Maryland BioGENEius Challenge
Together with the Biotechnology Institute, Learning Undefeated hosts the Maryland BioGENEius competition. This rigorous international competition for talented high school students in grades 9 – 12 gives students the opportunity to showcase their original research in biotechnology.
The Maryland finalist will have the opportunity to represent Maryland at the International BioGENEius Challenge which will be in person this year as part of the BIO Conference. More details about the International Challenge will be released in January.
Visit the Biotechnology Institute’s website for more information about BioGENEius and the different project tracks.
Application Deadline: April 8, 2024
Prizes:
- First Place – 2024 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Winner $250, plus a $400 travel stipend and invitation to compete at the International BioGENEius Challenge in San Diego, CA this June (dates to be confirmed in January)
- Second Place – 2024 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up $100
- Third Place – 2024 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up $100
Timeline:
- Application Deadline: April 8, 2024
- Winners notified on April 24, 2024
- Maryland Finalist announced May 13, 2024
- International BioGENEius Challenge in June 2024
Questions? Contact Ali Main at ali@learningundefeated.org.
The competition consists of three BioGENEius challenges:
- The Global Healthcare Challenge in medical biotechnology
- The Global Sustainability Challenge in agricultural biotechnology
- The Global Environment Challenge in industrial/environmental biotechnology
Are you a BioGENEius? Explore these topics for project ideas
Interested in being a Judge?
Mentor tomorrow’s innovators! Learning Undefeated is looking for industry professionals to volunteer their time to select our BioGENEius finalists. No prep work or follow-up commitments are required. BioGENEius judging will take place April 15-19, 2024.
Global Healthcare
Global healthcare is medical biotechnology
Project ideas include:
- Bio-based degradable materials
- Marine based products (not human health related)
- New or improved biofuels production
- Reducing toxic emissions and greenhouse gases
Global Sustainability
- “Druggable” targets
- Potential drugs and vaccines
- Drug delivery
- Bioproduction of therapeutics
Global Enviroment
Global environment is industrial or environmental biotechnologyProject ideas include:
- Soil improvements
- Value added foods for human and animal benefit
- Disease control
- Improvements in animal health and reproduction
Past Winners
Jefferson Feng, 2023 Maryland BioGENEius Winner
Jefferson Feng, Marriott’s Ridge High School
2023 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Winner Generating an Oral Insulin by Engineering Probiotic Yeast to Secrete Long-lasting Insulin for Treating Diabetes William Gao, Centennial High School2023 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Combating Health Inequities in Cancer Diagnosis: Designing a Federated Learning-Driven Metastatic Breast Cancer Diagnostic System to Reduce Long Diagnosis Delay and Improve Patient Survival Nathaniel Kochenderfer, Sidwell Friends School
2023 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Identification of Potential Therapeutic Targets for Multiple Myeloma by Gene Expression Analysis
Saketh Sundar, 2022 Maryland BioGENEius Winner
Saketh Sundar, River Hill High School
2022 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Winner An Innovative Wastewater Treatment Method For Removal of Microplastic Particles Jonathan Feng, Marriotts Ridge High School2022 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Bioengineering Probiotic Yeast to Secrete Anti-inflammatory Cytokine Bi-specific Antibody for Ameliorating Gut Inflammation Digonto Chatterjee, Thomas S. Wootton High School
2022 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Racial Disparities in Survival Outcomes of Pancreatic Cancer Patients: A Quantitative Proteo-Genomic Analysis
Junzhi Xie, 2021 Maryland BioGENEius Winner
Junzhi Xie, Richard Montgomery High School
2021 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Winner Phytoremediation: An Innovative Wastewater Treatment Method For Removal of Microplastic Particles Shisui Torii, Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School2021 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Fecal small RNAs as potential biomarker and treatment for Inflammatory Bowel Disease Aditi Gubba, Poolesville High School
