NASA GeneLab’s Post

NASA Space Biology Science Digest (SBSD) has announced a virtual workshop on lunar surface science, aimed at bringing together scientific and technical professionals to discuss priority activities related to physical sciences, space biology, human biomedical sciences, fundamental physics, astrobiology, astrophysics, and heliophysics. - by Frederic Eger - NASA is hosting a virtual workshop on lunar surface science, aimed at advancing the research community's understanding of scientific drivers and capabilities for lunar surface habitat research facilities. The workshop is designed to bring together scientific and technical professionals to discuss priority activities related to physical sciences, space biology, human biomedical sciences, fundamental physics, astrobiology, astrophysics, and heliophysics. The workshop is intended for researchers at any level, including academia, R&D industry, and government. The Inspiration4 mission collected molecular, cellular, physiological, and phenotypic biological measurements from four civilian astronauts, yielding a comprehensive Space Omics and Medical Atlas (SOMA). This collaborative effort resulted in the release of 44 publications in Nature Press documenting the molecular, cellular, physiological, and phenotypic changes observed during spaceflight. Scientific publications authored by members of the Open Science Data Repository (OSDR) Analysis Working Group (AWG) community, ISSOP, and Ames Research Center scientists were prominently featured in 15 papers across seven Nature journals. Additional publications in this release delve into artificial intelligence and omics analysis, along with ethical considerations and perspectives. The Space Life Sciences Training Program (SLSTP) interns have successfully published a review paper in the peer-reviewed journal npj Microgravity, which highlights the importance of understanding how macrophages respond to the unique environment of space to safeguard crew members with appropriate countermeasures for future missions in low Earth orbit and beyond. The review highlights current literature on macrophage responses to spaceflight and spaceflight analogs. The RR-28 experiment, led by Principal Investigator Dr. Hema Ramkumar from Oculogenex and sponsored by the International Space Station National Laboratory (ISSNL), will study the effectiveness of a novel gene therapy developed by Oculogenex on preventing spaceflight-associated retinal damage as a disease model of age-related macular degeneration (AMD). The RR-28 mice returned to Earth on April 30, 2024, on SpaceX-30, where the BSP team collected over 700 biospecimens not utilized by the primary investigation to make available for sharing through the NASA Biological Institutional Scientific Collection (NBISC). The tissues are currently being ingested and catalogued into the collection and will soon be available to the scientific community.

Interplanetary.tv: NASA Space Biology Science Digest (SBSD) has announced a virtual workshop on lunar surface science, aimed at bringing together scientific and technical professionals to discuss priority activities related to physical sciences, space biology, human biomedical sciences, fundamental physics, astrobiology, astrophysics, and heliophysics. - by Frederic Eger - NASA is hosting a virtual workshop on lunar surface science, aimed at advancing the research community's understanding of scientific drivers and capabilities for lunar surface habitat research facilities. The workshop is designed to bring together scientific and technical professionals to discuss priority activities related to physical sciences, space biology, human biomedical sciences, fundamental physics, astrobiology, astrophysics, and heliophysics. The workshop is intended for researchers at any level, including academia, R&D industry, and government. The Inspiration4 mission collected molecular, cellular, physiological, and phenotypic biological measurements from four civilian astronauts, yielding a comprehensive Space Omics and Medical Atlas (SOMA). This collaborative effort resulted in the release of 44 publications in Nature Press documenting the molecular, cellular, physiological, and phenotypic changes observed during spaceflight. Scientific publications authored by members of the Open Science Data Repository (OSDR) Analysis Working Group (AWG) community, ISSOP, and Ames Research Center scientists were prominently featured in 15 papers across seven Nature journals. Additional publications in this release delve into artificial intelligence and omics analysis, along with ethical considerations and perspectives. The Space Life Sciences Training Program (SLSTP) interns have successfully published a review paper in the peer-reviewed journal npj Microgravity, which highlights the importance of understanding how macrophages respond to the unique environment of space to safeguard crew members with appropriate countermeasures for future missions in low Earth orbit and beyond. The review highlights current literature on macrophage responses to spaceflight and spaceflight analogs. The RR-28 experiment, led by Principal Investigator Dr. Hema Ramkumar from Oculogenex and sponsored by the International Space Station National Laboratory (ISSNL), will study the effectiveness of a novel gene therapy developed by Oculogenex on preventing spaceflight-associated retinal damage as a disease model of age-related macular degeneration (AMD). The RR-28 mice returned to Earth on April 30, 2024, on SpaceX-30, where the BSP team collected over 700 biospecimens not utilized by the primary investigation to make available for sharing through the NASA Biological Institutional Scientific Collection (NBISC). The tissues are currently being ingested and catalogued into the collection and will soon be available to the scientific community.

