MONTREAL — Alexandra Cohen, a 16-year-old Grade 11 student at St. George’s School, captured the top prize at the recent Hydro-Québec Regional Science and Technology Fair held at John Abbott College.
With her project, titled INGAP Circles Around Diabetes, she won first prize for best overall project and the gold medal for best senior project, which is accompanied by an invitation to represent Canada at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) in Los Angeles May 11 to 16.
The Intel ISEF is the world’s largest international pre-college science competition, providing an annual forum for more than 1,600 high school students from over 70 countries to showcase their independent research and compete for more than $4 million in awards.
Cohen also won a Université Laval scholarship worth $1,000.
“While insulin was a major advance in the treatment of diabetes, it comes with its own risks and is not the perfect treatment,” Cohen said. “Some of the most meaningful interactions I have had throughout the science fair process have been with people who suffer from diabetes, because I can directly see the hope on their faces that research is progressing with new treatment options.”
Her project examined a novel treatment for diabetes. She investigated a stem cell-like treatment called Islet NeoGenesis Associated Protein (INGAP), which regenerates the insulin-producing pancreatic cells, but has a short half-life.
Her goal was to improve the efficacy of INGAP by experimenting with an altered structure of this protein, and her results have been successful thus far.
The study was conducted in the laboratory of Dr. Lawrence Rosenberg at the Lady Davis Institute of the JGH.
“The entire science fair process is an amazing and enriching experience for me,” Cohen said. “I am so honoured to receive these awards and opportunities, and to represent Montreal and St. George’s School at the international level.
“I am very grateful to my mentor, Dr. Rosenberg, and his incredible team of researchers, as well as to the entire science department at St. George’s for their encouragement throughout this process.”
Cohen said her goal in planning this study was to improve the quality of the lives of people with chronic illnesses by investigating an area of interest to her, stem cell types of therapy.
“If the time and energy that I’ve devoted to this research adds even one step in the chain that leads to further advances, I will have achieved my goal,” she said.
Cohen also attended the Provincial Science Fair in Terrebonne April 9 to 13, winning a bronze medal and a $3,000 scholarship to McGill University. She will be studying health sciences at Marianopolis College next fall.