Scientists from Brown University sent heart tissue samples to the International Space Station to study their aging at an accelerated rate. This has been reported area University.
Tissue samples were launched into the stratosphere aboard the Cargo Dragon spacecraft as part of the SpaceX CRS-27 resupply mission to the International Space Station.
Led by researchers at Johns Hopkins University, the project was designed to study changes in cells’ mitochondria (cellular energy-producing organelles) and their ability to contract in low gravity. Astronauts will also inject three drugs into samples to evaluate their ability to prevent heart cell changes in humans during long-duration spaceflights.
According to scientists, the low gravity environment is an ideal laboratory for studying biological aging, which occurs many times faster in such conditions.
“The work will not only improve the understanding of how heart cells respond to drugs in space, but may also lead to innovation in drug development that will help patients on Earth,” the scientists wrote. Said.
The samples will return to Earth at the end of April. Next, the scientists will conduct additional tests to assess the condition of the tissues.