Wider application for space systems

Advances in space imaging and sampling technologies could soon improve products used in the defence and healthcare markets, according to Leicestershire-based engineering company Magna Parva.

Over the past few years, the company has been working alongside Leicester University on a number projects to improve technology on a Mars lander. One such system, the Life Marker Chip (LMC), is now being considered for a wider range of applications that could include use by forensic scientists and the armed forces.

The LMC works using biotechnology measurement techniques to detect specific molecules that could be associated with past and present life on the Red Planet. The system uses a ‘lock-and-key’ approach in which the receptor molecule only attracts target molecules of a particular shape.

Magna Parva’s contribution to the project involved the development of a vibrating inlet system that mixes the collected samples with a solvent to release target molecules that bind with antibody agents. These agents are labelled with fluorescent dye and, once paired with a molecule, they can be detected using a solid-state imaging detector.