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Space Biology: Presented By: Anwesha Sinha 1RV16BT008 Saketh Vishnu B O 1RV16BT039

This document provides an overview of space biology research conducted by NASA. The main goals are to understand how living organisms adapt to the space environment and microgravity conditions, and to apply these findings to support human space exploration and benefit life on Earth. Key areas of research include the effects of spaceflight on microbiology, plant biology, animal biology, cell and molecular biology, and reproduction and development. Experiments examine various levels of biological organization, from molecules to whole organisms. Discoveries could help develop new medical treatments and improve agriculture.

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Ananth
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96 views

Space Biology: Presented By: Anwesha Sinha 1RV16BT008 Saketh Vishnu B O 1RV16BT039

This document provides an overview of space biology research conducted by NASA. The main goals are to understand how living organisms adapt to the space environment and microgravity conditions, and to apply these findings to support human space exploration and benefit life on Earth. Key areas of research include the effects of spaceflight on microbiology, plant biology, animal biology, cell and molecular biology, and reproduction and development. Experiments examine various levels of biological organization, from molecules to whole organisms. Discoveries could help develop new medical treatments and improve agriculture.

Uploaded by

Ananth
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
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Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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SPACE BIOLOGY

Space Technology and Applications (16G7H11)


Self Study

Presented By:

Anwesha Sinha 1RV16BT008


Saketh Vishnu B O 1RV16BT039
The main objective of Space Biology research is to build a better understanding of how spaceflight affects living
systems in spacecraft such as the International Space Station (ISS), or in ground-based experiments, and to prepare
for future human exploration missions far from Earth.

The experiments we conduct on these platforms examine how astronauts, plants, and animals regulate and sustain
their growth in space. We examine processes of metabolism, reproduction, and development.

We study how organisms repair cellular damage and protect themselves from infection and disease in conditions of
microgravity. And we do it across the spectrum of biological organization, from molecules to cells, from tissues and
organs, and from systems to whole organisms.

In addition to providing useful information on how living organisms adapt to spaceflight, the discoveries in space
have enormous implications for life on Earth. The research into the virulence of infections in space, bone density,
and the growth of plants can impact the development of drugs that promote wound healing, treatments designed to
counter osteoporosis on Earth, and high-tech fertilizers that increase crop yield.
MICROBIOLOGY OVERVIEW
• With a crew of astronauts on board, living, breathing, exercising, and sweating, the ISS is a breeding ground for
microbes.

• Microbes can be both friends and foes


The effects of spaceflight on the biology of microorganisms and on microbial populations are largely unknown. In
addition to posing a risk to astronaut health, bio-corrosive microorganisms that grow on metallic surfaces in
spacecraft can damage both equipment and hardware. Understanding how microbial species grow and interact
with each other in this environment is the first step in preparing for such a scenario.

• Oxygen-producing cyanobacteria that live in terrestrial bodies of water help replenish Earth’s oxygen. Even the
bacteria living within our digestive tracts play an important role in the digestion of our food and the proper
absorption of nutrients.

• The presence of certain microbes may be important for the proper growth of some plants in space and may even
be critical for the production of future bio-regenerative life support systems. I
Experiments

Microbial observatory of pathogenic viruses, bacteria, fungi

Physiology of microbes in microgravity conditions

Production of secondary metabolites


PLANT BIOLOGY OVERVIEW
Space Biology research helps us understand the fundamentals of plant growth by examining the very building blocks
of plant life down to the molecular level: transcriptomics, genomics, proteomics, and metabolomics.

To compare the effects of microgravity conditions on plants.

To understand how the spaceflight environment affects how plants grow and thrive.

To ensure the health of our astronauts, we’ll be examining the nutritional composition of plants grown in space, and
looking at the microbiome of plants in orbit.

Horticultural approaches for sustained production of edible crops in space be both improved and implemented
(especially as related to water and nutrient provision in the root zone)

The effects of chronic exposure to cosmic radiation on plants.


Experiments

Gravitational responses in plants.

Lignin content experiments.

New food in ISS ( pick-and-eat plants).


ANIMAL BIOLOGY OVERVIEW
• Life in space produces profound changes in biology. All organisms on Earth have adapted to perform under
conditions of gravity, atmosphere, and cycles of light and darkness that have not changed in millions of years,
conditions which are altered aboard spacecraft like the ISS. For example, while circling Earth at speeds of 17,130
miles an hour, crewmembers of the ISS experience sunrise and sunset 16 times a day! Simply put, terrestrial
organisms are not designed for life in space.
• The goal of the Space Biology Program in the animal biology area is to understand the basic mechanisms that
animals use to adapt and/or acclimate to spaceflight and alterations in gravity in general. Animals are frequently
used to model human disease as well as how humans respond to stressful stimuli. The most commonly used model
organisms for which genomics are now well defined include vertebrate species, e.g., rodents, both rats and mice,
and a variety of invertebrate species, e.g., nematodes and insects. NASA has used these model organisms
extensively to evaluate biological spaceflight hazards, elucidate the fundamental mechanisms life uses to adapt to
microgravity, and apply such knowledge to advance human exploration, and for societal benefits on Earth.
• As we examine the impacts of spaceflight on animal biology and physiology, we ask the following questions:
1. Do the effects of spaceflight level off over time, get worse, or get better?
2. Are the effects of spaceflight exposure permanent or do they decrease and/or vanish with time upon return?
3. Can we prevent adverse effects before they appear, or at least lessen their impact?
4. What conditions are required for animals to live in space for years, come back to Earth, and remain healthy?
CELL AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY OVERVIEW
• Cell and molecular biology research cuts across all science disciplines in Space Biology, from understanding how
single-celled organisms, such as protozoa, bacteria, and fungi respond to the conditions of spaceflight, to how all
of the various cells in a complex tissue or organ work together to help an organism as a whole acclimate to such
a foreign environment. The overarching goal of Space Biology Cell and Molecular Biology research at NASA is to
determine how the stresses of the spaceflight environment affect living systems at the basic cellular and
molecular levels, using contemporary cell and molecular biology techniques and measures. This includes
characterizing and identifying changes in gene and protein expression, DNA function and structure, cellular
structure and morphology, and cell-to-cell communication.  
• As we examine the impacts of spaceflight on the cell biology and physiology, we ask the following:
1. What are the underlying genetic and molecular mechanisms of the cells that are influenced by gravitational
changes and the space environment?
2. Does the space flight environment affect or influence cell and molecular functions causing tissue/organ
dysfunction or disease states?
3. Does the space environment affect cellular and molecular functions in a manner that impact tissue
morphogenesis or development?
REPRODUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT OVERVIEW

• What happens to reproduction and the development of offspring across a lifespan and over multiple
generations in space?
• What about differences in how males and females respond to the space environment?
• As we set our sights toward the exploration and colonization of Mars, these are the big questions that the
Reproduction, Development, and Sex Differences Laboratory of the NASA Space Biosciences Research Branch
strives to answer. Since no mammal has yet given birth in space, the answers we seek may not be seen for
years.
THANK YOU

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