life sciences in space research

Life Sciences in Space Research

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Life Sciences in Space Research

Volume 4 • Issue 4

• ISSN: 2214-5524

Editor-In-Chief: Tom K. Hei

• 5 Year impact factor: 2.4
• Impact factor: 2.9
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Life Sciences in Space Research features an editorial team of top scientists in the space radiation field and guarantees a fast turnaround time from submission to editorial… Read more

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Life Sciences in Space Research features an editorial team of top scientists in the space radiation field and guarantees a fast turnaround time from submission to editorial decision.

Manuscripts in the following areas are considered:

Astrobiology;

Prebiotic chemistry and origin of life;

Life in extreme environments;

Habitability in the solar system and beyond;

Ecological life support and sustainability;

Functionality, monitoring and control of ecosystem in space environment;

Animal models in space research;

Effects of space flight conditions on human bodies;

Non-cancer health effects of space radiation, space flight;

Space radiation risk assessment and countermeasures;

Space radiation dosimetry - measurements, modeling and detector development;

Gravitational effects in biological systems;

Effects of space radiation in living organisms at the cellular and molecular levels.

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• Published: 12 February 2020

Selected discoveries from human research in space that are relevant to human health on Earth

• Mark Shelhamer 1 ,
• Jacob Bloomberg 2 ,
• Adrian LeBlanc 3 ,
• G. Kim Prisk 4 ,
• Jean Sibonga 2 ,
• Scott M. Smith 2 ,
• Sara R. Zwart 5 &
• Peter Norsk 3  

npj Microgravity volume  6 , Article number:  5 ( 2020 ) Cite this article

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• Translational research

A substantial amount of life-sciences research has been performed in space since the beginning of human spaceflight. Investigations into bone loss, for example, are well known; other areas, such as neurovestibular function, were expected to be problematic even before humans ventured into space. Much of this research has been applied research, with a primary goal of maintaining the health and performance of astronauts in space, as opposed to research to obtain fundamental understanding or to translate to medical care on Earth. Some people—scientists and concerned citizens—have questioned the broader scientific value of this research, with the claim that the only reason to perform human research in space is to keep humans healthy in space. Here, we present examples that demonstrate that, although this research was focused on applied goals for spaceflight participants, the results of these studies are of fundamental scientific and biomedical importance. We will focus on results from bone physiology, cardiovascular and pulmonary systems, and neurovestibular studies. In these cases, findings from spaceflight research have provided a foundation for enhancing healthcare terrestrially and have increased our knowledge of basic physiological processes.

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Introduction.

For as long as humans have ventured into space, research has been performed to study the physiological effects of spaceflight. The claim is sometimes made that the only reason to do this research on humans in space is to provide the information that is needed to keep them alive and well when they are in space—the implication being that there is little or no fundamental scientific return from such research. 1 Here, we provide evidence to the contrary. In the course of applied research that is primarily focused on maintaining astronaut health in space, discoveries have been made that have a broader impact on fundamental scientific understanding. That these findings arose in the course of applied research suggests that there will be other interesting and important scientific discoveries when and if more open-ended exploratory science can be performed in space. We present here five areas of physiology that support this contention.

Bone Loss in Space: Countermeasures for Disuse

Even in the years prior to human spaceflight, clinical research suggested that weightlessness would lead to bone loss, although the details were uncertain. 2 , 3 Ongoing NASA research has provided a more general understanding of bone loss and delineation of the detailed effects of disuse on bone, independent of disease-related bone loss and recovery. The early Skylab flights and short-duration missions of Gemini and Apollo led to the development of densitometry techniques that are now used widely in clinical settings around the world. 4 , 5 This research shed light on the rapid bone loss caused by disuse conditions.

Spaceflight research found that bone loss could be continuous for several months in space, and suggested that recovery after flight would not be rapid, if it occurred at all. Measurements on the international crews of Mir, Shuttle/Mir, and ISS documented continuous loss of areal bone mineral density of 1–2% per month, which varied greatly between individuals, bones, bone compartments, and skeletal regions within the same individual. 6 , 7 , 8 These studies also showed the dichotomy between cortical and trabecular bone loss with disuse. Some recovery of lost bone does occur very slowly following return to Earth, but some loss within the trabecular compartment may be permanent. 8 , 9 , 10 This information has been important for NASA planning and also for terrestrial clinicians attempting to rehabilitate patients after significant periods of disuse. Mechanistically, during disuse, systemic markers of bone resorption and urinary calcium excretion are consistently elevated, while bone formation is unchanged, suggesting that remodeling is elevated and the dynamics are uncoupled. 11 Alterations in remodeling have been well documented in most bone diseases, and now it is known that spaceflight and disuse can result in altered remodeling in healthy subjects, hence the need to prioritize procedures to minimize the effects of disuse to the greatest extent possible. NASA has investigated exercise countermeasures, such as bicycle and treadmill ergometry and resistive weight training, that appear to be partially effective. 12 In addition to routine exercise, an antiresorptive agent, alendronate, taken weekly, has proved to be effective in reducing bone loss, remodeling rate, and urinary calcium excretion. 13 These results had been verified using the ground-based bed-rest model of weightlessness, without exercise. 14

Notwithstanding the obvious benefits of this research for science and astronaut health, these findings may also be important for disuse-related bone changes on Earth. For example, amputation, lower-leg fractures, ligament tears, and other clinically-required but temporary disuse conditions lead to bone loss with delayed or incomplete recovery. 15 , 16 The value of an antiresorptive medication in these surgical situations requires future validation. The spaceflight studies indicate that an early pharmacologic intervention at the beginning of a disuse episode could be effective in preventing bone loss and, thereby, preserve bone integrity (especially trabecular structure critical to bone strength).

