NASA funds two teams to push life sciences research in space

NASA funds two teams to push life sciences research in space
by Clarence Oxford
Los Angeles CA (SPX) Oct 18, 2024
NASA announced two significant awards aimed at advancing scientific consortia to conduct ground-based studies that contribute to the agency's goals of sustaining human life in space. These consortia will focus on biological research involving human, animal, plant, and microbial models. The total funding for these efforts will amount to about $5 million once fully implemented.

NASA's space biology research leverages the unique space environment to perform experiments that cannot be conducted on Earth. The results support astronaut health and also contribute to discoveries related to conditions like cancer and neurodegenerative diseases, providing benefits for humanity on Earth.

The two consortia that received awards are:

1. Studying the space biosphere: The 'Biology in Space: Establishing Networks for Durable and Resilient Systems' consortium is a collaborative effort among experts in human, animal, plant, and microbial biology. The project aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the spaceflight biosphere by enhancing data collection, modeling, and testing. More than thirty scientists from at least three institutions will participate, with Kristi Morgansen of the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington, leading the consortium.

2. Converting human waste into materials for space biomanufacturing: The 'Integrative Anaerobic Digestion and Phototrophic Biosystem for Sustainable Space Habitats and Life Supports' consortium will develop an anaerobic digestion process to convert human waste into organic acids and materials useful for biomanufacturing in space. This project involves eight scientists from six institutions in three states, including Delaware and Florida, and is led by Yinjie Tang at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.

These proposals were selected in response to NASA's ROSES 2024 Program Element E.11, which calls for research consortia in biological sciences to advance space life sciences research.

NASA's Space Biology Program, within the agency's Biological and Physical Sciences division, conducts research across various biological systems to understand how organisms cope with space stressors such as microgravity, ionizing radiation, and high carbon dioxide levels. This research helps scientists learn how biological systems maintain growth, repair damage, and defend against diseases in space environments.