Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
Experiments onboard China’s space station are being readied to study planaria, a kind of flatworm with amazing regeneration abilities.
“The planarias can regrow complete heads or tails when cut, making them ideal models for studying tissue regeneration,” reports China Central Television (CCTV. Planaria is a kind of flatworm with amazing regeneration abilities. The planarias can regrow complete heads or tails when cut, making them ideal models for studying tissue regeneration.
According to the researchers from the Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization, the new experiment will utilize the “small universal biological cultivation module” of the “life ecosystem experiment cabinet” aboard the orbiting outpost.
Researchers will study the specific effects of the space environment on the regeneration process and physiological behavior of planaria to gain a deeper understanding of this mechanism.
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab
Age-related degenerative diseases
China’s space station has previously hosted zebrafish and fruit flies. The specimens allow researchers to study the effects of microgravity on the proteins in bones and muscles, and how hypomagnetic and microgravity conditions impact living organisms’ genes and behavior patterns.
As reported by China Daily, an upcoming Chinese Shenzhou piloted spacecraft will carry dozens of planarian fragments into orbit. “Studying planarians holds significant implications for combating cellular aging and age-related degenerative diseases in humans,” the posting added.
China established its own space station system after the launch of the Tianhe core module in April 2021, followed by the Wentian and Mengtian laboratory modules in 2022.
For information on the planarian experiment, go to:
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