"Even intense exercise by astronauts cannot compensate for muscle atrophy caused by microgravity. Atrophy occurs, in part, by way of an underlying mechanism that regulates calcium uptake. Recent research has shown exposure to spaceflight alters the uptake of calcium in muscles. However, the molecular mechanisms that drive these changes are not well studied. Researchers at Ames Research Center investigated these mechanisms by applying machine learning (ML) to identify patterns in datasets on mice exposed to microgravity. ML methods are particularly effective in identifying patterns in complex biological data and are suited for space biological research where small datasets are often combined to increase statistical power. Resistance training can counteract the negative health effects of microgravity on muscle atrophy, but new Ames Research Center research seeks to understand the physiological mechanisms at play to identify biomarkers that can inform innovative counter measures. The study was a project of NASA's Space Life Sciences Training Program at Ames Research Center. It has been published in the journal npj Microgravity. Machine learning analysis shows molecular drivers to physiological changes in the calcium channel sarcoplasmic/ endoplasmic reticulum (SERCA) pump, leading to muscle changes and muscle loss in spaceflight rodents. ML models were created to identify proteins that could predict an organism's resilience to microgravity with respect to calcium uptake in muscles. Specific proteins, Acyp1 and Rps7, were found to be the most predictive biomarkers associated with enhanced calcium intake in fast-twitch muscles. This study offered a first look at the use of ML on calcium uptake in muscle when exposed to microgravity conditions. This study demonstrated the role of NASA's open science initiative in accelerating space biology by its reliance on ARC's Open Science Data Repository (OSDR) and Analysis Working Groups, as well as the involvement of an international research team from the U.S., Canada, Denmark, and Australia. Notably, the article's first author was an undergraduate at UC Berkeley, demonstrating the unlimited potential of NASA-Berkeley collaborations in life sciences research with the upcoming Berkeley Space Center at NASA Research Park." NASA https://lnkd.in/eCbK4h3g paper : Kevin Li et al, Explainable machine learning identifies multi-omics signatures of muscle response to spaceflight in mice, npj Microgravity (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41526-023-00337-5 https://lnkd.in/egmWAzkE "

New studies on astronauts and space biology bring humanity one step closer to the final frontier. The Space Omics and Medical Atlas (SOMA) package of manuscripts, data, protocols, and code represents the largest-ever compendium of data for #aerospace #medicine and #space #biology. Over 100 institutions from >25 countries worked together for a coordinated 2024 release of #molecular, #cellular, physiological, phenotypic, and spaceflight data; this includes analysis of samples collected from the first all-civilian crew of the Inspiration4 mission, which consisted of commercial astronauts who embarked on a short-term mission to a high-altitude orbit (575 km), farther than the #internationalspacestation (#iss ISS). This data is distinct from the longer-duration missions of ISS-based #astronauts, who typically stay 120, 180, or 365 days. While in orbit, the Inspiration4 crew performed an extensive battery of scientific experiments, which have now been processed, sequenced, and analyzed, contributing to most of the 44 papers in the SOMA package, some of which are highlighted below. Embracing the spirit of Open Science at NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration and data accessibility, all raw and processed data acquired from the crew during and after their missions have been made available in NASA’s Open Science Data Repository an expansion of NASA GeneLab. The SOMA package features a >10-fold increase in the number of #ngs #nextgenerationsequencing (NGS) data from spaceflight, a 4-fold increase in the number of single-cells processed from spaceflight, the launch of the first aerospace medicine biobank (Weill Cornell Medicine’s CAMbank), the first-ever direct RNA #rna #sequencing data from astronauts, the largest number of processed biological samples from a mission (2,911), and the first ever spatially-resolved #transcriptome data from astronauts. Transcriptome changes; #geneexpression responses for #dna damage, #immune activation, #mitochondrial disruption, frailty, sarcopenia, accelerated health risks in multiple organs, and #telomere regulation were observed, consistent with prior missions. Spatial multi- #omics of human skin reveals KRAS and #inflammatory responses to spaceflight Communications Biology: Spaceflight induces changes in gene expression profiles linked to #insulin and #estrogen ://https://lnkd.in/eHqKzEjK