Bone Loss and Nutrition: Calcium Metabolism and Dietary Proteins

Nutrition is critical for human health, especially during exploration in remote regions, where food and nutrient intake may be compromised. Spaceflight provides a highly controlled environment with healthy individuals and a high degree of monitoring. Therefore, it is an ideal experimental setting in which to analyze the association of nutrients with rapid bone loss and to test the effects of specific nutrient supplementation. This has led to a better understanding of the effects of dietary components on bone, 17 and of the effectiveness of vitamin D supplementation in individuals without natural ultraviolet light exposure. 18

Iron stores (reflected by serum ferritin) increase in the early weeks of spaceflight, then slowly return toward pre-flight levels. 19 The increase is associated with evidence of oxidative damage and bone resorption. Greater extent or duration of ferritin increase during spaceflight results in a greater decrease in bone mineral density (hip, trochanter, hip neck, pelvis) after long-duration flight. 20 Also, the ferritin increase has been shown to correlate with elevated biochemical markers of bone resorption and urinary calcium excretion during spaceflight. Several human and animal studies support these findings and show that mild iron excess (but still within a normal clinical range) is associated with bone loss by a mechanism believed to be related to oxidative stress. 19 , 21 The relationships between iron and bone loss during flight were observed in 4–6-month missions; these same relationships in a terrestrial study were observed after 3 years, 21 likely due to the fact that bone loss during spaceflight is approximately ten times faster than on Earth. These findings help identify relationships between nutrition, oxidative stress, and bone loss and also have implications for terrestrial health and medicine.

Other dietary factors can influence acid/base balance in the body, which in turn can affect the skeleton, a source of base (calcium carbonate) that can neutralize acid loads. Dietary proteins can contribute to acid load through the production of low levels of sulfuric acid. Therefore, a high dietary ratio of animal protein (rich in amino acids) to potassium (typically as base-producing, acid-neutralizing salts) is associated with increased bone breakdown. 20 Furthermore, supplementing a nominal diet with amino acids during extended bed rest (an analog of spaceflight) leads to increased acid load and increased bone resorption. 22 Recent spaceflight research has identified that the acid:base potential of the diet is negatively correlated with bone loss (more acidogenic, more bone loss). 17

The effect of diet on bone loss remains controversial—some studies have shown protective effects of a high protein diet, but some studies found a high protein diet could be detrimental. These discrepancies are likely due to other contributing factors, such as calcium intake. 23 , 24 , 25 As with almost any human research, controlling for all relevant variables and confounding factors is challenging. For example, postmenopausal women often suffer from decreased bone density, but these individuals have varying diets, levels of physical activity, comorbidities and genetic influences. Further, it can take years to observe any therapeutic or detrimental effects of diet since bone loss is much slower than in space. Astronaut populations are relatively homogenous and free of comorbidities yet experience accelerated bone resorption and consume foods from the same controlled and limited food system, with a shared key environmental stressor: microgravity. Therefore, the space environment holds the potential to provide insights into the therapeutic or detrimental effects of nutrients on bone loss that can be applied to clinical research.

Cardiovascular System: Lessons Learned About Central Venous Pressure and Left Ventricular End-Diastolic Volume

Blood and other fluids shift from the lower extremities to the upper body during spaceflight due to the absence of a hydrostatic gradient in weightlessness. 26 It has been speculated that the repositioning of fluids would increase cardiac preload and central venous pressure (CVP), with implications for cardiac function. (Preload, or end-diastolic volume, is the amount of blood in the ventricles at the end of cardiac filling, before the systolic “pulse” that sends blood to the peripheral circulation. Higher preload increases the volume of blood flow in the subsequent contraction.) CVP in space was first measured with catheters in arm (cubital) veins and was unexpectedly decreased in flight. 27 , 28 , 29 In another study, CVP was more directly measured with central fluid-filled catheters during the initial hours of two Space Shuttle missions. These and other measurements confirmed an in-flight reduction in CVP and also found an increase in left ventricular end-diastolic volume (LVEDV, the amount of blood in the ventricle at the end of filling, just before the systolic pulse). 30 , 31 It was surprising to find decreased CVP yet increased LVEDV because it is venous pressure (CVP) that provides the force to fill the ventricles (LVEDV). Decreased CVP reflects a decrease in cardiac preload and, thus, should result in a decrease in subsequent atrial volume and LVEDV.

The ostensible contradiction of a decrease in CVP and an increase in LVEDV 30 was later explained by data from the weightless phase of parabolic flight, where a decrease in CVP of 1.3 mm Hg was observed. 32 At the same time, esophageal pressure, which reflects intrathoracic pressure (inside the chest cavity, surrounding the heart), fell by 5.6 mm Hg. The fact that esophageal pressure fell more than CVP provided the key to understanding the simultaneous decrease in CVP and increase in LVEDV in weightlessness. While supine in 1 g, the thorax is mechanically compressed, which increases CVP relative to ambient pressure. The importance and magnitude of mechanical compression pressure for understanding preload changes to the heart was not known before CVP was measured in weightlessness. 32

The relationship between the expansion of the thorax and stroke volume and cardiac output observed during spaceflight has contributed to an understanding of the effects of posture on heart-lung interactions. The weightlessness-induced change in CVP relative to intrathoracic pressure (transmural CVP) during spaceflight leads to increases in stroke volume and cardiac output of 35% and 41%, respectively, compared to seated upright in 1 g, 33 in accordance with the well-known Starling effect 34 which states that stroke volume increases in response to increases in blood volume in the ventricles prior to contraction. Understanding that expansion of the thorax helps to increase stroke volume and cardiac output contributes to basic knowledge of the influence of gravity and posture on heart-lung interactions. As an example, measuring CVP as an indication of the change in cardiac preload during a change in posture (from supine to head-up or vice versa) can lead to erroneous interpretations of the measurements, if intrathoracic pressure is not taken into account. The front-to-back compression of the thorax while supine increases intrathoracic pressure, which leads to increased LVEDV despite decreased CVP. The same is likely also true when shifting from supine to horizontal lateral positions because of a different distribution of gravitational loading on the thorax.

