The team of Elwood-John H. Glenn High School senior Grace Motta and Harborfields High School senior Alexandra Ebanks recently placed fourth in the Biomedical and Health Sciences category at the Long Island Science and Engineering Fair.

The science research partners conducted research over the summer under a scientist at Stony Brook University as part of the Simons Summer Research Program. Their project “Examining the Relationship Between gC1qR and the PD-1/PD-L1 Axis in HepatitisC, HIV-1 and Cancer Cells” essentially looks at a way to inhibit certain viruses and cancers from evading the human immune system. Ebanks and Motta competed in the first round of LISEF last fall. The top 100 projects from that first round were invited to compete in person on March 7 at the Crest Hollow Country Club in Woodbury.

“Alexandra and Grace obviously made an impact on the judges who awarded them this impressive placement,” Harborfields science research teacher Michael Pinto said.

Date Added: 3/27/2023