NASA's Top Station Science News: August 9, 2024 Highlights Groundbreaking Research in Space: Enhancing Health and Manufacturing for Future Missions In a recent study, researchers explored a novel treatment on cartilage and bone tissue cultures subjected to compressive impact injury. The study revealed intriguing differences in the metabolites and proteins released by cells in space compared to those on Earth, alongside partial improvements in both gravity conditions. These findings suggest that the treatment is safe and has the potential to enhance the health of astronauts on future missions, as well as patients on Earth. Musculoskeletal injuries are common among astronauts, and joint injuries leading to post-traumatic osteoarthritis are a […] https://lnkd.in/dUe2VUSg https://lnkd.in/dqQx3wWU

OSDR and Space Biosciences researchers from Ames participated at the NASA Science Mission Directorate (SMD) AI Workshop 2024 in Huntsville, AL. Attendees included Sylvain Costes (also workshop steering cmte), Walter Alvarado, James Casaletto, and Lauren Sanders representing NASA Open Science Data Repository (OSDR NASA GeneLab 🔗 https://osdr.nasa.gov/bio/) & AI for Life in Space (AI4LS). One of the invited keynote speakers was Michael Moor of Stanford University who presented on Generalist Medical AI. 🔗https://lnkd.in/gACpnk-e >100 AI experts & scientists from outside & within NASA delved into the future of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for space exploration & open science. Walter presented a chatbot enabled by an SMD Large Language Model connected to OSDR. It’s a leap forward in making vast repositories of scientific data more accessible & interactive for knowledge extraction. A side meeting was held with the Interagency Implementation and Advanced Concepts Team (IMPACT) on OSDR data metadata & how to use AI for curation. The workshop had Earth, Astrophysics, Biological, Physical, Health, Planetary, & Heliophysics domains. There were SPECTACULAR hands-on Jupyter & CoLab notebooks prepped by the IMPACT team: 🔗LLM Cookbook https://lnkd.in/gXxhrb_s 🔗GeoFM Fine-tuning https://lnkd.in/g2rdbeX6 The workshop examined OSDR, LLMs for earth science, astronomy, biological knowledge, & examined areas for collaboration across NASA divisions of SMD. 3 use cases emerged: The Earth/Moon/Mars Foundation model would use Earth's existing models & data to better understand Moon, Mars, & potentially other planetary bodies to analyze the impact of space radiation, atmospheric content, magnetic fields. The Space Radiation Foundation Model would enhance predictive capabilities for radiation, missions, & health by expanding & integrating data into the RadLab database (🔗https://lnkd.in/g7Z4JdgA) utilizing a variety of sources including on-board ISS dosimetry, Heliophysics dosimetry & geomagnetic data. The Astronaut Digital Twin would predict health outcomes under space conditions using extensive Earth & space human data. It would significantly advance the understanding & mitigation of health risks in spaceflight. Previously identified in Scott et al 2023 http://rdcu.be/c8jSO & Sanders et al 2023 https://rdcu.be/c8jSS   Federated learning was discussed & can be used not only to enable in situ analytics addressing spaceflight data transfer & privacy challenges, but also used by SMD on Earth across repositories & data lakes. Read full article here: 🔗https://lnkd.in/gbRg5nEW

🚨DEADLINE EXTENSION! 🚨 You now have 5 more days to apply for the digital European Space Agency - ESA Space Omics Hackathon!  Open to Master and PhD students from bioinformatics and biology fields, the Hackathon invites you to take a closer look at the NASA GeneLab omics datasets and to solve challenges aligned with the ESA HRE Explore 2040 Strategy ‘Terrae Novae’, paving our way to Low Earth Orbit, Moon, and Mars. 🚀 Teams will be invited to tackle one of three challenges: 1. Reproducibility and open science in space omics 2. Space multi-omics and data integration 3. Meaningful experiment design for space biology Need inspiration before application? Nearly every Space Omics scientist an institution from all over the world contributed to the newest release of 44 space biomedical articles across Nature Portfolio, including our esteemed colleague Daniela Bezdan of the Insitute of Medical Genetics and Applied Genomics of the University of Tuebingen. You can find the full collection of articles here: https://lnkd.in/eWqPdxTZ Do you have an idea for one of the exciting ESA Challenges? Then simply click the banner below, join the Hackathon, and be part of the newest innovations in Space Omics!👇 #spaceomics #spacebiotech #hackathon #spacebiology #terraenovae

