Chemistry students at St John’s Catholic School and Sixth Form College have been praised for their involvement in a project to design drugs to boost therapies for tuberculosis.
The seven Year 12 students from the school in Bishop Auckland, took part in the project with Durham and Newcastle universities.
Emilie Peart, Lucy Oswin, Lexi James, Alicia Moore, Donald Betiku, Daniel Dodd and Joe Meek have now earned themselves a trip to London to present their findings at the Royal Society, which funded the project.
St John’s Head of Science, Evan Mulligan, said: “This was a really high-level project that I don’t think has been done in any school in the country before, so it’s been a brilliant experience for the students.
“Not only did they have to raise their game scientifically, but they’ve also gone on to do career talks and been exposed to world leaders in the field.
“They’ve worked so hard, often after school hours, and it’s been impressive to see how they’ve risen to the challenge. It’s been so valuable for their CVs as they prepare for further and higher education.”
The school, which is part of Bishop Hogarth Catholic Education Trust, was invited to be involved in the project by Professor Patrick Steel, who is passionate about promoting a love of science to pupils in local schools.
They were able to work in the university’s state-of-the-art laboratories and use a 3D modelling programme to design the new drugs.
The universities are now taking the project forward to the research stage to assess whether the new drugs can be put to medical use.
The students’ presentation in London will be in the Young Researchers Zone as part of the Royal Society’s Summer of Science. They will be joined on the trip by Mr Mulligan and Assistant Head of Science, Claire Little.
One of the students, Daniel Dodd, whose ambition is to be an engineer, said: “It’s been really exciting and interesting. I was worried it was above our level at first, but we grew in confidence as the project developed. Not only is it great to put on the CV but it’s a drug that might help people.”
Emilie Peart, who wants to study to be a dentist, added: “I’d never done anything like this before, and it was great to be able to work in the university labs. It’s amazing to have been part of something so big that could make a difference to people’s lives.”
Bishop Auckland's local community newspaper.