The findings from space and parabolic flights are also relevant for understanding how intrathoracic pressure regulation can aid in the treatment of hypotension and in decreasing intracranial pressure. Use of an inspiratory threshold device (ITD), which increases resistance to inspiration, can increase cardiac filling via negative-pressure-induced expansion of the thorax during inspiration, resulting in the suction of more blood into the right atrium and ventricle. 35 The ITD can also decrease intracranial pressure in patients with intracranial hypertension by increasing venous return and decreasing cerebrospinal fluid pressure through the inspiratory expansion of the thorax. These medical advances would not have been possible without the measurements from spaceflight, parabolic flight, and bed-rest research.

Pulmonary Function: Gravity-Induced Lung Deformation

Gas exchange in the lung is accomplished by passive diffusion, in which inspired gas and circulating blood must be brought together in appropriate proportions across a very thin (alveolar) membrane. In the 1950s, after the advent of radiolabeled tracers, the effects of gravity on the perfusion of the lung were first appreciated. The first few studies found that ventilation varied according to gravity level and, together with very low pulmonary vascular perfusion pressures, affected gas exchange, with a gravity-induced reduction in exchange efficiency as a direct consequence of ventilation-perfusion mismatch. 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 These observations help to explain much of the age-related impairment in pulmonary gas exchange as the aging lung in geriatric patients deforms more under the influence of gravity.

The expectation then was that in weightlessness ventilation, perfusion, and the matching of ventilation to perfusion would become uniform (lacking in gradients due to gravity). 40 Observations showed that while ventilation (the air that reaches the alveoli) 41 and perfusion (the blood that reaches the alveoli) 42 were indeed much more uniform, some residual inhomogeneity remained, likely due to the complicated structure of the lung. The observations showed, more importantly, that the matching of ventilation to perfusion was no better than that seen on the ground. 43 This initially paradoxical observation, which could not be readily appreciated in terrestrial experiments, is now known to be a direct consequence of the coupling of ventilation and perfusion. Gravity deforms the lung, resulting in uneven ventilation, 44 and similarly causes uneven perfusion. 45 Thus, in the normal human lung, gravity serves effectively to maintain the matching of ventilation to perfusion through mechanical effects 46 and thus to maintain efficient gas exchange. However, as lung weight is increased – as is often the case in intensive-care situations with excess fluid accumulation – lung deformation increases, regions of the lung become unventilated, and gas exchange becomes compromised. Understanding the nature of lung deformation and how gravity affects gas exchange – an understanding improved through spaceflight studies— is a matter of critical importance in the intensive care unit where prone positioning in some patients results in significant reductions in mortality. 47

Sensorimotor and Neurovestibular Function: Perception and Orientation in Altered Gravity

Among the most widespread biomedical impacts from spaceflight may be those in the area of neurovestibular function, given its long history going back to high-performance aircraft flight, predating spaceflight. 48 Research in this area has contributed to basic understanding of the remarkable capacity for adaptive plasticity. Humans have a lifetime of experience and neural development (and many years of evolution) in a constant gravity field. The combination of sensory information that results from movement in this gravity field takes gravity into account. Consider a head tilt: the vestibular semicircular canals sense angular velocity, the vestibular otolith organs detect a change in orientation with respect to gravity, and proprioceptors are triggered by neck flexion. In a weightless environment, the otolith tilt signal is missing, but despite a lifetime of experience with normal Earth gravity, astronauts adjust to this “missing” otolith signal within a matter of days. 49 Aspects of this neuroplasticity have informed training programs to improve motor function in clinical populations. An example is a better understanding of the role of gravity loading in maintaining muscle and motor function, and the importance of maintaining loading to prevent degenerative changes in protein metabolism and muscle fibers that can impair rehabilitation after spinal-cord injury. 50

Another unexpected observation was the ability to evoke caloric nystagmus in orbital flight. 51 Nystagmus is the repetitive reflexive motion made by the eyes to maintain gaze stability when the head is rotated. It can also be stimulated, as a test of vestibular function, by irrigating the ear with hot or cold water, which sets up convection within the fluid of the semicircular canals. Since fluid in the canals under normal circumstances is only set in motion when the head moves, caloric stimulation mimics an extended head rotation and induces the corresponding nystagmus. The presence of caloric nystagmus in space was surprising because the dominant stimulus on Earth is convection in the fluid in the inner ear. With the weightlessness of space, there is no convection and therefore, there should be no caloric nystagmus. Later studies investigated this phenomenon and determined that there is a direct thermal effect of caloric stimulation on the semicircular canals of the vestibular system, 52 which slightly expands the canal membrane and induces fluid motion within the canal. This furthered the understanding of this very commonly used diagnostic tool.

