Gets fellowship
WILLIMANTIC — Eastern Connecticut State University student Benjamin Rumrill ’18 is the recipient of a research fellowship from the NASA Connecticut Space Grant Consortium. He is using the fellowship to support his research titled “The Effect of Microgravity on the Growth and Function of Neural Cells.” Rumrill hails from Pomfret Center and majors in biology.
Neural stem cells are self-renewing cells that create the neurons of the nervous system during the development of an embryo. Stem cells are unique due to their ability to differentiate into multiple cell types.
“Scientists have discovered that space flight can lead to cognitive deficits due to the inhibition of neural stem cell differentiation,” said Rumrill. Therefore, Rumrill’s research aims to test for changes in the production of neural stem cells’ ability to replicate and differentiate when grown in simulated microgravity—simulated weightlessness—when compared to normal conditions. The effects of microgravity can be seen when astronauts and objects float in space.
Rumrill hypothesizes that microgravity experienced during space flight impairs the ability of neural stem cells to reproduce and differentiate. “If the production of neural cells is affected by microgravity, then it may explain the cognitive deficits found in astro
nauts after spaceflight,” said Rumrill.