The hindlimb unloading (HU) model has been used extensively to simulate the cephalad fluid shift and musculoskeletal disuse observed in spaceflight with its application expanding to study immune, cardiovascular and central nervous system responses, among others. Most HU studies are performed with singly housed animals, although social isolation also can substantially impact behavior and physiology, and therefore may confound HU experimental results. Other HU variants that allow for paired housing have been developed although no systematic assessment has been made to understand the effects of social isolation on HU outcomes. Hence, we aimed to determine the contribution of social isolation to tissue responses to HU. To accomplish this, we developed a refinement to the traditional NASA Ames single housing HU system to accommodate social housing in pairs, retaining desirable features of the original design. We conducted a 30-day HU experiment with adult, female mice that were either singly or socially housed. HU animals in both single and social housing displayed expected musculoskeletal deficits versus housing matched, normally loaded (NL) controls. However, select immune and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis responses were differentially impacted by the HU social environment relative to matched NL controls. HU led to a reduction in % CD4+ T cells in singly housed, but not in socially housed mice. Unexpectedly, HU increased adrenal gland mass in socially housed but not singly housed mice, while social isolation increased adrenal gland mass in NL controls. HU also led to elevated plasma corticosterone levels at day 30 in both singly and socially housed mice. Thus, musculoskeletal responses to simulated weightlessness are similar regardless of social environment with a few differences in adrenal and immune responses. Our findings show that combined stressors can mask, not only exacerbate, select responses to HU. These findings further expand the utility of the HU model for studying possible combined effects of spaceflight stressors.

There is an immediate need to develop highly predictive in vitro cell-based assays that provide reliable information on cancer drug efficacy and toxicity. Development of biomaterial-based three-dimensional (3D) cell culture models as drug screening platforms has recently gained much scientific interest as 3D cultures of cancer cells have been shown to more adequately mimic the in vivo tumor conditions. Moreover, it has been recognized that the biophysical and biochemical properties of the 3D microenvironment can play key roles in regulating various cancer cell fates, including their response to chemicals. In this study, we employed alginate-based scaffolds of varying mechanical stiffness and adhesive ligand presentation to further explore the role of 3D microenvironmental cues on glioblastoma cell response to cytotoxic compounds. Our experiments suggested the ability of both matrix stiffness and cell-matrix adhesions to strongly influence cell responses to toxins. Cells were found to be more susceptible to the toxins when cultured in softer matrices that emulated the stiffness of brain tissue. Furthermore, the effect of matrix stiffness on differential cell responses to toxins was negated by the presence of the adhesive ligand RGD, but regained when integrin-based cell-matrix interactions were inhibited. This study therefore indicates that both 3D matrix stiffness and cell-matrix adhesions are important parameters in the design of more predictive in vitro platforms for drug development and toxicity screening.

RATIONALE The pathogenesis of MYBPC3-associated hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is still unresolved. We exploited a large and well-characterized patient population carrying the MYBPC3-c.772G>A variant (p. Glu258Lys, E258K) to provide translational insight based on studies on surgical myectomy samples, human-induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-cardiomyocytes and engineered heart tissues. OBJECTIVE To gain insights into the pathogenic mechanisms driven by the MYBPC3-c.772G>A mutation using a comprehensive investigation of human disease models. METHODS AND RESULTS Haplotype analysis revealed MYBPC3-c.772G>A as a founder mutation in Tuscany. The mutation leads to reduced cMyBP-C (cardiac myosin binding protein-C) expression, supporting haploinsufficiency as the main primary disease mechanism. Functional perturbations were studied in left ventricular samples from 4 patients who underwent myectomy, as well as in human hiPSC-cardiomyocytes and engineered heart tissues harboring c.772G>A, compared with samples from nonfailing nonhypertrophic surgical patients and hiPSC lines from healthy controls. Mechanical studies in single myofibrils and permeabilized muscle strips highlighted faster cross-bridge cycling, and higher energy cost of tension generation. A novel approach based on tissue clearing and advanced optical microscopy supported the idea that the sarcomere energetics dysfunction is intrinsically related with the reduction in cMyBP-C. Studies in single cardiomyocytes (native and hiPSC-derived), intact trabeculae and hiPSC-engineered heart tissues revealed prolonged action potentials, slowerCa 2+ transients and preserved twitch duration, suggesting that the slower excitation-contraction coupling counterbalanced the faster sarcomere kinetics. This conclusion was strengthened by in silico simulations. Of note, the results from patient tissues and hiPSC-derived models obtained from the same patients were essentially the same, supporting the use of hiPSC-models for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy studies. CONCLUSIONS Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy–related MYBPC3 -c.772G>A mutation invariably impairs sarcomere energetics and cross-bridge cycling. Compensatory electrophysiological changes (eg, reduced potassium channel expression) appear to preserve twitch contraction parameters, but may expose patients to greater arrhythmic propensity and disease progression. Therapeutic approaches correcting the primary sarcomeric defects may prevent secondary cardiomyocyte remodeling.

Spaceflight is a unique environment that includes at least two factors which can negatively impact skeletal health: microgravity and ionizing radiation. We have previously shown that a diet supplemented with dried plum powder (DP) prevented radiation-induced bone loss in mice. In this study, we investigated the capacity of the DP diet to prevent bone loss in mice following exposure to simulated spaceflight, combining microgravity (by hindlimb unloading) and radiation exposure. The DP diet was effective at preventing most decrements in bone micro-architectural and mechanical properties due to hindlimb unloading alone and simulated spaceflight. Furthermore, we show that the DP diet can protect osteoprogenitors from impairments resulting from simulated microgravity. Based on our findings, a dietary supplementation with DP could be an effective countermeasure against the skeletal deficits observed in astronauts during spaceflight.Alterations in the gravity vector and exposure to ionizing radiation can disrupt skeletal homeostasis in mice 1-3 . There are multiple stressors associated with spaceflight, including microgravity and radiation which are known to cause bone loss 4-6 . Decrements in bone mineral density (BMD) have been observed in astronauts from the Mir missions as well as missions to the International Space Station (ISS) 7-9 . While much research has focused on the detrimental effects of microgravity on skeletal tissue, less is known about the impact of spaceflight radiation. Crewed missions have, to this point, primarily remained within low-Earth orbit (LEO). While sources of ionizing space radiation within LEO include galactic cosmic radiation and charged particles from unpredictable solar particle events (SPE) 10,11 , the presence of the Earth's magnetosphere reduces exposure to ionizing space radiation. Missions beyond LEO pose the greatest risk of radiation exposure and is of significant concern for crew health 12-14 . Spaceflight-relevant radiation includes a mix of low-linear energy transfer (LET) species such as protons and helium ions as well as high-LET species such as iron 15,16 . Beyond LEO, for example, astronauts may be exposed to up to 0.7 Sv of ionizing radiation 12,15,17 during a multi-year mission to the Moon or Mars 14,15,18 .On Earth, bone homeostasis is effectively maintained by the controlled remodeling activity of bone-forming osteoblasts and bone-resorbing osteoclasts. However, exposure to low-LET radiation ( 137 Cs or X-ray, 1-2 Gy) leads to a transient increase in the number of osteoclasts, accompanied by an increase in trabecular separation (Tb.Sp) and decrease in trabecular thickness (Tb.Th), overall leading to a reduction in bone volume fraction (BV/TV) [19][20][21][22] . Together, this early increase in bone resorption and decrease in bone formation due to radiation exposure can result in a state of osteopenia, potentially leading to an increased risk of bone fracture 16,23,24 . A possible mechanism of action responsible for these changes in bone homeostasis is the generation o...

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