Biological sample: The AT-SPACE experiment investigates Arabidopsis thaliana, the widely used model system for plant genetics studies.
AT-SPACE experiment: Arabidopsis seeds germination and growth in microgravity is required by the scientists to find out the effects of the lack of gravitational stimuli on signal transduction and graviresponse in higher plants.
Hardware performance: The EU is designed to allow Arabidopsis seeds to be hydrated so that plants will then be fixed. The volume of each CC can host 30 seeds, allowing an adequate quantity of material for post-flight analyses and sample comparison statistics. Seeds are embedded within a cellulose culture strip. The experiment procedure is validated with the so called control experiment. Seeds with physiological properties similar to Arabidopsis thaliana ones can be hosted within this EU.