Call for articles to cite in the weekly lists: Authors at NASA Centers and NASA PIs—do you have an article that has recently published or will publish in the upcoming weeks within a peer-reviewed journal and is in the scope of space life sciences? If so, send it our way! Send your article to the email address mentioned above. Articles received by Wednesday will appear within that week’s list—articles received after Wednesday will appear the following week.
Papers deriving from NASA support:
1
Brojakowska A, Kour A, Thel MC, Park E, Bisserier M, Garikipati VNS, Hadri L, Mills PJ, Walsh K, Goukassian DA.
Retrospective analysis of somatic mutations and clonal hematopoiesis in astronauts.
Note: From the abstract: “With planned deep space and commercial spaceflights, gaps remain to address health risks in astronauts. Multiple studies have shown associations between clonal expansion of hematopoietic cells with hematopoietic malignancies and cardiometabolic disease. This expansion of clones in the absence of overt hematopoietic disorders is termed clonal hematopoiesis (CH) of indeterminate potential (CHIP). Using deep, error-corrected, targeted DNA sequencing we assayed for somatic mutations in CH-driver genes in peripheral blood mononuclear cells isolated from de-identified blood samples collected from 14 astronauts who flew Shuttle missions between 1998-2001.”
Journal Impact Factor: 6.548
Funding: “We would like to thank the Lifetime Surveillance of Astronaut Health (LSAH) at NASA Johnson Space Center for their assistance with mission information and manuscript review. This work was supported by the Translational Research Institute for Space Health award FIP0005 (to Dr. Goukassian), National Aeronautics and Space Administration Human Research Program Space Biology Element grant 80NSSC19K1079 (to Dr. Goukassian), and National Aeronautics and Space Administration Human Research Program Space Biology Element grant 80NSSC21K0549 (to Drs. Goukassian and Walsh).”
Funding: “EGB and MAF were supported by the Translational Research Institute for Space Health through Cooperative Agreement with NASA (NNX16AO69A). HJD, GMG, and GAH were supported by NIH (NIAMS) grant R01 (AR068132), NASA grant 80NSSC18K1473, and National Space Biological Research Institute grant NSBRI/NASA, (MA02802). LJS is supported by R01HD102909 and 4R37 AA018282 from NIH.”
3
Omer M, Ali H, Orlovskaya N, Ballesteros A, Cheong VS, Martyniak K, Wei F, Collins BE, Yarmolenko SN, Asiatico J, Kinzel M, Ngo C, Sankar J, Calder A, Gilbertson T, Meckmongkol T, Ghosh R, Coathup M.
Omega-9 modifies viscoelasticity and augments bone strength and architecture in a high-fat diet-fed murine model.
Funding: “This study was internally funded. Authors JA and CN’s work was supported by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration [grant No. 80NSSC21M0309] issued through the NASA Office of STEM Engagement.”
4
Stone KA, Mahoney SJ, Paryzek RA, Pitts L, Stastny SN, Mitchell SL, Downs ME, English KL, Hackney KJ.
Intermittent blood flow restriction exercise rapidly improves muscular and cardiovascular health in adults with beyond adequate protein intakes.
Note: From the abstract: “Functional losses associated with spaceflight negatively influence astronaut health and mission success. Exercise combined with protein supplementation is a promising countermeasure. Blood flow restricted (BFR) exercise is an effective modality, but synergistic benefits when combined with protein supplementation are not clearly identified. The purposes of this investigation were to determine if blended (e.g., whey and casein) protein supplementation combined with BFR exercise favorably altered body composition, muscle function, and cardiovascular health during a short training program.”
Journal Impact Factor: 2.954
Funding: M. Everett is affiliated with NASA Johnson Space Center.
5
Smith KJ, Datta A, Burkhart C, Clark TK.
Efficacy of galvanic vestibular stimulation as a display modality dissociated from self-orientation.
Hum Factors. 2022 Aug 16;187208221119879. Online ahead of print.
Note: From the abstract: “Wearable non-invasive biosensors for the continuous monitoring of metabolites in sweat can detect a few analytes at sufficiently high concentrations, typically during vigorous exercise so as to generate sufficient quantity of the biofluid. Here, we report the design and performance of a wearable electrochemical biosensor for the continuous analysis, in sweat during physical exercise and at rest, of trace levels of multiple metabolites and nutrients, including all essential amino acids and vitamins.” This article may be obtained online without charge.
