Worms in the space? ISS experiment to study muscle loss in small creatures

A group of British researchers plans to send hundreds of worms into space as part of an effort to better understand muscle loss during spaceflight.

The worms, known as Caenorhabditis elegans or simply C. elegans, will be delivered to the International Space Station (ISS) later this year and will be studied by astronauts in what would be the first ever experiment conducted by the United Kingdom. the the laboratory in orbit. The project, officially named Molecular Muscle Experiment, will be produced in collaboration between the UK Space Agency, the European Space Agency and scientists from Exeter, Nottingham and Lancaster University.

Hundreds of worms will be launched as part of the UK's first experience on the ISS. In the photo, C. elegans nemotods, or roundworms, are examined by project scientists at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, May 1, 2003. Photo: Volker Kern / NASA / Getty Images

As the researchers involved in the project have described, the experiment – the first of its kind to be performed on the station – would help them study how microgravity conditions during spaceflights trigger mass loss. muscle in tiny creatures.

The work, as they postulate, would help them better understand the molecular changes related to muscle loss and to develop better treatments to treat the muscular disorders prevailing on Earth, the muscular loss related to aging and the problems met by the astronauts during long-term space missions. .

"This research will help us establish the precise molecules that cause muscle problems during spaceflight and allow us to test the effectiveness of new therapies to prevent muscle decline associated with spaceflight," said Nate Szewczyk of the University of Toronto. Nottingham.

The biological processes occurring in microgravity environments are very different from those on Earth. Various studies have shown that spending more than six months in space can lead to up to 40% muscle loss, or even deterioration in some cases. In other words, spaceflight is an accelerated environment of muscle loss.

Although the health data provided by astronauts provides sufficient information about the muscle changes associated with spaceflight, not all experiments and treatments can be tested. This is exactly where roundworms come in.

According to scientists, these transparent creatures have the same characteristics as humans and are excellent tools for research in space. They would suffer from changes in the muscles as well as the ability to use energy over time, giving scientists valuable data based on spaceflight to develop better treatments and test new therapies for the future. 39; man.

"Worms are, surprisingly, a very good model for the maintenance of human muscle," adds Tim Etheridge, from the University of Exeter. "At the molecular level, both structurally and metabolically, they look a lot like a space flight perspective – they have many practical advantages: they are very small, fast to develop, cheap and easy to maintain.

C. elegans is the first multicellular organism to have mapped its entire genome. They have been used as a model for research for decades and have also flown to the ISS many times. As part of the most recent work, the worms will be sealed in a special gas permeable plastic bag, which will then be placed in a special incubator for reproduction and growth in the space. Once they become fully mature adults, they will be frozen for further tests and studies.