16 Mini Hearts and Brain Organoids Launch to ISS to Probe 10-20 Years of Aging
Updated
Updated · abcnews.com · Oct 13
16 Mini Hearts and Brain Organoids Launch to ISS to Probe 10-20 Years of Aging
3 articles · Updated · abcnews.com · Oct 13
Summary
Aboard CRS-35, up to 16 miniature hearts and peppercorn-sized miBrain organoids launched Tuesday and are due at the ISS on Thursday for the first organoid study of space-driven aging.
Researchers from Mount Sinai, NASA and Space Tango will expose them to microgravity and radiation, conditions scientists say can make six months in space resemble 10 to 20 years of aging on Earth.
The hearts will be tested for electrical signaling and near-zero-gravity responses inside Space Tango's automated CubeLab, a shoebox-sized system designed to mimic the human body's environment.
The team says the work could sharpen health planning for long missions to the moon and Mars while also informing treatments for Earthbound diseases including Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.