3 Horace Greeley HS Students Among Nation's Top 300 Teen Scientists

CHAPPAQUA, NY — Three Horace Greeley High School seniors have secured their places among the best of the best.

From the Chappaqua Central School District.

Three seniors at Horace Greeley High School — Brady Wang, Kevin Guo and Warren Fu — have been named a Top 300 Scholar in the nation's oldest and most prestigious science and math competition for high school seniors.

They were selected from over 2,600 entrants from 826 high schools across 46 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, Northern Mariana Islands, and 16 other countries.

SEE ALSO: 23 Hudson Valley Students Named Regeneron Scholars

"We couldn't be more proud of all 29 seniors who submitted entries, and are so honored to have three semifinalists," said Jerry Zupan, Director of Greeley's Science Research program. "Each submission included over 17 essays, a 2-page research paper, and recommendation letters from teachers and mentors...a wonderful culmination of three years of hard work!"

The Scholars were chosen based on their outstanding research, leadership skills, community involvement, commitment to academics, creativity in asking scientific questions and exceptional promise as STEM leaders demonstrated through the submission of their original, independent research projects, essays and recommendations.

WARREN FU
Biophysical and Genomic Drivers of Targeted Therapy Resistance: Analysis of Growth Dynamics in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

Using mathematical modeling, Warren discovered that fast initial treatment response in lung cancer can actually lead to faster resistance in the long-run. He was then able to extend this trend to certain combinations of mutations in lung cancer patients.

When asked why he chose this research topic, Warren explained, "I knew that I liked both math and biology when I first started science research, and learned along the way that computational biology was the perfect way to combine the two. I decided to focus on cancer because I was learning about it in class, and because computational biology is most often applied in regard to cancer research. My STS project was actually the sum of all the work I've done for the past 2 years with my mentor, which has focused on looking at resistance in non-small cell lung cancer."

At Greeley, Warren is the Student Body President, Math Club President, and Captain of the Boys Varsity Swimming & Diving Team. He also helps run the school's morning announcements and serves as an anchor for Greeley News Today.

After Greeley, Warren plans to major in applied math or computational biology in college, and intends on returning to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, where he did his research. He said he'll likely pursue a career related to either math or biology, or perhaps both. "This could be anything from being a researcher or doctor to a biotech entrepreneur," Warren said. "Computational biology in particular is becoming more and more promising as artificial intelligence grows in strength and scope. I even might use my morning announcements/GNT experience to become a science communicator. . .if you can't tell, I like to keep my options open."

KEVIN GUO
Development of a SpyTag/SpyCatcher-Based Antibody-siRNA Internalization Assay for High-Throughput Screening

Aspiring to work either in biomedical research or as a doctor, Kevin's STS project topic came from his previous research, which involved the use of a novel antibody to deliver siRNA.

siRNA is a drug with high therapeutic potential, and a common approach when using it is to attach it to an antibody to "guide" the siRNA to its target. However, it is difficult to identify which antibodies are most effective for this purpose, so he developed a method to rapidly evaluate antibodies, speeding up drug development. "I noticed that there was no efficient way to screen for antibody-siRNA conjugate internalization to identify the most effective antibodies, so my project was proposed as a solution to this problem," Kevin explained.

When asked about his Science Research Program experience, Kevin replied, "I enjoy how we are given the opportunity to pursue anything we want while contributing to the future of science through real research that can impact real people."

At Greeley, Kevin serves as President of the Biotech Club as well as the Chinese Club, and before heading off to college to study molecular biology, he will spend this summer interning at Regeneron Pharmaceuticals to further his work on gene silencing.

BRADY WANG
Generation of Antibody Oligonucleotide Conjugates Using a Novel Conjugation Technology

Developed as part of the Regeneron High School Mentorship Program, which Brady applied to in order to further his interest in targeted genetic medicines, his research is essentially about developing a fast and more stable method to attach genetic medicines to antibodies in order to deliver these medicines to specific regions and cellular targets in the body.

"The thing I enjoy most in science research class is the community which is always supportive and welcoming," Brady stated. "Most of the work we do in science research class is very collaborative: we review each other's projects and papers as well as practice presenting to each other with our posters."
At Greeley, Brady is Vice President of the biology club and is a senior leader on the Debate Team. You can also catch him poolside as a member of Boys Varsity Swimming & Diving Team.

Beyond Greeley, Brady plans to study molecular biology/biochemistry while at college to see where that leads him. . .perhaps something in the area of biotech, pharma, and healthcare.

"Congratulations to the top 300 scholars in this year's Regeneron Science Talent Search," said Maya Ajmera, President and CEO, Society for Science and Publisher, Science News. "Their research highlights the creativity, rigor and determination that’s pushing forward the future of scientific discovery. We are honored to recognize their achievements and support their continued pursuit of STEM excellence."

On January 21, 40 of the 300 scholars will be named Regeneron Science Talent Search finalists and advance to compete for more than $1.8 million in awards during a week-long competition in Washington, D.C., taking place March 5-11.

This press release was produced by the Chappaqua Central School District. The views expressed here are the author's own.