IDS case study: Ageing slower in space?
Microscopy application in mini space satellite to study human cells
The importance of space research is increasing, more and more astronauts are cavorting in space. But what effects does weightlessness have on the ageing of the human body? How do certain cells develop under milligravity and microgravity conditions, such as those on small moons and asteroids? The Swiss Artificial Gravity Experiment (SAGE) is dedicated to this research. A team of students from Swiss universities aims to investigate how the ageing process in humans changes in space, and how cellular senescence influences the development of ageing and age-related disorders.
The satellite platform for a corresponding biological experiment must meet extreme requirements: The fully automated system is to serve as a long-lasting test field under the required space conditions and acts as a centrifuge for the human cell lines to be studied. The centerpiece is a fluorescence microscope equipped with a microfluidic chip and a high-resolution USB3 camera from the uEye+ XLE family.
