Crescenta Valley and La Cañada high school students present biotech research at international competition
Several local students who attend Crescenta Valley and La Cañada high schools spent months of their spare time learning about biotechnology to more efficiently produce biofuel.
That hard work paid off recently when the students presented their research on using synthetically engineered cyanobacteria to produce fatty acids for biofuel.
Students from both schools teamed up with students from the University of La Verne to spend nine months learning about the subject before presenting their research during the International Genetically Engineered Machine Jamboree in Boston in October.
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La Cañada and Crescenta Valley high students collaborated with each other in their spare time on weekends after school or during summer break, said Tracy Lee, a La Cañada High School parent.
They also received guidance from Orenda Tuason, a Crescenta Valley High biology teacher.
“During the summer, some students attended Ms. Tuason’s [biotechnology] lab class for five hours per day for six weeks, while others, who already had biotech lab skills, would research possible projects. All students read numerous scientific papers on their own,” Lee said.
The competition drew 475 teams from 42 countries who returned home with gold, silver and bronze awards.
The local team, along with 73 other teams, won a silver award.
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Kelly Corrigan, kelly.corrigan@latimes.com
Twitter: @kellymcorrigan
