Gearing Up for Launch

With the upcoming launch of Genes in Space, I find myself reflecting on the inaugural GiS competition. We had set out on a mission to offer a unique opportunity for students to design a DNA experiment for space. To spark passion for STEM education. All with the humbling backdrop of the world’s only microgravity environment, the International Space Station.

During the course of the competition, our path interconnected with devoted PhD mentors, passionate teachers, and tireless sponsors. And for the past several months, I’ve been working closely with Genes in Space winner Anna-Sophia Boguraev. Her experiment examines the impact of space travel on the human immune system. How will the astronaut’s DNA be impacted in long-term missions such as travel to Mars? Anna-Sophia’s experiment will be a first step in this exploration.

Experimentation in microgravity comes with incredible opportunity and noteworthy challenges. And, the joy of balancing those two forces reminds me of why I chose to be a scientist. Ground breaking science requires one to challenge today’s reality. To defy logic. To dare. Genes in Space is offering me the chance to relive my days as a PhD student. The frustration, the elation, and the sense of accomplishment that comes from the relentless pursuit of a solution. And for this, I’m grateful.

I look forward to 2016, when we launch Anna-Sophia’s experiment to space. And, I am eager to meet the new cohort of space biologists.

By Zeke Alvarez Saavedra, Ph.D.
Previous Genes in Space judge, and miniPCR co-founder