01/23/2012
Teen's drug delivery research to treat cancer wins science prize
Angela Zhang, a 17 year old high school senior from Cupertino, Calif., won the 2011 Siemens Competition in Math, Science & Technology for her research that aims to use nanoparticles to treat cancer.
Zhang's research focused on designing cancer-stem-cells targeted, gold and iron oxide-based nanoparticle with a potential to eradicate these cells through a controlled delivery of the drug salinomycin to the site of the tumor, according to an announcement from Siemens.
The multifunctional nanoparticle combines therapy and imaging into a single platform, with the gold and iron-oxide components allowing for both MRI and Photoacoustic imaging. This nanosystem could potentially help overcome cancer resistance, minimize undesirable side effects, and allow for real-time monitoring of treatment efficacy, according to the announcement.
Zhang is interested in nanomedicine and molecular imaging because they allow her “to transform my interests in physics, chemistry, and biology into solutions for current health problems,” she said in the announcement.
She plays golf and the piano and would like to major in chemical or biomedical engineering or physics.
A video about her project can be seen HERE.