OU-HCOM Students Judge State Science Day Projects

Medical students promote scientific inquiry, osteopathic medicine among youth

COLUMBUS, OH—Four Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine (OU-HCOM) students served as judges for Ohio’s 60^th Annual State Science Day, May 10, 2008, in the sponsored award division. They were recruited by the Ohio Osteopathic Association (OOA), which presented the Osteopathic Medical Award to the top three projects in each age group: 7th-9th grade
and 10th-12th grade. The OOA awarded $650 total in cash prizes.

The following OU-HCOM students volunteered their time: Chad Keller, OMS I; Alex Tsai, OMS III; Kyra Dawson, OMS I; and Christina Chan, OMS I. This was Tsai’s second year as a judge. Keller helped organize the judges, who wore their white coats to the event.

“I was simply wowed by the spirit and enthusiasm expressed by so many young scientists,” Chan says. “As an osteopathic medical student, I was
also impressed by their keen ability to apply the findings of their projects to
holistic themes and applications.”

Chan adds that her passion for medicine began in 6^th grade with a love for science. She went on to major in molecular genetics at OSU and spent a year after graduation working in a cancer research lab. “I could not resist the chance to give back to the community, as well as help facilitate the growth of young, enthusiastic scientists.”

Projects competing for the Osteopathic Medical Award encompassed medical, health, and behavioral research. Ohio’s State Science Day, hosted by The Ohio State University Office of Continuing Education, is the largest of its kind in the nation, with more than 1,000 students from more than 200 Ohio schools participating. The event, sponsored by the Ohio Academy of Science, American Electric Power, The Ohio Environmental Education Fund, and Boehringer Ingelheim Roxane, Inc., offered scholarships and awards valued at more than $1.9 million. 

Below is a list of students whose projects received 2008 Osteopathic Medical Awards: 

• Michael P. Madden, 8^th grade: Oregano Oil: the Bacterial Neutralizer

• Vibhuti Krishna, 8^th grade: Eye am aware. A study on microorganisms in eyewash stations
• Shane Conway Superior, 8^th grade: Accelerating pain reliever dissolution
• Rebekah Ivie, 11^th grade: The effect of polyphenols on neurodegeneration
• Jennifer Smith, 10^th grade: Running gait
• Maya Ratnam, 12^th grade: The direct action of Rapamycin on skin fibroblasts is profibrotic through activation of TGF-beat/Smad3