Journal Impact Factor: 29.234
Funding: “This project was supported by the National Institutes of Health grant R01HL155815, Office of Naval Research grants N00014-21-1-2483 and N00014-21-1-2845, the Translational Research Institute for Space Health through NASA NNX16AO69A, NASA Cooperative Agreement 80NSSC20M0167, High Impact Pilot Research Award T31IP1666 and grant R01RG3746 from the Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program, Caltech-City of Hope Biomedical Initiative Pilot Grant and the Rothenberg Innovation Initiative Program at California Institute of Technology. J.T. was supported by the National Science Scholarship (NSS) from the Agency of Science Technology and Research (A*STAR) Singapore.”
7
Weber Boutros S, Unni VK, Raber J.
An adaptive role for DNA double-strand breaks in hippocampus-dependent learning and memory.
Note: This article is part of Research Topic “Molecular and Cellular Mechanisms of Brain Disease: Hippocampus as a Nodal Point” (https://www.mdpi.com/journal/ijms/special_issues/Hippocampus). This article may be obtained online without charge.
Journal Impact Factor: 6.208
Funding: “This work was partially funded by a NSF Graduate Research Fellowship award, NASA NSCOR G-00066-4, R21 CA223461, R21 AG065914, RF1 AG059088, P30 AG066509, NS102227, F31 AG067629, Knight CVP-003, and the development accounts of Unni and Raber.”
Note: From the abstract: “Neuronal activity is the key modulator of nearly every aspect of behavior, affecting cognition, learning, and memory as well as motion. Hence, disturbances of the transmission of synaptic signals are the main cause of many neurological disorders. Lesions to nervous tissues are associated with phenotypic changes mediated by astrocytes becoming reactive. Reactive astrocytes form the basis of astrogliosis and glial scar formation. Astrocyte reactivity is often targeted to inhibit axon dystrophy and thus promote neuronal regeneration. Here, we aim to understand the impact of gravitational loading induced by hypergravity to potentially modify key features of astrocyte reactivity. We exposed primary murine astrocytes as a model system closely resembling the in vivo reactivity phenotype on custom-built centrifuges for cultivation as well as for live-cell imaging under hypergravity conditions in a physiological range (2gand 10g).” This article and the article above (Baran et al.) are part of Topic “Translation from Microgravity Research to Earth Application” (https://www.mdpi.com/topics/microgravity_research). This article may be obtained online without charge.
4
Ibrahim Z, Ramachandran G, El-Huneidi W, Elmoselhi A, Qaisar R.
Suppression of endoplasmic reticulum stress prevents disuse muscle atrophy in a mouse model of microgravity.
Note: From the abstract: “Hindlimb unloaded (HLU) mouse model exhibits skeletal muscle atrophy and weakness mimicking the conditions such as prolonged spaceflight. However, the molecular mechanisms and interventions of muscle loss during muscle unloading remain elusive. Dysfunction of protein folding by ednoplasmic reticulum (ER), a condition called ER stress, is implicated in diseases of various cell types, but its contribution to skeletal muscle detriment remains elusive. In this study, we investigated the contribution of ER stress to muscle atrophy.”
5
Naito M, Kodaira S.
Considerations for practical dose equivalent assessment of space radiation and exposure risk reduction in deep space.
Note: From the abstract: “International Space Station partner nations have yet to agree on career radiation dose constraints. This is of increasing concern for collaborative mission planning beyond low-Earth orbit, since it is likely that one or two long-duration missions will expose crew to a cumulative dose that approaches or exceeds their current respective limits. As with radiological effects, the cumulative health impact of the numerous other injuries and illnesses documented during spaceflight is inherently heightened with longer and farther missions, say to the Moon and Mars. This paper summarizes the origin of existing radiological constraints employed by the Canadian Space Agency and explores how to build upon these protection practices to address the challenges associated with beyond low-Earth orbit missions.”
7
Nakamura JL.
Considerations for carcinogenesis countermeasure development using mouse models.
Life Sci Space Res. 2022 Aug 12. Online ahead of print.
