By Joe Hadsall

jhadsall@joplinglobe.com

MIAMI, Okla. — A bacterial infection and a joke from his doctor has Evan Fenska in a position to win $100,000.

And, maybe, develop a cure for it.

The senior at Miami High School is one of 40 nationwide finalists in the Intel Science Talent Search 2010. In March, he will travel to Washington D.C. and compete against the other 39 for $100,000 from the Intel Foundation.

“It’s great to be named to the top 40 in the nation in any activity,” Fenska said. “But for scientific research, I’m especially proud. There are so many doing such great research projects, that this is a considerable honor.”

Fenska’s project deals with finding substances that prevent bacteria from developing resistance to certain medications.

In his abstract, he notes that bacterial infections, and the development of bacteria strains that are resistant to multiple drugs, continue to pose a significant risk for humans. Infections of methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus (otherwise known as MRSA), E. coli and others have increased, he said.

Though the worldwide impact seems obvious, Fenska’s interest is a little more personal: He was infected with MRSA in the summer of 2007.

But a joke from his doctor got him thinking about a cure.

“While treating my fourth or fifth abscess of the summer, my physician told me to drink green tea,” Fenska said. “He said it’d be more effective than the medication. He meant that as a joke, but it sparked my interest.”

Research process

Fenska started looking into green tea and found that flavonoids, or secondary pigments, inside the plant had been suggested as a possible cure. His research eventually suggested that green tea extract, grape seed extract and red wine bioflavonoids significantly inhibited the growth of certain bacteria.

“Even if flavonoids don’t pan out to replace medication, they could be used as an effective supplement,” Fenska said. “It would make the medications more effective.”

Getting from idea to results stretched over two years. Fenska said he spent more than 270 hours on the project.

“I spent well over 100 hours coming up with the research plan, researching sources, finding experiment protocols,” he said. “Just getting the project ready, without touching bacteria, took a lot of work.”

Like other students his age, Fenska likes doing more than just scientific research. He’s also a member of the varsity soccer team, varsity swim team, vice president of the National Honor Society and in Spanish Club.

Cramming in time for the research project took some effort. For a four-week span last year, Fenska would go to school, go to soccer practice for three hours then drive to a lab at Missouri Southern State University in Joplin, Mo., where he would conduct tests for his project.

Each night, he would get home around 10 or 10:30 p.m.

“And then I had to do homework,” Fenska said. “I went a few weeks without too much sleep.”

The science bug bit Fenska as a second-grader. He would hang out in his mother’s high-school science class. He entered his first science fair in seventh grade.

Now, his mother is also his research sponsor, and he has progressed far away from vinegar volcanoes.

As for the future, medical research is his main goal. Though he doesn’t know exactly how, he would like to be involved in the medical field, and has a few choice colleges picked out for the next level of his education.

National competition

Fenska has tough competition awaiting him in Washington D.C. Other projects include results of air pollution from soy candles, new hearing-assistance devices for cell phones and radios and studies of inequality between high schools in national science competitions.

Behavioral factors in breast cancer cures, autonomous spacecraft navigation systems, increased performance of solar-energy cells and chemotherapy resistance are some of the other topics under review in the competition.

“One of the projects I saw was testing the viability of a completely solar-powered house,” Fenska said. “Heating, water, everything was energy independent. I’m going up against some relevant topics of research.”

Fenska said that he will be tested mostly against himself during the competition. He said he spoke to a girl from Bartlesville who went during a previous year, and found that the judging is extensive.

He is expecting to be interviewed thoroughly and intensely. He also expects to be grilled pretty roughly about the results of his research.

But he’s looking forward to the challenge, and anticipates getting to meet similar-minded students from across the country.

“I think it will be a good experience to spend time with other students who have been as active in a research environment as I have been,” Fenska said. “You normally don’t get to meet those kind of students in the average high-school setting.”