Another neurovestibular discovery that was uncovered during spaceflight research was the role of otolith asymmetry on ocular alignment and space motion sickness. 53 The otolith organs in each vestibular labyrinth contain small crystals of calcium carbonate (otoconia); the relative motions of the otoconia detect linear accelerations and gravity. There is reason to believe that the body does not maintain perfect symmetry (equal masses) of the otoconia between the two inner ears, leading to slightly different sensitivities in vestibular sensing across the midline. 54 The weightlessness of spaceflight made it clear that there is a central compensation mechanism for this tonic imbalance that is normally appropriate for an Earth-gravity environment; changes in ocular alignment (mediated by the otolith organs) and susceptibility to space motion sickness have been correlated with this asymmetry, which can be measured with simple assessment of the alignment of the two eyes in different gravity levels. 53 Recognition of the role of such otolith asymmetry in vestibular-mediated responses has led to research that examines changes in one such response – vertical and torsional alignments of the eyes – under peripheral or central insult. Assessment of this response is aiding the understanding of traumatic injuries due to blast in military populations. 55

The challenges of performing physiological research in space should not be underestimated. This type of research is subject to many confounds: significant operational constraints, limited experimental controls, limited opportunities for repetition and validation, and small numbers of subjects. Despite these complications, NASA and its international partners have carried out a successful research program that has produced many important results. These results not only provide practical information to maintain astronaut health and safety in space, 56 they also provide important information for fundamental scientific understanding. These scientific results also help us catalog the range of possible adaptive processes that might have aided in our development and adjustment to Earth, and suggest limits on the ability to live in extreme settings. All of these provide a broader perspective not just on physiology and human health, but on our place in the universe.

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Acknowledgements

We appreciate the assistance of Marie-Elizabeth Barabas, of the npj Microgravity editorial staff, in editing of the final paper. AL was supported by numerous NASA grants and contracts. GKP was supported by numerous NASA contracts, grants, and through a cooperative agreement with the National Space Biomedical Research Institute. JS’s science expertise for this report was supported by the Human Health Countermeasures Element of the NASA Human Research Program. Nutrition research support was provided by the Human Health Countermeasures Element of the Human Research Program (S.S. and S.Z.). Support from NNX16A069A, NASA Cooperative Agreement to Baylor College of Medicine for the Translational Research Institute for Space Health (TRISH), is gratefully acknowledged (P.N.).

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M.S.—conceived of the manuscript topic and assembled text on specific physiological topics as supplied by the individual co-authors (A.L. and J.S.—bone loss, S.S. and S.Z.—nutrition, G.K.P.—pulmonary function, P.N.—cardiovascular, J.B. and M.S.—sensorimotor).

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Shelhamer, M., Bloomberg, J., LeBlanc, A. et al. Selected discoveries from human research in space that are relevant to human health on Earth. npj Microgravity 6 , 5 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41526-020-0095-y

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Breakthroughs in Space Life Science Research

From Apollo 16 to the ISS

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This last volume of the SpringerBriefs in Space Life Sciences series is setup in 5 main parts.

The 1st part shortly summarizes the history of life science research in space from the late 40s until today with focus on Europe and Germany, followed by a part on describing flight opportunities including the Space Shuttle/Spacelab system and the International Space Station ISS; in the 3 rd  part it focuses on extraordinary success stories of this constantly challenging research program and highlights some important key findings in space life science research. The book introduces in the 4 th part innovative developments in non-invasive biomedical diagnostics and training methods for astronauts that emerge from this program and are of benefit for people on Earth especially in the aging society. Last but not least in its 5 th part it closes with an outlook on the future of space life sciences in the upcoming era of space exploration.

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Front matter, introduction: space life sciences—basic research and applications under extraordinary conditions.

• Günter Ruyters, Markus Braun, Katrin Maria Stang

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Success stories: incremental progress and scientific breakthroughs in life science research, success stories: innovative developments for biomedical diagnostics and preventative health care, space life sciences in the exploration era: an outlook on future challenges and opportunities, authors and affiliations.

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About the authors

Günter Ruyters is the former Head of Germany´s Space Life Sciences Program at the German Space Administration, German Aerospace Center DLR and served as Germany´s delegate of the Human Spaceflight, Microgravity and Exploration Program Board of the European Space Agency ESA. He was also appointed professor at the Faculty of Biology, University of Bielefeld.

Katrin Maria Stang is Parabolic Flight Program Manager and Coordinator for the Human Research Program at the Department of Research and Exploration at the German Space Agency, German Aerospace Center (DLR). Her responsibilities include management of experiment hardware development for the International Space Station and coordination of the utilization of ground analogues for human physiology projects.

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Book Title : Breakthroughs in Space Life Science Research

Book Subtitle : From Apollo 16 to the ISS

Authors : Günter Ruyters, Markus Braun, Katrin Maria Stang

Series Title : SpringerBriefs in Space Life Sciences

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-74022-1

Publisher : Springer Cham

eBook Packages : Biomedical and Life Sciences , Biomedical and Life Sciences (R0)

Copyright Information : Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021

Softcover ISBN : 978-3-030-74021-4 Published: 12 June 2021

eBook ISBN : 978-3-030-74022-1 Published: 10 June 2021

Series ISSN : 2196-5560

Series E-ISSN : 2196-5579

Edition Number : 1

Number of Pages : XVII, 155

Number of Illustrations : 4 b/w illustrations, 30 illustrations in colour

Topics : Biomedicine, general , Cell Biology , Space Sciences (including Extraterrestrial Physics, Space Exploration and Astronautics) , Aerospace Technology and Astronautics

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Cancer Research in Space for Life on Earth: Five Projects Selected Through ISS National Lab Solicitation in Partnership With NASA

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Inaugural Igniting Innovation research announcement is providing more than $7 million in funding to advance cancer research through space-based R&D

BOSTON , July 30, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory, in partnership with NASA's Biological and Physical Sciences (BPS) division, jointly announced the selection of five projects through the inaugural Igniting Innovation solicitation for cancer and other disease-related research and technology development on the ISS. The projects, which were announced at the annual ISS Research and Development Conference (ISSRDC) in Boston , will harness the unique microgravity environment to advance cancer research to benefit patients on Earth. 

