A novel experiment aimed at studying the mechanics of amyloid fibrils—a type of protein aggregation associated with diseases like diabetes, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's—started today aboard the International Space Station (ISS), led by a team at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

The project was designed by Amir Hirsa, a professor of mechanical, aerospace, and nuclear engineering at Rensselaer and member of the Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies (CBIS). He was looking for a way to study fluid dynamics without interference from the solid walls of a container, which would typically be necessary to hold a fluid being studied on Earth.

The concept, which Hirsa calls a ring-sheared drop, requires a microgravity environment, like the one found in orbit, where surface tension alone can hold a drop of liquid together. This will allow researchers to observe the effects of stress on protein—in this case: insulin.

"We're trying to understand this particular form of protein aggregation," Hirsa said. "And we're trying to remove the complication of wall nucleation."

The ring-sheared drop hardware—built by NASA and its contractors, and inspired by Hirsa's concept—includes a syringe that dispenses a large drop of liquid made up of water and dissolved insulin.