Astronauts for the first time conducted a DNA test in space

For the first time, a person secured DNA in conditions of microgravity aboard an international space station. The experience was conducted by the American astronaut and molecular biologist Kate Rubins, according to a press release on the NASA website.

Sequencing was carried out as part of the Biomolecule Sequencer experiment on mobile equipment Minion. The device allows you to determine the sequences of DNA and RNA molecules using protein or solid holes (pores) with a diameter of not more than a few nanometers. This method is called nanopor sequencing. Rubines examined the samples of mouse DNA, E. coli and virus.

The first sequencing on board the ISS made it possible to prove that the determination of the sequence of DNA molecules is possible in space conditions. In parallel with Rubins, scientists on Earth carried out a similar test to find out whether microgravity affects the results of the study. According to NASA, the comparison of the results has not yet been completed, but "so far everything converges."

Minion portable sequenger was developed in the UK, it fits in the palm of your hand and is connected to a computer using a USB cable. The cost of the device is about $ 1000.

Rubins went to the ISS in July 2016 with the Japanese Takui Onishi and the Russian Anatoly Ivanishin. On board the station, the astronauts should conduct more than 250 experiments in 4 months. According to Microbiologist, participants in the Biomolecular Sequencer project Sarah Castro-Uloles, DNA sequencing technologies will allow people in the conditions of space “Always know what is around them”. A portable sequenger will be used to look for microbes, make accurate diagnoses to astronauts in case of illness and, possibly, look for extraterrestrial life.