DNA Mutations in ASTRONAUTS 🙄 😲 | Aakash Khurana All fourteen astronauts in the study, from NASA's space shuttle program, had DNA mutations in blood-forming stem cells, a Nature Communications Biology study Aug. 31 concluded. #nasa #nasaspaceappschallenge #research #science #knowledge #knowledgesharing Exposure to space radiation is one of the primary concerns for astronauts, and it can potentially lead to DNA mutations. Space radiation consists of high-energy particles from the sun, cosmic rays, and other sources outside Earth's atmosphere. These particles can penetrate the human body and interact with biological tissues, including DNA. Key points related to DNA mutations in astronauts: 1. Ionizing Radiation: Space radiation, particularly ionizing radiation, has enough energy to remove tightly bound electrons from atoms, leading to the formation of ions. This process can damage DNA by breaking the chemical bonds within the DNA strands. 2. Types of DNA Damage: Ionizing radiation can cause various types of DNA damage, including single-strand breaks, double-strand breaks, and base damage. Double-strand breaks are particularly problematic as they are more difficult to repair and can lead to mutations. 3. Repair Mechanisms: The human body has sophisticated DNA repair mechanisms to address damage caused by various factors, including radiation. However, the intensity and type of radiation encountered in space may overwhelm these repair mechanisms, leading to the accumulation of mutations. 4. Long-Term Effects: While short-term exposure to space radiation during a single space mission might not have severe consequences, long-term space travel, such as missions to Mars, raises concerns about cumulative exposure and potential long-term health effects, including an increased risk of cancer. 5. Research and Mitigation: Scientists and space agencies are actively researching ways to mitigate the impact of space radiation on astronauts. This includes developing shielding technologies, such as improved spacecraft materials, and understanding the biological effects of radiation exposure to implement better countermeasures. 6. Individual Variability: The susceptibility to radiation-induced DNA damage and mutations can vary among individuals due to genetic factors. Some astronauts may be more resilient to radiation, while others may be more susceptible. It's worth noting that space agencies, such as NASA, take extensive measures to monitor and mitigate the risks associated with space radiation. These efforts include ongoing research, improved spacecraft design, and the development of medical countermeasures to protect astronauts during space missions. Additionally, advancements in genetic and medical research contribute to a better understanding of the long-term effects of space travel on human health. For more info : https://lnkd.in/gxeJ8FYE

More evidence about the challenges of long duration space flight and biotic resistance / immune function and post-flight immunodeficiency. 

New research conducted by NASA has concluded that bacteria living aboard the International Space Station are evolving to better withstand their hostile environments. In a study revealing a wealth of benefits for our understanding of space exploration and human health, bacteria on the ISS displayed different characteristics when compared to the same strains on earth. NASA researchers began investigating a strain of bacteria found on the station, presumed to have travelled there via human hosts or supply deliveries. When compared to similar species on earth, the space microbes were found to exhibit abnormal qualities. These “super-bacteria” were noted to better endure solar radiation and low-gravity, and are more resistant to antibiotics and other treatments due to the high carbon dioxide levels. Some even show signs of increased virulence – the ability of a pathogen or microorganism to cause damage to a host. The mechanisms behind these adaptations include genetic mutations, and the transfer of advantageous traits between bacteria, often facilitated by something known as horizontal gene transfer. Scientists have been monitoring the ISS’ microbiome for over a decade, to better understand how they survive in space, and what threat they might pose to astronauts. Amongst the variables tested are different regulators that help the bacteria respond to environmental stresses. In fact, earlier this year, scientists at NASA reported that 13 strains of a bacterium well-known for being resistant to various drugs had become “genetically and functionally distinct compared to their Earth counterparts” whilst aboard the ISS. “These microbes have found ways to live and possibly even thrive in space, and understanding how they do this could have big benefits for space exploration and health”, said Kasthuri Venkateswaran from NASA. Understanding how bacteria evolve in space could also have profound implications for long-duration space missions, such as future trips to Mars. As humans venture further into the cosmos, the risk of microbial contamination becomes of critical concern. Enhanced bacterial resilience could pose health risks for astronauts, potentially leading to infections that are difficult to treat due to antibiotic resistance. However, the adaptability of these microbes may also offer solutions. Understanding the genetic mechanisms that allow bacteria to thrive in space could lead to the development of new biotechnological applications. Researchers are exploring how they could be used in ‘bioremediation processes’ essential for long-term space missions. These findings offer exciting opportunities for learning more about the space ecosystem and human health. By investigating microbial dynamics in extreme environments, we can better prepare for the challenges they present, and develop preventative measures to protect astronaut health. Read the full story here: https://lnkd.in/d3ZDSupJ