Note: From the abstract: “Activities in space will expose humans to profoundly new environments, challenging human performance and will require innovative supportive technologies. Among these environmental variables, exposure to ionizing radiation is a major concern for astronauts, as the long-term effects of exposure on diverse tissues are poorly understood. This need however creates opportunities for novel approaches, particularly in the development of countermeasures against the effects of ionizing radiation exposure. Carcinogenesis presents a unique challenge as a disease process, due to the inherent complexities of the process and the challenges of obtaining a large volume of clinical evidence. Thus, developing the countermeasures to address potential effects of ionizing radiation exposure will require understanding biological underpinnings to design countermeasures effectively in conjunction with highly robust modeling approaches to test and examine in vivo. This review will highlight specific considerations for accelerated development of space radiation countermeasures against carcinogenesis.”
8
Liu H, Li BW, Chen J, Shen Z, Zhang X, Wang J, Nan CW.
Concurrent enhancement of breakdown strength and dielectric constant in poly(vinylidene fluoride) film with high energy storage density by ultraviolet irradiation.
Note: From the abstract: “Whole-body hyperthermia (WBH) has an adverse effect on the nervous system and neurophysiological performance. In the present study, we examined whether short-duration whole-body immersion in 45°C water (HWI-45°C), which produces a strong neural and temperature flux without inducing WBH, can increase or impair neurophysiological performance in humans.” This article may be obtained online without charge.
11
Chen X, Tang K, Li X, Zhang C, Xin Y, Li K, Tan Y.
Biomechanics of cancer stem cells.
Essays Biochem. 2022 Aug 9;EBC20220014. Review. Online ahead of print.
Ruotsalainen SE, Surakka I, Mars N, Karjalainen J, Kurki M, Kanai M, Krebs K, Graham S, Mishra PP, Mishra BH, Sinisalo J, Palta P, Lehtimäki T, Raitakari O, Milani L, Okada Y, Palotie A, Widen E, Daly MJ, Ripatti S.
Inframe insertion and splice site variants in MFGE8 associate with protection against coronary atherosclerosis.
Note: From the abstract: “Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of premature death and disability worldwide, with both genetic and environmental determinants. The most common cardiovascular disease is coronary heart disease (CHD), including coronary atherosclerosis and myocardial infarction, among others. While genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified multiple genetic loci associated with cardiovascular diseases, exact genes driving these associations remain mostly uncovered.”
13
Han R, Yu L, Zhao C, Li Y, Ma Y, Zhai Y, Qian Z, Gu Y, Li S.
Inhibition of SerpinB9 to enhance granzyme B-based tumor therapy by using a modified biomimetic nanoplatform with a cascade strategy.
Biomaterials. 2022 Aug 6;121723. Online ahead of print.
Berli M, Franco F, Di Paolo J, Zioupos P, Borau C.
The interplay between BMU activity linked to mechanical stress, specific surface and inhibitory theory dictate bone mass distribution: Predictions from a 3D computational model.
Pelusi L, Mandatori D, Di Pietrantonio N, Del Pizzo F, Di Tomo P, Di Pietro N, Buda R, Genovese S, Epifano F, Pandolfi A, Fiorito S, Pipino C.Estrogen receptor 1 (ESR1) and the Wnt/β-catenin pathway mediate the effect of the coumarin derivative umbelliferon on bone mineralization.
Note: From the abstract: “In this study, we address the question: Can the central nervous system stabilize vertical posture in the abundant space of neural commands? We assume that the control of vertical posture is associated with setting spatial referent coordinates (RC) for the involved muscle groups, which translates into two basic commands, reciprocal and co-activation. We explored whether the two commands co-varied across trials to stabilize the initial postural state.”
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — A rare Bronze-Era jar accidentally smashed by a 4-year-old visiting a museum was back on display Wednesday after restoration experts were able to carefully piece the artifact back together.
Last month, a family from northern Israel was visiting the museum when their youngest son tipped over the jar, which smashed into pieces.
Alex Geller, the boy’s father, said his son — the youngest of three — is exceptionally curious, and that the moment he heard the crash, “please let that not be my child” was the first thought that raced through his head.
The jar has been on display at the Hecht Museum in Haifa for 35 years. It was one of the only containers of its size and from that period still complete when it was discovered.