2021 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up A Novel Approach to tackle Osteoarthritis: Engineering a self-administrable tissue regenerative transdermal patch for articular cartilage growth and inflammation alleviation
Sreejato Chatterjee, 2020 Maryland BioGENEius Winner
Sreejato Chatterjee, Thomas S. Wootton High School
2020 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Winner A Quantitative Proteo-genomic Analysis for Targeted Therapies in the Management of Bladder Cancer Survival Suoyi Feng, The John Carroll School2020 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Targeting C-C Chemokine Receptor 1 (CCR1) Mediated TNF-α/NF-kB Pathway: A Novel Approach to Allergic Rhinitis (AR) Therapy Frank Horrigan, Poolesville High School
2020 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Identification of Chemical Features Associated with Selective Activity of BK Potassium Channel Modulators
Faith Cheung, 2019 Maryland BioGENEius Winner
Faith Cheung, Richard Montgomery High School
2019 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Winner Near-Infrared Photothermal Therapy Cancer Treatment Assisted with Graphene-Based Materials Alena Shen, River Hill High School2019 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Cellular Mechanism of Glucocorticoid-Induced Adverse Effect in Growing Bone Seo Jin Lee, Walter Johnson High School
2019 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Early Diagnosis of Colon Cancer with Rapid Hybridization of DNA Biomarkers
Katy Wnuk-Fink, 2018 Maryland BioGENEius Winner
Katy Wnuk-Fink, Reservoir High School, Applications and Research Lab
2018 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Winner Optimizing Influenza Genome Sequencing with Magnetic Beads for DNA Size Selection Sayak Maity, Centennial High School2018 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Cell Migratory Mode Classification Using Artificial Neural Networks: A New Paradigm for Early Detection of Cancer and Anticancer Drug Discovery Jocelyn Mathew, Centennial High School
2018 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Analysis of CD4+ T cell Neoantigens in the Panc02 Tumor Model
Rebecca Brody, 2017 Maryland BioGENEius Winner
Rebecca Brody, Baltimore Polytechnic Institute
2017 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Winner An in vitro model system for studying the effects of hypoxia on stem cell-derived endothelial cells Priyadharshini Gajendiran, Centennial High School2017 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Differences in Mitochondrial Activity between Active and Inactive Hepatic Stellate Cells Claire Wayner, Baltimore Polytechnic Institute
2017 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Engineering E. coili Removal from Stormwater
2016 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Optimization of magnetic drug delivery to inner ear disorders and deep tissue organs Emily Wang, Poolesville, High School
2016 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for detecting and differentiating between H3N2v and seasonal H3N2 influenza viruses
Felica Wang, Centennial HS
2015 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Winner
A 3-Dimensional Reconstruction of the Vestibular Labyrinth
Kang Wook Chung, Gilman School2015 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Development of Highly Sensitive Biosensor for the Early Diagnosis of Prostate Cancer Evan Whitehouse, Poolesville HS
2015 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Investigating the Intrinsic Efficacy of Dopamine D1 Receptor Ligands for Functional Selectivity
Third Place, 2014 International BioGENEius Challenge
2014 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Effects of pancreatic α cell-specific deficiency of the G protein α-subunit (Gsα) on islet cell morphology Vishnu Rachakonda, Eleanor Roosevelt HS
2014 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Fast electron paramagnetic resonance imaging to study fluctuating tumor physiology: Use of conjugate symmetry of k-Space and trajectory design for image data acquisition
Maryland’s Neil Davey Claims Third in 2014 International Competition
MdBio Foundation would like to congratulate Montgomery Blair senior, Neil Davey, who took third place in the 2014 International BioGENEius Challenge!
2013 Maryland BioGENEius Winners
Havisha Garimella, Howard County
2013 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Protein Assemblies in Health and in Diseases: Biological AFM and Related Studies Joy Zeng, Montgomery County 2013 Maryland BioGENEius Challenge Runner Up Targeted Thermal Ablation of Cancer Cells Using Biosurfactant Functionalized Carbon Nanotubes