The Effects Of Simulated Microgravity On Embryonic Stem Cells

Effects of Simulated Microgravity on Embryonic Stem Cells This article investigated various effects of Simulated Microgravity (SMG) in mouse embryonic stem cells. The study was conducted by Yulan Wang, Lili An, Yuanda Jiang and Haiying Hang. Funding was provided by grants from the Knowledge Innovation Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences. This study is a follow-up study on previous ones that have been done on adult and differentiated stem cells, but this is the first to be done on embryonic stem cells. Broadly, the two cells types in mammals consist of adult and embryonic stem cells. Adult stem cells are useful in tissue renewal and regeneration after an injury. They conducted this experiment on the embryonic stem cells of mice. Many problems such as skeletal muscle atrophy, cardiovascular problems, immune system dysregulation and alterations of sleep and circadian rhythms are caused by effects of microgravity (MG) at a cellular level (Wang, et al. 2011). The reason microgravity was used is because it has been recognized as a major enviro nmental factor. Because microgravity can only be achieved by entering space, a 3-D clinostat was used to perform the simulation. Many cells types, from bacteria to mammalian cells have been proven to be sensitive to the MG environment, based on past studies. The effects that were monitored included cell cycle distribution, cell differentiation, cell adhesion, apoptosis, genomic integrity and DNA damage repair. The cells cultured under