Kaya Parikh
Hunter College High School
New York, NY
Ozempic® and Counterfeit Ozempic in Novel Drosophila Model With Type-2 Diabetes and Obesity
Kaya Parikh, 17, of New York, used a fruit fly model to study how semaglutide (sold as Ozempic and Wegovy) and a cheaper alternative affect weight and diabetes for her Regeneron Science Talent Search biochemistry project.
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Because of the popularity of semaglutide, there’s an unregulated market in “research grade” drugs, such as semaglutide acetate. This compound has not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration and may cause harmful side effects. Weight-loss drugs are mainly tested in mice and rats, but fruit flies can be used to study basic human biology quickly and efficiently.
In her project, Kaya fed flies a high-sugar diet to emulate the three major characteristics of diabetes — impaired insulin signaling, internal developmental delay and weight gain. Groups of fruit flies were treated with semaglutide and semaglutide acetate. Kaya found that both drugs helped improve diabetes and reduce weight, but the semaglutide acetate was less successful.
The child of Nicole Hindman and Manish Parikh, Kaya attends Hunter College High School, where she leads the DEI council and the math magazine.
Beyond the Project
Kaya participates in a number of her school’s classics and linguistics clubs. She developed a constructed language called Hawkagonese. She also speaks Latin and is studying ancient Greek.
FUN FACTS: Kaya leads a rock band in which she plays the electric guitar. The band is currently working on a mash-up of Beatles tunes. Her favorite part of being in a band is the teamwork and creativity
