Suwanee Student Wins Regional Science Competition at Georgia Tech

A Suwanee students is one of three who were named national finalists after earning top spots in the Siemens Competition in Math, Science & Technology this past weekend.

The competition is considered the nation's premier science research competition for high school students and seeks to promote excellence by encouraging students to undertake either an individual or team research project.

Jasmin Gao, of Suwanee, and her teammate, Rose Hong, of San Diego, California, will share a $6,000 scholarship prize for taking the top spot in the team competition.

Their research focused on replacing injured dental tissue and restoring function to teeth after severe damage.

Another Georgia student, Alexander Kirov, of Evans, earned top individual honors for research on uncovering the mechanism of the progression of Alzheimer's disease.

They won out of a field of 96 students overall selected to compete in regional competitions across the country this month. Those 96 came out of a pool of more than 1,600 projects submitted for the competition this year.

The students presented their research this weekend to a panel of judges at Georgia Tech, host of the Region Six finals.

These regional winners are now moving on to the final phase of the Siemens Competition to present their work at the National Finals in Washington, D.C. on December 5-6.

There will be $500,000 in scholarships awarded at nationals, including two top prizes of $100,000.

"These student projects are evidence of great teaching in our schools today," said David Etzwiler, CEO of the Siemens Foundation. "These are high school students presenting advanced research that is helping to solve real problems. That’s pretty amazing."

The Siemens Competition, launched in 1999 by the Siemens Foundation, was established to increase access to higher education for students who are gifted in STEM and is based on a culture of innovation, research and educational support.

Gao and Hong's project was titled "Effects of Fibrin Gel Scaffolds and Dexamethasone on the Differentiation of Human Dental Pulp Stem Cells for Applications in Regenerative Endodontics."

The team discovered that fibrin, a protein that forms during blood clots, effectively promotes the growth and differentiation of dental pulp stem cells. Their research presents a promising step toward the replacement of injured dental tissue and the restoration of its biological function.

"Rose and Jasmin’s research is an important contribution to the field of restorative dentistry, and to our understanding of how to treat severe dental injuries and trauma," said competition judge Dr. Shuyi Nie, Assistant Professor of Biology at the Georgia Institute of Technology. "Their project could ultimately lead to improved treatment of dental trauma and save teeth that would otherwise be lost under traditional root canal procedures."

Jasmin Gao is a senior at Northview High School in Johns Creek, and is active in student government, mock trial, and the Junior Classical League.

One of her proudest achievements to date, she says, is founding Girls in STEM, an organization that provides free STEM classes to young girls and empowers them to defy gender roles.

Photo courtesy Siemens