Spaceworms To Help Study Astronaut Muscle Loss 73
Hugh Pickens writes "The Telegraph reports that 4,000 microscopic worms were onboard Space Shuttle Atlantis when it launched today. Their mission: to help experts in human physiology understand more about what triggers the body to build and lose muscle. The worms are bound for the Japanese Experiment Module 'Kibo' on the International Space Station, where they will experience the same weightless conditions which can cause dramatic muscle loss, one of the major health concerns for astronauts. 'If we can identify what causes the body to react in certain ways in space we establish new pathways for research back on earth,' says Dr. Nathaniel Szewczyk."
muscle loss (Score:1, Interesting)
Why don't we just give steroids to the astronauts, that should help them a bit with the muscle loss problem.
Surprisingly fast (Score:5, Interesting)
I broke my right arm in a cycling accident on the 30th of july. The arm was pretty much immobilised for two months. To this day I still can't lift my right elbow above the level of my shoulder. The muscles in that arm are gone. Hard to think what shape I would be in if I spent six months on the ISS.
An Experiment for a Known Cause and Effect? (Score:1, Interesting)
We see this atrophy in hospital patients who are confined to bed for years in a coma. These patients never exercise their muscles, and they simply atrophy. Being in space is worse than being in bed. Lack of gravity means that your muscles are not constantly being exercised. Your muscles will waste away.
The fix for this problem is to use only astronauts who have a natural genetic mutation [msn.com] that causes muscles to be large, durable, and strong. A few Europeans do have this mutation.
Perhaps, Khan -- the character in Star Trek -- was right. A race of genetic supermen is best suited for space travel.