really try to bring it to life for them. I love to see the light bulbs go on in their heads."

As a Strauss Scholarship winner, Zaid will pursue her service project at the Shifa Clinic, one of the student-run clinics in Sacramento affiliated with the UC Davis School of Medicine. Zaid became involved in the clinic three years ago to give back to the community, and also use her knowledge of Urdu and Punjabi languages to connect directly with Shifa's South Asian patient base. "The stories I hear touch my life," she says. "I approached this project thinking, 'How can I help these patients?'"

Zaid plans to coordinate a monitoring program for Shifa's diabetic patients, which will provide patients with glucometers and language-specific educational material. "My goal is to empower patients to take control of their health." Zaid hopes that many other student volunteers will become involved with her project, ultimately sustaining it as part of the clinic's diabetes program. Working on challenging real-life problems with other students has helped turn the clinic into part of Zaid's extended family. She enjoys acting as the clinic's event photographer.

Looking ahead, Zaid hopes to pursue a medical degree and doctorate with an interest in gynecologic oncology. She says that the personal journey of becoming a researcher and clinic member has helped her develop patience, confidence and optimism. "It's the life experiences that teach me most about myself," she says. "I find that the most important thing is to do what you love."

Sadler says that growing up in a town with two national laboratories -- the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and the Sandia National Laboratories -- provided her with a wealth of scientific role models. Her first exposure to the world of genetics was at the age of 12 during an Expanding Your Horizons scientific conference. Using DNA analysis to identify a murderer at a mock crime scene investigation sparked Sadler's interest and set her down the path to become a future genetics major.

After enrolling at UC Davis, Sadler channeled her interest in genetics into hands-on experience. She currently researches the genetic basis of the symbiotic relationship between legumes and nitrogen-fixing bacteria in professor Douglas Cook's plant pathology lab. "You're like Sherlock Holmes trying to figure out a mystery," says Sadler of her interest in research. "I'm patient enough to sit there for days if I have to, trying to figure out a problem. And once you find the answer, it's really rewarding."

Sadler, like Zaid, is a Regents Scholar who also leads a discussion section as a teaching assistant -- in the same introductory biology course. "I like helping people. Being a TA increased my confidence and my ability to speak in front of people," she says, skills that will undoubtedly help her in her planned future career either as a professor or researcher in a government laboratory.

She recently received a U.S. Department of Homeland Security Scholarship, which grants her full college tuition and two years of paid summer internships at the national laboratory of her choice. She hopes to pursue a doctorate and use her interest in research to discover cures for human genetic disorders.