Latest news with #SpaceTango
NDTV
5 days ago
- Health
- NDTV
Here's Why Disease-Causing Bacteria Sent To International Space Station
SpaceX launched its Crew-11 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) on August 1, carrying four astronauts and an experiment with disease-causing bacteria. The scientists at the Sheba Medical Center in Israel collaborated with US-based space tech company SpaceTango to develop a study that aims to examine how microgravity affects the growth of bacterial species. The groundbreaking experiment includes E. coli, Salmonella bongori, and Salmonella typhimurium to study how microgravity affects bacterial growth and gene expression. Scientists will study how space conditions impact bacterial behaviour, including antibiotic resistance and virulence, to better protect astronauts' health on long-duration missions. "We know that space conditions affect bacterial behaviour, including how they grow, express genes, and acquire traits like antibiotic resistance or virulence," Prof Ohad Gal-Mor, Head of the Infectious Diseases Research Laboratory at Sheba Medical Center, said in a statement. "This experiment will allow us, for the first time, to systematically and molecularly map how the genetic expression profile of several pathogenic bacteria changes in space." The fact that bacteria behave differently in space is well-documented. They often grow faster and display altered characteristics. The bacteria might harm astronauts, especially during long-duration missions, as they are more prone to infections, because of a combination of microgravity, radiation, stress and changes in the human microbiome. Hence, microbiology and immunology become vital components of modern and future space medicine. Professor Gal-Mor said that the fresh insights will help our understanding of infectious disease risks in space travel, and also expand our knowledge of gene regulation and bacterial physiology in general. The statement mentioned that the bacteria will be stabilised, frozen at -80 degrees C and returned to Earth after growth under microgravity. The molecular and transcriptional analysis and direct comparison to bacteria grown simultaneously in an identical lab setup on Earth.
Engadget
6 days ago
- Science
- Engadget
NASA's latest mission to the ISS features a bacterial experiment
Scientists are sending several strains of disease-causing bacteria to the International Space Station as part of the Crew-11 mission. This experiment isn't the plot to some cheesy horror film, but a scientific investigation from the Sheba Medical Center in Israel and the US-based company Space Tango with the goal of better understanding how bacteria spread and behave under extreme conditions. The experiment includes E. coli, along with bacteria that cause diseases like typhoid fever and the infection commonly known as Salmonella. After reaching the ISS, the experiment will see the different bacterial species grow before being returned to Earth to be tested against counterparts that were grown simultaneously in an identical lab under normal conditions. The experiment's results will help scientists understand how bacteria respond to zero gravity and could help astronauts, who are more prone to infections during missions due to stress, exposure to radiation and changes in gravity. However, the research could prove useful beyond space missions. With the onset of superbugs that show antibiotic resistance, the experiment could reveal ways to combat more robust bacterial strains. "This experiment will allow us, for the first time, to systematically and molecularly map how the genetic expression profile of several pathogenic bacteria changes in space," Ohad Gal-Mor, head of the Infectious Diseases Research Laboratory at Sheba, said in a press release. The medical center previously conducted a test with bacteria in simulated space conditions, which showed a reduced ability to develop antibiotic resistance, but the latest experiment is the first one to take place at the ISS. It's not the first time scientists have studied bacteria's behavior in microgravity conditions, since researchers from the University of Houston tested how E. coli would grow in a simulated space environment back in 2017. More recently, NASA launched an experiment tasking astronauts to swab the interiors of the ISS and test them for evidence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
Yahoo
31-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Israeli hospital to join NASA, SpaceX mission to study microgravity's effects on diseases
For this experiment, Sheba will partner with the US firm SpaceTango to grow several bacterial species aboard the ISS using a specially designed Earth-controlled system. Sheba Medical Center's ARC Digital Innovation Center is joining a NASA and SpaceX mission to the International Space Station (ISS) on Thursday for a study on the extreme conditions of space, Sheba announced on Wednesday. The experiment, dubbed the ARC Space Lab, is the second of its kind from Sheba, which remains the only hospital in Israel carrying out studies in space. How does microgravity impact diseases? One of the major barriers facing humankind's continued expansion into outer space is the unknown effects of long-term space travel on the human body. Finding out how to help astronauts adapt to challenges they may face when off planet for extended periods of time is a natural and essential step forward for medical science. For this experiment, Sheba will partner with the US firm SpaceTango to grow several bacterial species aboard the ISS using a specially designed Earth-controlled system. After growth under microgravity, the bacteria will be stabilized, frozen at -80°C and returned to Earth for molecular and transcriptional analysis and direct comparison to bacteria grown simultaneously in an identical lab setup on Earth. It is known that space has an impact on bacteria. For example, astronauts are more likely to develop infections, theorized to be due to a combination of microgravity, radiation, stress, and changes in the human microbiome. However, this goes both ways. In a previous ARC Space Lab study, it was found that bacteria in space are less likely to develop antibiotic resistance. This was a major discovery and went against the prevailing hypotheses of the time, and the findings of this study were published in the peer-reviewed academic journal Microbiology Spectrum. 'We know that space conditions affect bacterial behavior, including how they grow, express genes, and acquire traits like antibiotic resistance or virulence,' Sheba Infectious Diseases Unit head Prof. Ohad Gal-Mor said in a statement. 'This experiment will allow us, for the first time, to systematically and molecularly map how the genetic expression profile of several pathogenic bacteria changes in space. The insights we gain will augment our understanding of infectious disease risks in space travel, and also expand our knowledge of gene regulation and bacterial physiology in general.' Sheba ARC director Prof. Eyal Zimlichman added, 'To understand the limits of medicine, we sometimes need to go beyond the limits of Earth. Our experiment in space examines how bacterial behavior changes under extreme conditions and what that means for human health—not just for astronauts, but also here on Earth. This is part of ARC's mission to shape the future of medicine, wherever it's needed.' Solve the daily Crossword
