A GCSE student has received international recognition at the Google Science Fair for his work in the early detection of Alzheimer's disease.

His work has also seen him make the finals of the National Science and Engineering Prize to be held in March next year.

Krtin Nithiyanandam, who attends Sutton Grammar School, was the winner of the Scientific American Innovator Award at the science fair for his work in creating a drug for the earlier diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease.

Currently Alzheimer’s can only be detected through a series of cognitive tests or by looking at the brain after death.

The 15-year-old Epsom resident, who moved to Britain from India with is family when he was a baby, also created a nanoparticle as part of the drug.

The nanoparticle, scientifically referred to as a quantum dot, had therapeutic effects by preventing a toxic protein associated with the disease from entering cells, therefore increasing the life of the cell.

The complex research saw him breakdown and combine two antibodies to create the drug, which worked with the nanoparticle, to deliver treatment to the patient.

He said: “I have always had an interest in the brain.

“I chose Alzheimer’s because now we are getting better treatment for diseases people are living longer, which is good because that is what you want to do with scientific medicine, but also if you live longer there is an increased risk in developing Alzheimer’s.

“The way the disease works is quite cruel, it eats away at your personality first and then eventually your lungs will forget how to work.

“It affects 44 million people now but, because we are getting better treatments for diseases now, that is expected to triple by 2050.

“It costs the global economy $604 billion in 2010 and again that is supposed to triple by 2050. Over $1 trillion on a single disease will cripple a healthcare system.

“The Google award was really cool, going to America and seeing Google headquarters was really nice, winning the prize was a great bonus, I am quite proud of that.

“It also meant that it opened up more connections for my work.”

On the side Krtin works with the Institute of Cancer Research on developing a more effective way of delivering chemotherapy to patients without damaging healthy cells.

Krtin took home $25,000 US and his school received digital access to Scientific American’s 170 years of archives for 12 months as part of his prize.

Google will be putting together a short film on his success on Saturday.

Once he finishes his GCSEs he plans to study medicine and wants to work as a brain surgeon and continue his research.