Abstract
Exposure to microgravity affects human physiology in various ways, and astronauts frequently report skin-related problems. Skin rash and irritation are frequent complaints during space missions, and skin thinning has also been reported after returning to Earth. However, spaceflight missions for studying the physiological changes in microgravity are impractical. Thus, we used a previously developed 3D clinostat to simulate a microgravity environment and investigate whether physiological changes of the skin can be reproduced in a 3D in vitro setting. Our results showed that under time-averaged simulated microgravity (taSMG), the thickness of the endothelial cell arrangement increased by up to 59.75%, indicating skin irritation due to vasodilation, and that the diameter of keratinocytes and fibroblast co-cultured spheroids decreased by 6.66%, representing skin thinning. The α1 chain of type I collagen was upregulated, while the connective tissue growth factor was downregulated under taSMG. Cytokeratin-10 expression was significantly increased in the taSMG environment. The clinostat-based 3D culture system can reproduce physiological changes in the skin similar to those under microgravity, providing insight for understanding the effects of microgravity on human health before space exploration.
Highlights
During spaceflight, astronauts are exposed to microgravity, which has various effects on human physiology
Cells were cultured in a 3D clinostat to observe the changes when exposed to time-averaged simulated microgravity (taSMG)
Effects of taSMG on 3D arrangement of endothelial cells The arrangement of endothelial cells was thicker in Matrigel under a taSMG than under the 1 G environment (Fig. 1)
Summary
Astronauts are exposed to microgravity, which has various effects on human physiology. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) found that skin irritation and rash were the most frequently reported complaints during ISS missions, with a 0.69 person-year incidence for both complaints[5]. Dermatitis, skin peeling, and infection have been reported as dermatology disorders occurring in space[6,7]. Conducting a spaceflight mission to study the physiologic changes in microgravity is impractical because of the high cost and inaccessibility. To overcome these limitations, clinostats have been developed to simulate microgravity environments[15]. This study was conducted to use a previously developed 3D clinostat to simulate a microgravity environment and investigate whether physiological changes of the skin can be reproduced in a.
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