Wheeling High Accepts Abbott Challenge

Researchers from Abbott met with more than 350 biology and business students on Feb. 4 to offer the teens a challenge. Abbott representatives explained the process of bringing a pharmaceutical to market and the obstacles that must be addressed, including spending millions of dollars and years of research in order to discover a molecule compound or antibody that will safely treat a medical need.     

Wheeling High School students will spend the spring semester researching the problem assigned by Abbott Labs to explore the use of biomarkers in pharmaceutical research and development. In recent years, pharmaceutical research has focused on these biomarkers, which can be used to evaluate the likelihood of a pharmaceutical's success in clinical trials. Projecting the successful use of a particular compound has the potential to offset the cost of drug development.      

Determining the therapeutic and diagnostic areas on which to focus biomarker research can be challenging, but the students at Wheeling High School are up for the task.  The students will be investigating this problem and will present their findings and recommendations to representatives from Abbott Labs in the coming months.     

In his comments to students, WHS principal Lazaro Lopez emphasized that this is another example of the school's commitment to preparing students using STEM (Science-Technology-Engineering-Mathematics) concepts through "classroom experiences of real work for the real world."     

Abbott is partnering with the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy (IMSA) and the iBIO Institute for the Illinois Innovations Talent project. The project the students will be completing is a result of the school's selection as the recipient of the Illinois Innovation Talent Grant (ILIT).     

The professionals who participated in the presentation at WHS included Arlene Manelli, research assistant, Abbott Labs; Lucinda Dittmer and Karen Lindebrekke, professional development specialists, Problem Based Learning Network at IMSA for the Illinois Innovation and Talent Grant through the Department of Commerce and Economics; Ann Reed, IBio Institute; and Azza Wagdy, analytical chemist, senior scientist at Abbott Labs.