WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Astronauts aboard the International Space Station have conducted biotechnology research on Thursday, including a pair of heart studies, exploring cancer therapies, and demonstrating a self-sustaining life-support system.
U.S. flight engineer Jessica Meir processed samples of heart stem cells and bacteria that cause pneumonia using a portable glovebag inside the Harmony module. Observations in microgravity may give doctors a clearer understanding of how cellular and molecular mechanisms of infectious diseases damage heart tissue, according to NASA. Insights could lead to advanced treatments for heart conditions on and off the Earth, the U.S. space agency said.
Russian cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, Sergei Mikaev, and Andrey Fedyaev joined each other at the beginning of their shift and studied how a resting heart behaves in weightlessness. During the experiment operations a crew member assists another crew member wearing chest and limb sensors that measure cardiac bioelectric activity. Results will help inform doctors how a long-term spaceflight affects the human heart.
U.S. Flight engineer Jack Hathaway and his European counterpart Sophie Adenot partnered together inside the Kibo laboratory module manufacturing DNA-inspired nanomaterials to treat cancer and other chronic diseases. The duo worked inside Kibo's Life Science Glovebox taking advantage of the microgravity environment to improve the production of immunotherapies and chemotherapies benefitting human health.
Hathaway also took turns with U.S. flight engineer Chris Williams treating samples of spirulina microalgae inside a temperature-controlled incubator located in Kibo's Cell Biology Experiment Facility. Scientists are exploring ways to cultivate spirulina and design biological systems that can produce food and recycle air for future deep-space missions.
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