The National Cancer Institute estimates that more than 2 million cases of cancer will be diagnosed in 2024, and more than 600,000 people will die from the disease. Cancer and other disease-related research on the space station is critical not only to the ISS National Lab and NASA but also to the Biden-Harris administration and its Cancer Moonshot  initiative. Through the inaugural Igniting Innovating solicitation, more than $7 million in total funding is being awarded to the selected research teams. Each team intends to fly multiple projects to the orbiting laboratory through this research announcement.

"Over the years, the space station has been a catalyst for biomedical research that has profound impacts on patient care on Earth," said Ray Lugo , chief executive officer for the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space™, manager of the ISS National Lab. "Through this inaugural Igniting Innovation research announcement, the ISS National Lab and NASA focused funding efforts to specifically target cancer through space-based research, and we look forward to working with the selected projects as they push the boundaries of research and innovation to develop more effective therapeutics for those impacted by this devastating disease."

The selected projects are listed below:

• Mari Anne Snow , Eascra Biotech:  This project seeks to produce cancer therapeutics in space using Janus base nanomaterials (JBNs) designed to target drug delivery to solid tumors, improving cancer treatment and reducing side effects. JBNs are formed by DNA-inspired building blocks that self-assemble. Producing JBNs in microgravity could make them more uniform, increasing both safety and efficacy. This would allow JBNs to carry larger amounts of drugs for more effective treatment. This project builds on prior space station research that Eascra and the University of Connecticut conducted with support from Axiom Space to examine the use of JBNs to treat arthritis .
• Arun Sharma , Cedars-Sinai Medical Center:  This project aims to grow cardiac spheroids with blood vessels from induced pluripotent stem cells in space for cardiovascular disease modeling and to test how cancer drugs affect the heart. In space, cells grow into 3D structures that are more like cell growth in the body. Blood vessels may also grow better within the spheroids in microgravity. Space-grown cardiac spheroids could provide a better disease model to study cardiovascular disease and test cancer drug toxicity. Additionally, on Northrop Grumman's 21st Commercial Resupply Services mission (NG-21) to the ISS , slated for early August, the Cedars-Sinai team intends to launch a regenerative medicine investigation supporting the in-space manufacturing of stem cells, building on prior space studies .  
• Catriona Jamieson , University of California, San Diego :  This project seeks to use patient-derived tumor organoids to study accelerated cancer development in microgravity and identify new cancer therapeutic targets. After cancer treatment, cancer stem cells can remain in the body. These cancer cells self-renew, evade the immune system, and develop resistance, resulting in their ability to spread throughout the body. The research team will observe the rate of cancer stem cell growth in space, where cancer cells can grow more quickly, to test whether blocking a specific enzyme prevents cancer stem cell growth. Results could lead to new treatments that target evasive cancer stem cells to prevent cancer recurrence. The UCSD team has launched multiple investigations to the ISS through private astronaut missions and NASA-sponsored missions.
• Cassian Yee , University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center: This project aims to use microgravity to better understand how T cells work in order to develop new immunotherapy treatments for patients with cancer and autoimmune diseases. T cells are a type of white blood cell that play a key role in the immune system. Previous research has shown that microgravity induces changes in the structure and function of these cells. The team will study T cells in space to better understand what controls them, and results could lead to improved immunotherapy drugs that use the immune system to fight cancer.
• Shay Soker , Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine (WFIRM):  This project seeks to use organoids created from cells recovered from colorectal cancer patients to see if chemotherapy works better in space, offering insight into improved chemotherapies. Microgravity causes changes in cancer cells that may make them more sensitive to chemotherapy. The team will study how spaceflight changes gene expression in the organoids to identify targets for new, more effective chemotherapy drugs. Results from this project could also lead to personalized cancer treatment. WFIRM is actively involved in research on the space station and will launch an investigation on NG-21 analyzing the behavior of engineered liver constructs, which could lead to in-space production of tissues for organ transplants on Earth.

All five research teams intend to work with ISS National Lab Commercial Service Provider Axiom Space, together with BioServe Space Technologies, who will provide engineering and logistical support to prepare the projects for spaceflight and successful operations on station.

"We are thrilled to support this critical in-space cancer research," said Lisa Carnell , director of NASA's Biological and Physical Sciences (BPS) division. "The unique microgravity environment of space offers incredible opportunities for researchers to study the effects of spaceflight stressors on human tissue. This research could be used not only to help protect crew health on long-duration missions but also to contribute to initiatives like the Cancer Moonshot and improved treatment options for patients here on Earth."

The final award of funding is contingent upon acceptance of legal terms and conditions between the recipients, the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space™, which manages the ISS National Lab, and NASA's BPS division.

The ISS National Lab and NASA plan to announce the 2024 Igniting Innovation solicitation in August. This research announcement is focused on leveraging the space environment to address challenges that hinder progress in preventing, diagnosing, and treating the most challenging diseases of our time, such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, and neurodegenerative disease.

To download a high-resolution image for this release, click here .

About the International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory: The International Space Station (ISS) is a one-of-a-kind laboratory that enables research and technology development not possible on Earth. As a public service enterprise, the ISS National Laboratory ® allows researchers to leverage this multiuser facility to improve quality of life on Earth, mature space-based business models, advance science literacy in the future workforce, and expand a sustainable and scalable market in low Earth orbit. Through this orbiting national laboratory, research resources on the ISS are available to support non-NASA science, technology, and education initiatives from U.S. government agencies, academic institutions, and the private sector. The Center for the Advancement of Science in Space™ (CASIS™) manages the ISS National Lab, under Cooperative Agreement with NASA, facilitating access to its permanent microgravity research environment, a powerful vantage point in low Earth orbit, and the extreme and varied conditions of space. To learn more about the ISS National Lab, visit our website .

