During spaceflight, astronauts lose up 20% of their muscle mass in only 2 weeks. This loss of muscle mass, also known as atrophy, has been attributed to a combination of lack of gravity and reduced physical activity. Muscle loss in astronauts can directly impact the ability to perform tasks during flight and lead to a long and difficult recovery once on Earth. The molecular mechanism behind this phenomena remains poorly understood. In a joint project with the European Spatial Agency, we are developing a new in vitro model to study atrophy in altered gravity conditions. This approach should enable us to identify the key molecular pathway leading to muscle loss and potentially develop preventive treatment.
Impact
Physical rehabilitation after return on Earth is a costly and time consuming process with variable results. Furthermore, prevention of muscle loss during the space flight could allow to extend the duration of stay for astronaut in space. Finally, since muscle atrophy is also observed during prolonged disuse or immobilization in everyday life, some of the discoveries made in this project might pave the way to develop more general treatment.
reNEW research
As a first year PhD candidate, this collaborative project is still in the initial experimental phase. The project was initiated after we obtained a cosponsorship with the European Space Agency.
Image description
Muscle differentiation at day 3. In blue myogenin (MyoG) an intermediate marker of differentiation, in orange titin, a myofibril component, in magenta Myosin Heavy Chain 4 (Myh4) and in white DAPI staining the nuclei.
Credits
Mariana C. O. Vinagre, PhD candidate, Geijsen Lab, reNEW Leiden.
