RUBINS Kathleen

American astronaut from NASA
No previous space experience.

DAY AND PLACE OF BORN: October 10, 1978 in Farmington, Connecticut (USA).

MARITAL STATUS: married.

EDUCATION:

Graduated from Vintage High School in 1996.

Received a Bachelor of Science degree in Molecular Biology from the University of California San Diego in 1999. PhD in Cancer Biology from Stanford University Medical School Biochemistry Department and Microbiology and Immunology Department in 2005.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:

Conducted research on HIV-1 integration in the Infectious Diseases Laboratory at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies. After obtaining her PhD from Stanford University, together with colleagues from the US Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, developed the first model of smallpox infection. She also developed a complete map of the poxvirus transcriptome and studied virus-host interactions, using both in-vitro and animal model systems.

Rubins was a Fellow/Principal investigator at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research at MIT and headed a lab of 14 researchers studying viral diseases that primarily affect Central and West Africa. She has visited Republic of Congo to oversee research there. The work in her lab focused on poxviruses and host-pathogen interaction as well as viral mechanisms for regulating host cell mRNA transcription, translation and decay. In addition, she conducted research on transcriptome and genome sequencing of filoviruses (Ebola and Marburg) and Arenaviruses that cause Lassa Hemorrhagic Fever. Rubins had worked together with the US Army to develop therapies for Ebola and Lassa viruses, published her work in many scientific reviews and presented her research and international conferences.

EXPERIENCE AT NASA:

July 2009 — selected as an astronaut candidate;

May 2011 — completed the Astronaut Candidate Training program at the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center, where her training included scientific and technical briefings, intensive instruction in International Space Station systems, spacewalks, robotics, physiological training, T-38 flight training and water and wilderness survival training.

June 2014-July 2015 — received training as part of the ISS-47/48 backup crew as second flight engineer of Soyuz TMA-19M manned transport vehicle and ISS-46/47 expedition;

December 2015 — made a part of the ISS-48/49 crew as the second flight engineer of Soyuz-MS manned transport vehicle and ISS 48-49 expedition.

AWARDS/HONORS:

National Science Foundation Predoctoral Fellowship
Stanford Graduate Fellowship – Gabilan Fellow
University of California San Diego Emerging Leader of the Year
Order of Omega Honor Society

Organizations:
American Association for the Advancement of Science
American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
American Society for Virology
RNA Society
Chi Omega
American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics

PERSONAL INTERESTS: running, swimming, biking, diving, books.