| Biography |
|---|
| Growing up, I was lucky enough to have parents who encouraged me to explore extracurricular opportunities. At the age of nine, I started to fence and by the time I would graduate high school, I would have travelled around the world with Team Canada to countries such as United States, Guatemala, France, and Germany. Although I have always been exposed to the scientific community through various leadership and volunteer work, I only became completely invested when I started working alongside Dr. Kristi Baker at the University of Alberta; studying the effects of DNA repair pathway defects on anti-inflammatory drug response in colorectal cancer cells. With her help, I was able to identify a new diagnostic test based on genetic variation between individuals to improve prognosis rates for all colorectal cancer patients. In the future, I would like to continue investigating the role of the MLH1 gene in colorectal cancer. If i were to give students one piece of advice about starting a project it would to approach science with an open heart and mind. There is no guarantee that any experiment will produce results, however if no attempt is made, then there is a guarantee no results will be produced. |
| Katie Du
The Effect of DNA Repair Pathway Defects on Anti-Inflammatory Drug Response
| Challenge: | Health | | Category: | Senior | | Region: | Edmonton | | City: | Edmonton, AB | | School: | Old Scona School | | Abstract: | With our current understanding of DNA mismatch repair and its relationship with colorectal cancer, we know a correlation exists between MLH1 deficiency and chronic inflammation. However, we do not know where the source of that inflammation is or its role in prognosis. The results of my experiment therefore show that biomarking MLH1 in diagnostic tests will revolutionize the way we treat colorectal cancer patients. |
| Awards | Value | Excellence Award - Senior
Silver Medal
Sponsor: Youth Science Canada | | Dalhousie University Faculty of Science Entrance Scholarship
Senior Silver Medallist - $2500 Entrance Scholarship
Sponsor: Dalhousie University, Faculty of Science | $2 500.00 | UBC Science (Vancouver) Entrance Award
Senior Silver Medallist - $2000 Entrance Scholarship
Sponsor: The University of British Columbia (Vancouver) | $2 000.00 | University of Ottawa Entrance Scholarship
Senior Silver Medallist - $2000 Entrance Scholarship
Sponsor: University of Ottawa | $2 000.00 | Western University Scholarship
Silver Medallist - $2000 Entrance Scholarship
Sponsor: Western University | $2 000.00 | | Total | $8 500.00 | |
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