NASA is preparing to launch several thousand Tardigrades and nearly 130 small squids to the International Space Station (ISS) as part of the 22nd resupply mission of SpaceX. Under space stress, these organisms could help prepare for future long-duration human space travel.
Astronauts aboard the ISS will soon welcome thousands of newcomers, starting with 5,000 tardigrades. These small invertebrates are known for their extreme resilience. Some can withstand temperatures as low as -272°C, while others can survive many years without water or oxygen. Some species can also acclimatize to crushing ocean pressures, while others can withstand the vacuum of space.
The latter are of particular interest to NASA. As part of this study, Thomas Boothby, a molecular biologist at the University of Wyoming, will be tasked with identifying the specific genes responsible for these remarkable adaptive feats. This data, the researchers hope, could give us vital information about the effects of long-duration space travel on the health of astronauts, and about potential therapies.
In addition to these thousands of tardigrades, the new package delivered by SpaceX will consist of 128 baby squids of the species Euprymna scolopes . These small organisms are often considered in biology for the study of symbiotic relationships between animals and bacteria. Indeed, these squid evolve with a bioluminescent bacterium, named Aliivibrio fischeri , which occupies a luminescent organ present in their body.
As part of this experiment aboard the ISS, researchers would like to study this relationship between the two species to determine how microbes interact with the tissues of squids in space vacuum.
“Animals, including humans, depend on microbes to maintain a healthy digestive and immune system” , underlines Jamie Foster, a microbiologist at the University of Florida, who will direct this work from Earth. "We don't fully understand how spaceflight alters these beneficial interactions" .
We know that squid are born without the bacteria, which they then acquire from the ocean that surrounded. The researchers plan to add the bacteria to the small cephalopods once they have thawed on board the station. In this way, researchers will be able to observe the first stages of development of this symbiosis.
By studying the molecules produced during the process, they will then be able to determine which genes are turned on and off. Again, this information could benefit us, potentially allowing humans to take better care of their gut and immune microbiome during long-duration space travel.
