# Student’s $200 device for space wound healing is finalist 2026-08-16T15:32:11+00:00 | Health & Science | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Leanne Fan, an 18-year-old from San Diego, has been named a finalist in the 2026 Regeneron Science Talent Search for her research on using red light therapy to heal wounds in microgravity. The Westview High School student built her own device for about $200 to simulate microgravity, instead of using a NASA clinostat that costs $50,000. Fan treated injured flatworms in simulated microgravity with 660-nanometre red light. The treatment increased tissue regeneration by 95.2%. Tests on human cell wound models showed that the light increased cell migration by 29.4% under normal gravity. The Society for Science said the work could help develop treatments for remote areas, natural disasters, and space missions. Fan's project was chosen from over 2,600 entries, the largest applicant pool for the competition since 1967. She plans to continue the research to understand how photobiomodulation works at a biological level. Her earlier projects include using AI and blue light to detect and treat ear infections. ## Coverage - timesofindia.indiatimes.com This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Tags: Leanne Fan, Regeneron Science Talent Search, San Diego, Society for Science Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/students-200-device-for-space-wound-healing-is-finalist/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/students-200-device-for-space-wound-healing-is-finalist/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes. How this brief was made: an AI model read the report linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/