ADA News

San Jose, Calif.—An interest in dental pulp stem cells helped lead high school students Julie Chang and Yesha Maniar to a first-place finish at the 2010 Intel International Science Fair.

Winners: From left, Julie Chang, Yesha Maniar, Shannon Somer Stockton and Philip Samuel Schlenoff show off their awards following the 2010 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair.

Each year, the ADA Foundation sponsors awards at ISEF as a way of stimulating interest in oral health research and recognizing the work of young scientists. The ADA Council on Scientific Affairs coordinates the judging and presentation of three awards for projects it believes contribute to scientific research relevant to oral health. For this year’s fair the CSA turned to Dr. Sheila Strock, senior manager, ADA Council on Access, Prevention and Interprofessional Relations, who judged the entrants.

Ms. Chang, 17, and Ms. Maniar, 18, both of New Hyde Park, N.Y., received  $2,000 and were honored for their project, Orientation and Differentiation of Adult Dental Pulp Stem Cells on Electrospun Fiber Scaffolds.

The Foundation also recognized Shannon Somer Stockton, 16, of Orlando, Fla., for The Synergistic Effects of Tolfenamic Acid and Radiation on Sp1 and Surviving in Head and Neck Cancer. Ms. Stockton, who was also an ISEF winner in 2009, received $1,000 for her efforts. Third-place winner Philip Samuel Schlenoff, 18, of Tallahassee, Fla., received $500 for his project, Antibody-Coated Magnetic Nanoparticles: Targeting and Treating Cancer in a Dynamic Environment.

Ms. Chang said she and Ms. Maniar became interested in dental pulp stem cells while taking part in the summer research project at the Garcia Materials Research Science and Engineering Center at Stony Brook University last summer.

"When we found out that we won, we were really excited and happy that our hard work paid off," she said. "We had to practice frequently with our research teacher and often had to visit our mentor late at night throughout the school year to work on our research paper. On the same note, we were really happy that we could make our mentors (Miriam Rafailovich, Ph.D. and Vladimir Jurukovski, Ph.D.), graduate students, teachers and parents proud because they all devoted a lot of time to our high school science research careers."

"They worked night and day. It's a very intense program," said Dr. Rafailovich, a distinguished professor at the Garcia Materials Research Science and Engineering Center. Ms. Chang said she plans to pursue a career in science. Ms. Maniar will attend Dartmouth College in the fall.

The Intel ISEF is held each May and is the world’s largest pre-college celebration of science, bringing together more than 1,600 high school students from 60 countries. The May 2011 ISEF will be held in Los Angeles.

For more information, visit www.sciserv.org./isef/about.