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| | | | | | | | | Biology experiments will use the Kubik incubators flown to the Station in March | |
Biology
BASE
In the Bacterial Adaptation to Space Environments (BASE) experiment, the science team will study how bacteria cope with and adapt to the different space flight environmental parameters (e.g. weightlessness, cosmic radiation, space electromagnetism, space vibrations). Based on these results, scientists will try to assess how such adaptations might influence their potential to contaminate and biodeteriorate the space habitat, their potential to endanger crew health, or their function in waste recycling or food production systems. The scientists will also study the physiology, gene expression, gene re-arrangement and gene transfer of cultures of several model bacteria grown under microgravity and other spaceflight conditions.
| | Kubik with centrifuge configuration loaded with experiment containers | |
LEUKIN
The aim of this experiment is to study the signal transduction pathway of the activation of T-lymphocytes. The focus is on the role of the IL-2 receptor and on the determination of its genetic expression. The hypothesis to be tested is that the lack of expression of IL-2 R is the major cause for the loss of activation in re-suspended cells in weightlessness. This experiment will help us better understand the mechanisms by which spaceflight alters immune cell function, which may help in the development of more adequate preventative or corrective measures for immune suppression during long term space missions.
| | European Portable Glovebox | |
YING
This experiment will study the influence of weightlessness on “Flo processes”, cell-surface interaction on solid and cell-cell interaction in liquid media in yeast cells (Saccharomyces cerevisiae). Weightlessness will have a direct impact on the yeast cell physiology due to a changed gravitational micro-environment and in the case of yeast cell cultivation in liquid media, also the changed shear environment in microgravity will have an effect. The overall goal is to obtain a detailed insight into the importance of gravity and shear stress on the formation of organised cell structures, such as yeast flocs, biofilms and filaments, which are of considerable interest for both fundamental science and industry as well as the medical field.
Last update: 18 June 2006 | |
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