Professor Tsinghua University BEIJING, Beijing, China
Abstract: During spaceflight, exposure to microgravity, radiation, and the unique space environment can significantly impact human physiological functions. While studies have explored the effects of spaceflight-induced microgravity on stem cell self-renewal and differentiation, research on its broader effects on lineage differentiation in stem cells remains limited. In particular, the effects of the space environment on human germ cells remain uninvestigated. To address this gap, we developed automated systems during the Tianzhou-1 and Tianzhou-6 missions to analyze fluorescent cellular morphology and perform multi-omics analysis of differentiated stem cells. These systems enable live-cell imaging, remote control from Earth, and multi-omic analysis of observed cells. The results reveal that spaceflight exposure reduced the number of human germ cells, which exhibited alterations in translational expression—particularly in the cytoskeleton, extracellular matrix (ECM), and several metabolic pathways. However, DNA methylation profiling and whole-exome sequencing showed no significant genomic changes during the same spaceflight period. This study demonstrates that automated systems can assess spaceflight effects on human stem cell differentiation and provides a platform for future research aboard space stations.
