Innovative Human Organ-on-Chip Platform Changes the Face of Space Missions

Cosmic radiation is a dangerous risk factor in space missions. On Earth, we are protected from cosmic and solar radiation by Earth’s magnetic field. On Mars, there is no such mechanism which is challenging for space missions. These charged particles can interact with spacecraft machinery and human DNA through high linear energy transfer (LET) causing harmful damage. It is crucial to study the effects of this interaction on human bodies to make future space missions safer and more sustainable. The multi-organ-on-a-chip (multi-OoC) platform is a way scientists study these effects. 

The minds behind this revolutionary device are members of the Laboratory for Stem Cells and Tissue Engineering, a part of Columbia Engineering’s department of Biomedical Engineering. The lab, directed by Gordana Vunjak-Novakovic, focuses on improving human health utilizing tissue engineering.

"We believe this study will lead to a wider area of research focused on studying the impact of extended low-dose radiation on human health. If we develop more human- and astronaut-specific models, including those that model multiple organs in a systemic setting, we may be able to better predict the unknown stressors in space travel and develop protective strategies to mitigate any damage,” says Daniel Naveed Tavakol, a Postdoctoral Research Scientist and lead of the study.

Multi-OoC platforms contain engineered tissue models of human bone marrow, cardiac muscle and liver, linked by vascular circulation. The study puts forth that their study, the “astronaut-on-a-chip” model, which uses engineered tissue models would provide a more comprehensive look into cosmic radiation injury by being able to examine over fifty unique genes affected by protracted neutron dosing, rather than just the irritated areas and healthy tissues. This is a step in understanding the larger impacts of cosmic radiation on the human body. 

The study concluded that extended, spread out doses of LET radiation had a greater impact on tissue function compared to a single acute dosage. Tavakol and his team’s work is one of the first to demonstrate the extent of using bioengineered tissues to understand the impact of cosmic radiation on the human body and work towards precise, radioprotective solutions. 

Read more from the study here.