Alicia Darnell, Pelham Memorial High School, Pelham, New York
Region Four Silver Medal Winner

Alternative Splicing Defects Linked to Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)

Alicia Darnell’s molecular biology project can be potentially applicable to finding the cause of ALS, a poorly understood and lethal disease, as well as to its diagnosis and treatment. Her research focused on identifying alternative splicing defects that could play a role in the pathogenesis of ALS. Her mentor was Mrs. Irene Gruber, teacher of Science Research program at Pelham Memorial High School.

Alicia Darnell, a senior, is the editor of the student newspaper, Youth-In-Action, President of the Science Honors Society, Student Association Senator, and a member of both the National Honors Society (tutoring and community service) and the Environmental Science Club. She is a member of her school’s varsity lacrosse team and she has played the violin since she was in the third grade. She was inspired to research Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis because she is interested in molecular biology and very motivated by the potential clinical applications of research on ALS. She hopes to study biology and neuroscience, and her dream job would be to combine scientific research applicable to medicine and epidemiology with journalism.