A hardy group of zebrafish recruited by Chinese researchers to understand how to help humans thrive in space have set a scientific record far away from their natural home – aboard China’s Tiangong space station.
Back in June, the members of the minnow family spent their forty-third day on the space station – a span almost three times longer than the previous record set by a similar experiment on the International Space Station (ISS), according to scientists involved in the study.
According to a research paper published last week in the multidisciplinary journal, The Innovation, the zebrafish transitioned through their natural life stages – from growth to development and reproduction – within 43 days, setting a record for ecological experiments in space.
“This milestone not only means progress in China’s space ecosystem technology but also provides valuable data and technical support for closed-loop ecosystems in space missions”, the authors said. The study was jointly designed and overseen by a team of scientists from a number of research institutes, including the Shanghai Institute of Technical Physics and the Institute of Hydrobiology in Wuhan, both under the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
The achievement was made possible by an innovative closed aquatic ecosystem (CAES) aboard Tiangong, which incorporates a biological regenerative life-support system, a gas balance control system and a microbial treatment system. Intelligent and automated controls in the closed ecosystem, such as an installed sensor system, monitor water quality parameters like pH and conductivity to ensure a safe and sustainable aquatic habitat. The CAES is also equipped with a liquid pump that enhances fluid exchange between the fish and plant cultivation chambers.
The development of advanced life support systems is an essential step for future space exploration. “This progress will surely pave the way for humans to thrive and operate in space for extended durations, bringing the vision of long-term survival and habitation in space closer to reality”, the researchers concluded.
According to an article from NASA last year, about 2,000 animal subjects, including rats, mice, snails and crickets, were on board Columbia, making it the largest collection of living organisms ever sent into space at the time. Most of the scientific activities took place in the Spacelab module in the shuttle’s payload bay.
Zebrafish are studied extensively in life sciences and biomedicine because of their unique advantages, including the fact that their genetic make-up is more than 70 percent similar to that of humans. The organism’s short reproductive and developmental cycle and transparent eggs also allow scientists to study their internal features as they grow. As scientists seek further understanding of the various effects of microgravity on the human body – from bones to heart and brain – researchers have found zebrafish to be an ideal model organism for such experiments.
Space studies on Zebrafish date back to the 1970s, when they were first launched into space on the Russian Salyut 5 space station mission. Other types of fish are also being studied in space.
Their findings "Microgravity promotes osteoclast activity in medaka fish reared at the international space station", published in the academic journal Scientific Reports on September 21, 2015, showed that the mineral density of the medaka’s pharyngeal bone and teeth decreased after spending 56 days on the ISS.
While the zebrafish aboard Tiangong are alive they are showing signs of disorientation. China’s state media earlier reported that the zebrafish exhibited abnormal orientation behavior in microgravity, such as swimming upside-down, spinning and circling, according to the Shenzhou-18 crew.
On Wednesday, Sivasangari Subramaniam, who received a first round bye, defeated Egypt's Nour Heikal 3-0: 11-4, 11-5, 11-9 in 23 minutes in the second round of the 2024 ACE Malaysia Squash Cup (November 12-17).
She faces Malaysian compatriot Aifa Azman in the quarter-finals today.
No comments:
Post a Comment