As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, CASIS accepts corporate and individual donations to help advance science in space for the benefit of humanity. For more information, visit our donations page . 

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Cancer research in space for life on earth: five projects selected through iss national lab solicitation in partnership with nasa.

Inaugural Igniting Innovation research announcement is providing more than $7 million in funding to advance cancer research through space-based R&D

BOSTON , July 30, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory, in partnership with NASA's Biological and Physical Sciences (BPS) division, jointly announced the selection of five projects through the inaugural Igniting Innovation solicitation for cancer and other disease-related research and technology development on the ISS. The projects, which were announced at the annual ISS Research and Development Conference (ISSRDC) in Boston , will harness the unique microgravity environment to advance cancer research to benefit patients on Earth.

The National Cancer Institute estimates that more than 2 million cases of cancer will be diagnosed in 2024, and more than 600,000 people will die from the disease. Cancer and other disease-related research on the space station is critical not only to the ISS National Lab and NASA but also to the Biden-Harris administration and its Cancer Moonshot  initiative. Through the inaugural Igniting Innovating solicitation, more than $7 million in total funding is being awarded to the selected research teams. Each team intends to fly multiple projects to the orbiting laboratory through this research announcement.

"Over the years, the space station has been a catalyst for biomedical research that has profound impacts on patient care on Earth," said Ray Lugo , chief executive officer for the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space™, manager of the ISS National Lab. "Through this inaugural Igniting Innovation research announcement, the ISS National Lab and NASA focused funding efforts to specifically target cancer through space-based research, and we look forward to working with the selected projects as they push the boundaries of research and innovation to develop more effective therapeutics for those impacted by this devastating disease."

The selected projects are listed below:

Mari Anne Snow , Eascra Biotech:  This project seeks to produce cancer therapeutics in space using Janus base nanomaterials (JBNs) designed to target drug delivery to solid tumors, improving cancer treatment and reducing side effects. JBNs are formed by DNA-inspired building blocks that self-assemble. Producing JBNs in microgravity could make them more uniform, increasing both safety and efficacy. This would allow JBNs to carry larger amounts of drugs for more effective treatment. This project builds on prior space station research that Eascra and the University of Connecticut conducted with support from Axiom Space to examine the use of JBNs to treat arthritis .

Arun Sharma , Cedars-Sinai Medical Center:  This project aims to grow cardiac spheroids with blood vessels from induced pluripotent stem cells in space for cardiovascular disease modeling and to test how cancer drugs affect the heart. In space, cells grow into 3D structures that are more like cell growth in the body. Blood vessels may also grow better within the spheroids in microgravity. Space-grown cardiac spheroids could provide a better disease model to study cardiovascular disease and test cancer drug toxicity. Additionally, on Northrop Grumman's 21st Commercial Resupply Services mission (NG-21) to the ISS , slated for early August, the Cedars-Sinai team intends to launch a regenerative medicine investigation supporting the in-space manufacturing of stem cells, building on prior space studies .

Catriona Jamieson , University of California, San Diego :  This project seeks to use patient-derived tumor organoids to study accelerated cancer development in microgravity and identify new cancer therapeutic targets. After cancer treatment, cancer stem cells can remain in the body. These cancer cells self-renew, evade the immune system, and develop resistance, resulting in their ability to spread throughout the body. The research team will observe the rate of cancer stem cell growth in space, where cancer cells can grow more quickly, to test whether blocking a specific enzyme prevents cancer stem cell growth. Results could lead to new treatments that target evasive cancer stem cells to prevent cancer recurrence. The UCSD team has launched multiple investigations to the ISS through private astronaut missions and NASA-sponsored missions.

Cassian Yee , University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center: This project aims to use microgravity to better understand how T cells work in order to develop new immunotherapy treatments for patients with cancer and autoimmune diseases. T cells are a type of white blood cell that play a key role in the immune system. Previous research has shown that microgravity induces changes in the structure and function of these cells. The team will study T cells in space to better understand what controls them, and results could lead to improved immunotherapy drugs that use the immune system to fight cancer.

Shay Soker , Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine (WFIRM):  This project seeks to use organoids created from cells recovered from colorectal cancer patients to see if chemotherapy works better in space, offering insight into improved chemotherapies. Microgravity causes changes in cancer cells that may make them more sensitive to chemotherapy. The team will study how spaceflight changes gene expression in the organoids to identify targets for new, more effective chemotherapy drugs. Results from this project could also lead to personalized cancer treatment. WFIRM is actively involved in research on the space station and will launch an investigation on NG-21 analyzing the behavior of engineered liver constructs, which could lead to in-space production of tissues for organ transplants on Earth.

All five research teams intend to work with ISS National Lab Commercial Service Provider Axiom Space, together with BioServe Space Technologies, who will provide engineering and logistical support to prepare the projects for spaceflight and successful operations on station.

"We are thrilled to support this critical in-space cancer research," said Lisa Carnell , director of NASA's Biological and Physical Sciences (BPS) division. "The unique microgravity environment of space offers incredible opportunities for researchers to study the effects of spaceflight stressors on human tissue. This research could be used not only to help protect crew health on long-duration missions but also to contribute to initiatives like the Cancer Moonshot and improved treatment options for patients here on Earth."

The final award of funding is contingent upon acceptance of legal terms and conditions between the recipients, the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space™, which manages the ISS National Lab, and NASA's BPS division.

The ISS National Lab and NASA plan to announce the 2024 Igniting Innovation solicitation in August. This research announcement is focused on leveraging the space environment to address challenges that hinder progress in preventing, diagnosing, and treating the most challenging diseases of our time, such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, and neurodegenerative disease.

To download a high-resolution image for this release, click here .

