Julia Dory Ransohoff
CALIFORNIA
Julia Dory Ransohoff, 17, of Menlo Park, investigated the impact of donor
gender differences on the outcome of stem cell transplantation for her Intel
Science Talent Search project in medicine and health. Her in vitro project
focused on mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) that can differentiate into a variety
of cell types, and the factors affecting their successful use in restoring
damaged cardiac tissue after a heart attack. Although recent research proposes
that females possess naturally greater cardioprotection than males, Julia
believes otherwise. Her investigation showed that female stem cells release a
markedly higher amount of immune-system-activating proteins that may attack MSCs
and limit their survival after transplant. These findings may contribute to
advancing the field of stem cell biology and transplant immunology. Julia is a
teaching assistant and peer tutor at Menlo-Atherton High School in Atherton. The
winner of both academic and community service awards, she is co-founder of a
sports-service club to raise awareness of end-of-life care, and is active in
teen literacy initiatives worldwide. The daughter of Paul Ransohoff and Nan
Link, she hopes to attend Harvard or Stanford.
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