New research tool developed at Tech achieves success on International Space Station
Two months after technology developed by Dr. Gergana G. Nestorova, Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences at Louisiana Tech University, was launched into space, Dr. Kate Rubins, an astronaut on the International Space Station (ISS) validated that the technology worked.
The new tool that featured a microscopic pin for rapid extraction of RNA was launched on SpaceX CSR-21 Dec. 6, and the test of the equipment was completed in the early hours of Feb. 16.
Nestorova’s tool prevents genomic contamination of the sample and enables repeated sampling of the biological specimen multiple times. The study was a collaborative project with the WetLab-2 team at NASA Ames Reasearch Center. The work on this project provided NASA research training opportunities to undergraduate and graduate students in Louisiana Tech’s School of Biological Sciences and Molecular Sciences and Nanotechnology program.