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Press release
Friday, May 17th, 2019
Innovative 14-year-old approach to prevent tampering and misuse of opioid drugs won the first ever Addiction Science Award at the 2019 International Science & Engineering Fair (ISEF), the world's largest scientific competition for high school students. The awards are coordinated by the National Institute for Drug Abuse (NIDA), which is part of the National Institutes of Health, and by the Friends of NIDA, a coalition that supports the mission of NIDA. The Intel ISEF Addiction Science Awards were handed out during a ceremony Thursday night at the Phoenix Convention Center in Phoenix, Arizona.
First place high school student Aditya Tummala of Brookings High School in Brookings, South Dakota, was awarded first place for her project "Tampr-X: a new technology to combat opioid abuse." prescribed ". anti-opioid to reduce the risk of abuse and allowed to develop a gummy substance that could not be crushed or melted for snorting or injecting. Called Tampr-X, the substance is a protein matrix technology with a unique combination of ingredients that discourages tampering with the product and could be mixed with a drug. The protein matrix prevents grinding, while other components allow this product to resist eight other known tampering and abuse possibilities. The product has a provisional patent. Brookings High School has produced several other recipients of the Addiction Science Award since the beginning of the program 12 years ago.
"Judges were impressed by the young scientist's understanding of the complex technology involved in the development of tamper-resistant drugs," said NIDA Director Nora D. Volkow, MD. "We have tried to develop tamper-proof pills, but need more innovation and new ideas in this area. We are delighted to be able to amplify his idea with scientists working on this challenge. "
The second prize went to high school student Sid Thakker of the James Madison High School in Vienna, Virginia, for his project titled "The Role of a Single Nucleotide Polymorphism of ALPHA5 in Nicotine Dependence" . and edited the gene expression of the nicotinic receptor ALPHA5, which has been linked to nicotine addiction. Specifically, he used the sophisticated gene editing platform CRISPR to sample a small genetic component of the receptor and then studied changes in gene function and expression. He hopes that one day we will be able to discover how to proceed with this genetic editing in animals, leading to new therapies in humans.
Nikita Rohila, from Stuttgart High School in Stuttgart, Arkansas, received third place for her project "Trends and risk factors for adolescents". The second year, aged 15, developed a survey to identify trends and risk factors. decision-making behaviors and decision-making skills of nearly 100 teens from 14 to 18 years old. She asked a question about a variety of factors that could represent or cause stress, including alcohol abuse in multiple settings, physical fights and gun violence, excuses for failure, careless driving, and the wearing of alcohol. the unsafe belt, malnutrition and the social environment. The findings revealed three important factors contributing to risky behaviors: unhealthy use of smartphones and social media, sleep deprivation and victimization through bullying.
"The winner of the first prize has innovatively used innovative technology to develop formulations that make it more difficult to divert opioid drugs, the second winner applied advanced genetic technologies to advance basic knowledge of how a gene influences vulnerability to nicotine addiction. and the recipient in third place identified factors leading to risky behaviors in adolescents that can be used to help design targeted prevention interventions, "added Volkow. "Together, they represent the breadth and depth of scientific research related to drug use and addiction."
The Friends of NIDA fund the awards through financial donations from scientists in the field, as part of NIDA's coalition research support.
"We were amazed by the quality and number of ISEF finalists qualified for the Addiction Science Award this year," said William Dewey, Ph.D., President and Chair of the Executive Committee, Friends of NIDA, and S. and Ruth S. Harris Professor and Director, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond. "We are excited to support these exemplary high school students and encourage them to consider a career in the addiction science field."
The judges distinguished three impressive projects, including two international students. Prices went to:
- Nikhiya Shamsher, 16, of Bangalore Greenwood High International School in Bangalore, Karnataka, India, for "QuitPuff: a point-of-care diagnostic for the early detection of the risk of oral pre-cancer and cancer in chronic smokers" .
- Tinotenda Zimhunga, 18, and Rufaro Mutogo, 17, Chisipite High School, Harare, Zimbabwe, for Alcohol Sensor.
- Zakwan Khan, 18, of Woodstock High School in Woodstock, Georgia, for "Investigating the Role of the Cat-2 Gene in Substance Dependence."
Judges of this year's Addiction Science Awards included three researchers from Arizona State University, holding a NIDA Fellowship: Drs. Janet Neisewander, Cassandra Gipson-Reichardt and Jonna Jackson, as well as Dr. Michelle Jobes of NIDA's intramural research program.
This year, approximately 1,800 students from more than 75 countries, regions and territories participated in the Intel ISEF competition, coordinated by the Society for Science and Public. The non-profit organization partners with Intel (as well as dozens of other commercial, academic, government and scientific sponsors) to provide support and awards each year. The winners of the Science of Addiction receive cash rewards from the Friends of NIDA, with a cash prize of $ 2,500 for the first winner, $ 1,500 for second place and $ 1,000 for third place. NIDA has developed a special section on its NIDA for Teens website to showcase winning projects. In 2017, the 10th Anniversary of the Addiction Science Awards, NIDA has launched new web pages that track the career of these young scientists over the last decade.
About the National Institute for Combating Drug Abuse (NIDA): The National Institute for Drug Abuse Control (NIDA) is a component of the National Institutes of Health, the US Department of Health and Human Services. NIDA supports most global research on aspects of drug use and drug addiction related to health. The Institute runs a wide variety of programs to inform policy, improve practices and advance the science of addiction. Information sheets on the health effects of drugs and information on NIDA research and other activities are available at www.drugabuse.gov, which is now compatible with your smartphone, iPad or mobile device. Tablet. To order publications in English or Spanish, call the NIDA DrugPubs Research Dissemination Center at 1-877-NIDA-NIH or 240-645-0228 (TDD) or send an e-mail request to drugpubs @ nida .nih.gov. The online order is available on drugpubs.drugabuse.gov. NIDA's media guide is available at www.drugabuse.gov/publications/media-guide/dear-journalist, and its easy-to-read website is available at www.easyread.drugabuse.gov. You can follow NIDA on Twitter and Facebook.
About the National Institutes of Health (NIH):
The NIH, the country's medical research agency, has 27 institutes and centers and is part of the US Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the lead federal agency that leads and supports basic, clinical and translational medical research. She studies causes, treatments and cures for common and rare diseases. For more information on NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.
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