The Bronze Age jar is one of many artifacts exhibited out in the open, part of the Hecht Museum’s vision of letting visitors explore history without glass barriers, said Inbal Rivlin, the director of the museum, which is associated with Haifa University in northern Israel.
It was likely used to hold wine or oil, and dates back to between 2200 and 1500 B.C.
Rivlin and the museum decided to turn the moment, which captured international attention, into a teaching moment, inviting the Geller family back for a special visit and hands-on activity to illustrate the restoration process.
Rivlin added that the incident provided a welcome distraction from the ongoing war in Gaza. “Well, he’s just a kid. So I think that somehow it touches the heart of the people in Israel and around the world,“ said Rivlin.
Roee Shafir, a restoration expert at the museum, said the repairs would be fairly simple, as the pieces were from a single, complete jar. Archaeologists often face the more daunting task of sifting through piles of shards from multiple objects and trying to piece them together.
Experts used 3D technology, hi-resolution videos, and special glue to painstakingly reconstruct the large jar.
Less than two weeks after it broke, the jar went back on display at the museum. The gluing process left small hairline cracks, and a few pieces are missing, but the jar’s impressive size remains.
The only noticeable difference in the exhibit was a new sign reading “please don’t touch.”
VICTORIA – The British Columbia government is partnering with a bear welfare group to reduce the number of bears being euthanized in the province.
Nicholas Scapillati, executive director of Grizzly Bear Foundation, said Monday that it comes after months-long discussions with the province on how to protect bears, with the goal to give the animals a “better and second chance at life in the wild.”
Scapillati said what’s exciting about the project is that the government is open to working with outside experts and the public.
“So, they’ll be working through Indigenous knowledge and scientific understanding, bringing in the latest techniques and training expertise from leading experts,” he said in an interview.
B.C. government data show conservation officers destroyed 603 black bears and 23 grizzly bears in 2023, while 154 black bears were killed by officers in the first six months of this year.
Scapillati said the group will publish a report with recommendations by next spring, while an independent oversight committee will be set up to review all bear encounters with conservation officers to provide advice to the government.
Environment Minister George Heyman said in a statement that they are looking for new ways to ensure conservation officers “have the trust of the communities they serve,” and the panel will make recommendations to enhance officer training and improve policies.
Lesley Fox, with the wildlife protection group The Fur-Bearers, said they’ve been calling for such a committee for decades.
“This move demonstrates the government is listening,” said Fox. “I suspect, because of the impending election, their listening skills are potentially a little sharper than they normally are.”
Fox said the partnership came from “a place of long frustration” as provincial conservation officers kill more than 500 black bears every year on average, and the public is “no longer tolerating this kind of approach.”
“I think that the conservation officer service and the B.C. government are aware they need to change, and certainly the public has been asking for it,” said Fox.
Fox said there’s a lot of optimism about the new partnership, but, as with any government, there will likely be a lot of red tape to get through.
“I think speed is going to be important, whether or not the committee has the ability to make change and make change relatively quickly without having to study an issue to death, ” said Fox.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 9, 2024.
The European Space Agency is fast-tracking a new mission called Ramses, which will fly to near-Earth asteroid 99942 Apophis and join the space rock in 2029 when it comes very close to our planet — closer even than the region where geosynchronous satellites sit.
Ramses is short for Rapid Apophis Mission for Space Safety and, as its name suggests, is the next phase in humanity’s efforts to learn more about near-Earth asteroids (NEOs) and how we might deflect them should one ever be discovered on a collision course with planet Earth.
In order to launch in time to rendezvous with Apophis in February 2029, scientists at the European Space Agency have been given permission to start planning Ramses even before the multinational space agency officially adopts the mission. The sanctioning and appropriation of funding for the Ramses mission will hopefully take place at ESA’s Ministerial Council meeting (involving representatives from each of ESA’s member states) in November of 2025. To arrive at Apophis in February 2029, launch would have to take place in April 2028, the agency says.
This is a big deal because large asteroids don’t come this close to Earth very often. It is thus scientifically precious that, on April 13, 2029, Apophis will pass within 19,794 miles (31,860 kilometers) of Earth. For comparison, geosynchronous orbit is 22,236 miles (35,786 km) above Earth’s surface. Such close fly-bys by asteroids hundreds of meters across (Apophis is about 1,230 feet, or 375 meters, across) only occur on average once every 5,000 to 10,000 years. Miss this one, and we’ve got a long time to wait for the next.
