Home Department: undeclared
Mentor: Hawa Racine Thiam (Bioengineering and Microbiology & Immunology)

“The Impact of Simulated Microgravity on Immune Cells Extravasation”

Astronauts often experience weakened immune systems during space flights, and Shay’s hypothesis is that microgravity alters the fluid flow in blood vessels, thereby impacting the ability of immune cells to exit blood vessels and reach sites of infection, a process called extravasation. The team will design a microfluidic device to simulate blood flow rates under different gravitational forces and determine the impact of fluid flow on immune cell extravasation. They will observe and measure the extravasation of immune cells using microscopy techniques and apply simulated microgravity using a Random Positioning Machine. The results of this study will not only contribute to our understanding of immune responses in space, but also provide preliminary data for a microfluidics device that the lab plans to send to the International Space Station.