Posted
on April 8, 2016 in “Students”
Mass
Academy student Amol Punjabi a top winner at Intel Science Talent
Search
Many
of us can claim to want to change the world—but at just age 17,
Amol Punjabi is already on his way there.
The
Mass Academy senior has developed a software program that helps to
determine whether disease-causing proteins are susceptible to drug
treatment.
Named
ViaPocket, it makes use of artificial intelligence, and with it
Punjabi has discovered six “druggable” spots on intrinsically
disordered proteins commonly involved in cancer and heart and immune
system diseases. Typically, the instability of disordered proteins
makes them a difficult target for drugs; that in mind, Punjabi sought
a way to identify more stable pockets within those proteins where
drugs could more easily bind.
“I
showed that my program is more accurate than the best previous
method,” said Punjabi, of Marlborough.
For
his efforts, he was recently recognized as one of three top winners
at the 75th annual Intel Science Talent Search in Washington,
D.C. Considered the country’s most prestigious science and math
competition for pre-college students, it is organized by the
nonprofit Society for Science and the Public. Forty finalists from 38
schools in 18 states participated in the event, which featured
astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson as keynote speaker.
ViaPocket
took First Place Medal of Distinction in the “Basic Research”
category, which came with a $150,000 award. Other top winners include
Paige Brown of Bangor, Maine, with a First Place Medal of Distinction
in the “Global Good” category, and Maya Varma of Cupertino,
Calif., with a First Place Medal of Distinction for “Innovation.”
The
trio of winners is “using science and technology to help address
the problems they see in the world, and will be at the forefront of
creating the solutions we need for the future,” Maya Ajmera,
president and CEO of Society for Science and the Public, said in a
statement.
Mass
Academy senior Yashaswini Makaram was also a finalist in the
competition. The Marlborough 17-year-old received a $7,500 award for
a project she has been working on for two years that applies
biometrics to cell phone security.
Punjabi,
for his part, began working on his software project while involved in
the Research Science Institute summer program at Harvard Medical
School. He has also authored papers on nanoparticles, and serves as
captain of the Science Olympiad team at Mass Academy, and lead
pianist of its jazz workshop.
“I
was shocked,” he said of his win. After spending time with the
other finalists, he noted, “I knew how brilliant and unique each
one was, and I in no way expected to win an award.”
He
plans to use the prize money for his education, he said. He has been
accepted to Harvard University, MIT, and Stanford University, and is
still deciding which one to attend, as well as what his major will
ultimately be.
“I’m
not sure yet—maybe math, computer science, chemistry, or something
I’m yet to explore,” he said.
As
for his future career? That’s also yet to be determined. However,
he stressed that “I want to continue working in the biomedical
field, helping find cures and treatments with my research.”
– BY TARYN PLUMB
Original story link.
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