When Apophis was discovered in 2004, it was for a short time the most dangerous asteroid known, being classified as having the potential to impact with Earth possibly in 2029, 2036, or 2068. Should an asteroid of its size strike Earth, it could gouge out a crater several kilometers across and devastate a country with shock waves, flash heating and earth tremors. If it crashed down in the ocean, it could send a towering tsunami to devastate coastlines in multiple countries.
Over time, as our knowledge of Apophis’ orbit became more refined, however, the risk of impact greatly went down. Radar observations of the asteroid in March of 2021 reduced the uncertainty in Apophis’ orbit from hundreds of kilometers to just a few kilometers, finally removing any lingering worries about an impact — at least for the next 100 years. (Beyond 100 years, asteroid orbits can become too unpredictable to plot with any accuracy, but there’s currently no suggestion that an impact will occur after 100 years.) So, Earth is expected to be perfectly safe in 2029 when Apophis comes through. Still, scientists want to see how Apophis responds by coming so close to Earth and entering our planet’s gravitational field.
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“There is still so much we have yet to learn about asteroids but, until now, we have had to travel deep into the solar system to study them and perform experiments ourselves to interact with their surface,” said Patrick Michel, who is the Director of Research at CNRS at Observatoire de la Côte d’Azur in Nice, France, in a statement. “Nature is bringing one to us and conducting the experiment itself. All we need to do is watch as Apophis is stretched and squeezed by strong tidal forces that may trigger landslides and other disturbances and reveal new material from beneath the surface.”
The Goldstone radar’s imagery of asteroid 99942 Apophis as it made its closest approach to Earth, in March 2021. (Image credit: NASA/JPL–Caltech/NSF/AUI/GBO)
By arriving at Apophis before the asteroid’s close encounter with Earth, and sticking with it throughout the flyby and beyond, Ramses will be in prime position to conduct before-and-after surveys to see how Apophis reacts to Earth. By looking for disturbances Earth’s gravitational tidal forces trigger on the asteroid’s surface, Ramses will be able to learn about Apophis’ internal structure, density, porosity and composition, all of which are characteristics that we would need to first understand before considering how best to deflect a similar asteroid were one ever found to be on a collision course with our world.
Besides assisting in protecting Earth, learning about Apophis will give scientists further insights into how similar asteroids formed in the early solar system, and, in the process, how planets (including Earth) formed out of the same material.
One way we already know Earth will affect Apophis is by changing its orbit. Currently, Apophis is categorized as an Aten-type asteroid, which is what we call the class of near-Earth objects that have a shorter orbit around the sun than Earth does. Apophis currently gets as far as 0.92 astronomical units (137.6 million km, or 85.5 million miles) from the sun. However, our planet will give Apophis a gravitational nudge that will enlarge its orbit to 1.1 astronomical units (164.6 million km, or 102 million miles), such that its orbital period becomes longer than Earth’s.
It will then be classed as an Apollo-type asteroid.
Ramses won’t be alone in tracking Apophis. NASA has repurposed their OSIRIS-REx mission, which returned a sample from another near-Earth asteroid, 101955 Bennu, in 2023. However, the spacecraft, renamed OSIRIS-APEX (Apophis Explorer), won’t arrive at the asteroid until April 23, 2029, ten days after the close encounter with Earth. OSIRIS-APEX will initially perform a flyby of Apophis at a distance of about 2,500 miles (4,000 km) from the object, then return in June that year to settle into orbit around Apophis for an 18-month mission.
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Furthermore, the European Space Agency still plans on launching its Hera spacecraft in October 2024 to follow-up on the DART mission to the double asteroid Didymos and Dimorphos. DART impacted the latter in a test of kinetic impactor capabilities for potentially changing a hazardous asteroid’s orbit around our planet. Hera will survey the binary asteroid system and observe the crater made by DART’s sacrifice to gain a better understanding of Dimorphos’ structure and composition post-impact, so that we can place the results in context.
The more near-Earth asteroids like Dimorphos and Apophis that we study, the greater that context becomes. Perhaps, one day, the understanding that we have gained from these missions will indeed save our planet.
