
Role : Crew Journalist
Studies : Biotechnologist, PhD student
Email : asanchezmontalvo@marsuclouvain.be
I am Alba, from Spain, graduated in Biotechnology and master in Research in Immunology. I am currently a last-year PhD student in Biomedical and pharmaceutical sciences at the Institute of Experimental and Clinical Research (IREC, UCLouvain, Brussels) focusing on diseases affecting the upper respiratory tract. Since I was a child, I was fascinated by the human body and everything around our us in our world, including, of course, space. As the crew journalist, I am ready to create a lot of content to give visibility to the MARS UCLouvain project and to transmit my passion for science and the project. This adventure will be a unique opportunity to grow personally and professionally and to learn as much as possible from such a fascinating experience.

Alba’s experiment
Scientists know that certain factors related to spaceflights may impact the immune system of astronauts, such as microgravity but also radiation exposure, isolation, and stress. Also, a dysregulation occurs in astronauts’ immunity (pro-inflammatory and Th1 responses) during long-term spaceflight. The goal of my study to evaluate the immune system function before, during and after the […]