About the International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory: The International Space Station (ISS) is a one-of-a-kind laboratory that enables research and technology development not possible on Earth. As a public service enterprise, the ISS National Laboratory ® allows researchers to leverage this multiuser facility to improve quality of life on Earth, mature space-based business models, advance science literacy in the future workforce, and expand a sustainable and scalable market in low Earth orbit. Through this orbiting national laboratory, research resources on the ISS are available to support non-NASA science, technology, and education initiatives from U.S. government agencies, academic institutions, and the private sector. The Center for the Advancement of Science in Space™ (CASIS™) manages the ISS National Lab, under Cooperative Agreement with NASA, facilitating access to its permanent microgravity research environment, a powerful vantage point in low Earth orbit, and the extreme and varied conditions of space. To learn more about the ISS National Lab, visit our website .

As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, CASIS accepts corporate and individual donations to help advance science in space for the benefit of humanity. For more information, visit our donations page .

View original content to download multimedia: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cancer-research-in-space-for-life-on-earth-five-projects-selected-through-iss-national-lab-solicitation-in-partnership-with-nasa-302210134.html

SOURCE International Space Station National Lab

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Nasa to highlight 13th space station research, development conference.

Jessica Taveau

Nasa headquarters.

Editor’s Note: This med ia advisory was updated on July 29, 2024 to reflect the updated times for the Low Earth Orbit panel on Wednesday, July 31 and the keynote address on Thursday, Aug. 1.

NASA will broadcast groundbreaking discoveries, benefits for humanity, and how the agency and its commercial and international partners are maximizing research and development in orbit from the 13th annual International Space Station Research and Development Conference.

The conference runs Monday through Thursday, Aug. 1, in Boston. The full conference agenda is available online . NASA will stream live coverage of select panels on NASA Television, the NASA app , YouTube , and the agency’s website. Learn how to stream NASA TV through a variety of platforms, including social media.

NASA’s coverage is as follows (all times Eastern):

Tuesday, July 30

9 a.m. – Igniting Innovation Keynote with the following participants:

• Diana Ly, manager, deputy director, Biological and Physical Sciences, NASA Headquarters
• Michael Roberts, chief scientific officer, International Space Station National Laboratory

9:35 a.m. – NASA’s Expedition 71 astronauts will discuss research from aboard the orbiting space station laboratory with the following participants:

• Mike Barratt
• Matt Dominick
• Jeanette Epps
• Tracy C. Dyson

Wednesday, July 31

12 p.m. – Keynote address with the following participant:

• NASA Associate Administrator Jim Free

1:45 p.m. – Lightning: The Power of Science in Low Earth Orbit talk with the following participant:

• Nicky Fox, associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters

2:05 p.m. – Low Earth Orbit Research Continuity panel with the following participants:

• Robyn Gatens, director, International Space Station Program, NASA Headquarters
• Kirt Costello, utilization manager, Low Earth Orbit Development Program, NASA Johnson
• Ryan Prouty, manager, International Space Station Research Integration Office, NASA Johnson

Thursday, Aug. 1

8:40 a.m. – International Space Station International Partners panel with the following participants:

• Dana Weigel, manager, International Space Station Program, NASA Johnson
• Dr. Masaki Shirakawa, director, Japanese Experiment Module Utilization Center, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency)
• Fabio Caramelli, manager, Space Rider System Payload and Exploitation, ESA (European Space Agency)
• Mathieu Caron, director, Astronauts, Life Sciences and Space Medicine, CSA (Canadian Space Agency)
• Hazzaa Al Monsoori, chief, Astronaut Office, United Arab Emirates
• Luca Di Fino, utilization manager, International Space Station Program, Agenzia Spaziale Italiana

10:15 a.m. – Accessibility to Low Earth Orbit panel with the following participants:

• Brittany Brown, director, digital communications, Office of Communications, NASA Headquarters
• Jessica Gagen, scientist and educator, Miss United Kingdom 2024
• Eric Ingram, chairman and chief strategy officer, SCOUT Space, Inc.
• John Shoffner, founder, Perseid Foundation

12:30 p.m. – Keynote address with the following participant:

• Steve Bowen, NASA astronaut

The International Space Station Research and Development Conference is hosted by the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space and the American Astronautical Society, in cooperation with NASA, and brings together leaders from industry, academia, and government.

With more than 23 years of continuously crewed operations, the space station is a unique scientific platform where crew members conduct experiments across multiple disciplines of research, including Earth and space science, biology, human physiology, physical sciences, and technology demonstrations not possible on Earth. Crews living aboard the station have executed more than 3,300 experiments in microgravity for thousands of researchers on Earth. The space station also supports space commerce, from commercial crew and cargo partnerships to commercial research and national lab research. Data collected from these activities helps set standards for future commercial stations.

Get updates about the science conducted aboard the space station on X at @ISS_Research .

Learn more about conducting research in microgravity at:

https://www.nasa.gov/iss-science

Joshua Finch / Jimi Russell Headquarters, Washington 202-358-1100 [email protected] / [email protected]

Sandra Jones Johnson Space Center, Houston 281-483-5111 [email protected]

Patrick O’Neill International Space Station National Laboratory 904-806-0035 [email protected]

Related Terms

• International Space Station (ISS)
• International Space Station Division
• ISS Research

NASA just scored a badly needed win: The best potential evidence of alien life yet

• NASA's Perseverance rover has found potential evidence of ancient microbial life on Mars .
• Scientists must bring the rock to Earth for further study, but three key features make it promising.
• The discovery is a crucial win for NASA after a series of budget cuts and mission setbacks.

NASA has snagged a chunk of rock on Mars that could someday prove to be the first clear evidence of alien life .

