Top Prizes for Biotech Awarded at State Science Fair
The Virginia Biotechnology Association (VaBIO) presented awards at the 2008 Virginia State Science and Engineering Fair on Saturday, April 12, 2008, at George Mason University in Fairfax. The awards were presented in the name of the Chesapeake Bioscience Education Foundation (C-BEF), a new initiative of VaBIO. The volunteer judges studied the abstracts prior to their arrival at the Fair and then voted on the top six projects to interview one-on-one.
After talking with each of the students, the judges made their final selections:
First Place: Erin Kim, 11th Grade
“Engineering of Stayphylococcus aureus Sortase A to improve protein detection and localization” (13005)
Category: Biochemistry
Region: Mathematics and Science High School, Clover Hill, Richmond
–Erin also won second place overall for biochemistry.
Second Place: Hannah Meredith, 12th Grade
“A Wound with No Scar: Perfecting the Wound Healing Process” (19004)
Category: Engineering: Materials and Bioengineering
Region: Mathematics and Science High School, Clover Hill, Richmond
–Hannah also won first place overall for engineering and biomaterials plus awards from the U.S. Army and the National Society of Professional Engineers.
Third Place: Arun Dutta, 9th Grade
“An Inhibitor for Cells’ Response To DNA Damage” (14001)
Category: Cellular and Molecular Biology
Region: Western Albemarle High School, Charlottesville
–Arun also won second place overall for cellular and microbiology.
Thank you to our VaBIO Judges:J. Patrick Vandersluis (chair), CEO, HealthRX; Jeff Conroy, Adjuvant; Matt Latimer, Latimer, Mayberry & Matthews IP Law, LLP; Mark Herzog, Virginia Biotechnology Association; Marshall Ferrin, George Mason University; Nasir U. Ahmed, Janelia Campus, HHMI; and Gary Fletcher, Chesapeake Bioscience Education Foundation.
To view all of the winning student abstracts, please visit the Virginia Bioscience Blog.