To be clear, NASA is not declaring that it's discovered Martian life. Rather, its Perseverance rover has drilled a sample from a rock with attributes that could have come from ancient microbial activity, the agency announced Thursday.

To confirm their suspicions, scientists would need to bring the rock sample to Earth and study it in more detail.

"This is exactly the kind of sample that we wanted to find," Katie Stack Morgan, a lead scientist on the Perseverance mission , told Business Insider.

3 key features could point to alien life

The rock, nicknamed Cheyava Falls, has three critical features:

• First, white veins of calcium sulfate are clear evidence that water once ran through it.
• Second, the rock tested positive for organic compounds, which are the carbon-based building blocks of life, as we know it.
• Third, it's speckled with tiny "leopard spots" that point to chemical reactions that are associated with microbial life here on Earth.

However, both the organic material and the leopard spots could have come from non-biological processes. That's why scientists need to study the sample more closely on Earth to know for sure.

The rover has reached the limit of what it can learn about the rock.

"We're not saying there's life on Mars, but we're seeing something that is compelling as a potential biosignature," Stack Morgan said.

A biosignature is any feature that points to the presence of life .

Related stories

"This is a very significant discovery," she added.

It's a much-needed win for the space agency. In recent months, NASA has taken hit after hit from budget limitations and technical errors across missions.

NASA needs this win

Earlier this year, the agency's first attempt to return to the moon since 1972 failed. The NASA-funded Peregrine moon mission, by the company Astrobotic suffered a fuel leak shortly after launch, forcing it to return to Earth and burn up in the atmosphere. (The next attempt, a mission by the company Intuitive Machines , also funded by NASA, successfully landed on the moon.)

Then, new budgeting decisions came down. NASA's budget proposal for 2025 effectively defunds the Chandra X-ray Observatory , which is still a highly productive and functional mission.

And just last week, NASA officials announced they were scrapping the VIPER moon rover that the agency has already spent $450 million to build. NASA plans to disassemble it and reuse some of the parts for future moon missions.

Meanwhile, two astronauts have been stuck on the International Space Station for 51 days because the NASA-funded Boeing spaceship that carried them there is leaking helium and having thruster malfunctions.

Even Perseverance wasn't spared. In April, NASA announced it was canceling its $11 billion plan to send a follow-up mission, called Mars Sample Return, to collect the rover's tubes of Martian rock and carry them back to Earth. That was the plan that could've brought scientists the Cheyava Falls rock sample.

Instead, NASA is asking companies to step in and propose their own cheaper, faster versions of the mission.

The Cheyava Falls rock especially needs the extra studying.

"This rock is also one of the most complex rocks we've seen on the surface of Mars. There is a lot going on in this rock," Stack Morgan said.

I s it aliens? Check the CoLD scale

For now, this discovery is just a "step one" on the seven-step "confidence of life detection" (CoLD) scale.

The CoLD scale is a rough rating of scientific confidence in any potential alien-life discovery.

"We've taken us up to the start of that scale, and I think that's what the rover was sent to Mars to do," Stack Morgan said.

A possible biosignature can climb to higher levels of confidence as evidence builds. For example, if scientists can confirm that known non-biological processes didn't create the leopard spots, the Cheyava Falls rock might ascend to step two or three.

But they need to get the sample to Earth first. And NASA needs to figure out how to do that.

"We're hoping that our most recent sample can play into the conversation about whether this effort is worth it," Stack Morgan said. "And we believe that it is."

Watch: This asteroid dirt might explain the origins of life on Earth

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Experiment on photosynthesis is heading to the space station to explore effects of microgravity

by Tom Rickey, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

An experiment aimed at learning more about how plants grow in space will be aboard a National Aeronautics and Space Administration launch in early August from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

A Northrop Grumman Cygnus spacecraft perched atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will carry the plants to the orbiting laboratory, where astronauts will tend to them before the plants are returned to Earth.

The experiment created by scientists at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory will look at how two different types of grass grow on the space station. A PNNL team led by biologist Pubudu Handakumbura designed the experiment and will compare the results from space to identical plants being grown at the Kennedy Space Center.

The study focuses on photosynthesis—how plants take in light and then use it to grow, converting carbon dioxide to sugars and oxygen in the process. The two grass types under study, Brachypodium distachyon and Setaria viridis, use different carbon dioxide -concentrating mechanisms. Handakumbura's team will compare the two methods in a microgravity environment.

While most plants on Earth use a carbon-concentrating mechanism known as C3, there is some evidence that a method known as C4 holds more promise for plant growth in space.

"How will the plants respond in a microgravity environment?" said Handakumbura. "Plants naturally send their roots downward due to gravity. But how will they grow in microgravity? This is important for future deep space exploration, for growing food and supporting life."

The team will monitor three identical sets of plants as they grow for 32 days—two sets at Kennedy Space Center and one set on the space station. Altogether, the experiment includes 288 plants.

On the space station , astronauts will tend to the plants and record how efficiently they are carrying out photosynthesis. After the plants are returned to Earth on a subsequent mission, they will be sent to PNNL, where Handakumbura's team will spend several months analyzing the molecular activity that took place.

The experiments measuring proteins, metabolites and other molecules will be done at the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a DOE Office of Science user facility.

Handakumbura's experiment is named Advanced Plant Experiment-09 or APEX-09 . PNNL colleagues Chaevien Clendinen, Summer Duckworth, Kim Hixson, Madeline Southworth and Kylee Tate are also working on the project.

Handakumbura will be on hand to watch the experiment, three years in the making, head into space as part of Northrop Grumman's 21st Commercial Resupply Services Mission.

"I look forward to the knowledge we will uncover from the team-driven science we are conducting with APEX 09," said Handakumbura. "And I am excited to contribute to the foundational research that will shape future plant system designs."

Provided by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

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