Evaluation of the nutrient-upgraded rodent food bar for rodent spaceflight experiments

Sun, Gwo-Shing; Tou, Janet C.; Liittschwager, Kurt; Herrera, Anna M.; Hill, E. Alexander; Girten, B.; Reiss-Bubenheim, Debra; Vasques, Marilyn

doi:10.1016/j.nut.2009.09.018

Cited by 20 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…Foodbars (~850 g) developed specifically for the flight hardware 54 were mounted onto a metal plate (two plates per Habitat, one plate per side) and approximately 2 liters of deionized autoclaved water supplemented with 4 ppm iodine (to prevent microbial growth) were installed into each Habitat. Water bags were filled and installed in the Habitats at NASA Ames Research Center (ARC) before Habitats were launched to ISS without animals.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Four days after arriving at KSC, the Validation animals were gradually acclimated to the foodbars and hardware. Twenty-two days before launch (L-22d), the mice were introduced to the NASA Type 12 Nutrient upgraded rodent foodbars (NuRFB) 54 , and at L-18d to deionized, autoclaved water via water bottles outfitted with lixits. At L-12d the mice were introduced to raised wire floors and regrouped based on their body weights, and placed at double density (10 mice per cage).…”

Section: Preflight Preparation and Transit To Iss Pre-flight Traininmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Validation of a New Rodent Experimental System to Investigate Consequences of Long Duration Space Habitation

Choi

Saravia-Butler²,

Shirazi‐Fard

et al. 2020

Sci Rep

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Animal models are useful for exploring the health consequences of prolonged spaceflight. Capabilities were developed to perform experiments in low earth orbit with on-board sample recovery, thereby avoiding complications caused by return to Earth. For NASA's Rodent Research-1 mission, female mice (ten 32 wk C57BL/6NTac; ten 16 wk C57BL/6J) were launched on an unmanned vehicle, then resided on the International Space Station for 21/22d or 37d in microgravity. Mice were euthanized on-orbit, livers and spleens dissected, and remaining tissues frozen in situ for later analyses. Mice appeared healthy by daily video health checks and body, adrenal, and spleen weights of 37d-flight (FLT) mice did not differ from ground controls housed in flight hardware (GC), while thymus weights were 35% greater in FLT than GC. Mice exposed to 37d of spaceflight displayed elevated liver mass (33%) and select enzyme activities compared to GC, whereas 21/22d-FLT mice did not. FLT mice appeared more physically active than respective Gc while soleus muscle showed expected atrophy. RnA and enzyme activity levels in tissues recovered on-orbit were of acceptable quality. thus, this system establishes a new capability for conducting long-duration experiments in space, enables sample recovery on-orbit, and avoids triggering standard indices of chronic stress.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Preflight Preparation and Transit To Iss Pre-flight Traininmentioning

confidence: 99%

Validation of a New Rodent Experimental System to Investigate Consequences of Long Duration Space Habitation

Choi

Saravia-Butler²,

Shirazi‐Fard

et al. 2020

Sci Rep

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show abstract

“…Fourteen, 49-day-old, female C57BL/6 mice (Charles River, Raleigh, NC, USA) were acclimated to NASA Rodent Foodbar diets and water for 2 wk [19]. All animals were then loaded into NASA-designed animal enclosure modules (AEM’s) and given ad libitum access to food and water for the remainder of the study.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Space Environmental Factor Impacts upon Murine Colon Microbiota and Mucosal Homeostasis

et al. 2015

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Astronaut intestinal health may be impacted by microgravity, radiation, and diet. The aim of this study was to characterize how high and low linear energy transfer (LET) radiation, microgravity, and elevated dietary iron affect colon microbiota (determined by 16S rDNA pyrosequencing) and colon function. Three independent experiments were conducted to achieve these goals: 1) fractionated low LET γ radiation (137Cs, 3 Gy, RAD), high Fe diet (IRON) (650 mg/kg diet), and a combination of low LET γ radiation and high Fe diet (IRON+RAD) in male Sprague-Dawley rats; 2) high LET 38Si particle exposure (0.050 Gy), 1/6 G partial weight bearing (PWB), and a combination of high LET38Si particle exposure and PWB in female BalbC/ByJ mice; and 3) 13 d spaceflight in female C57BL/6 mice. Low LET radiation, IRON and spaceflight increased Bacteroidetes and decreased Firmicutes. RAD and IRON+RAD increased Lactobacillales and lowered Clostridiales compared to the control (CON) and IRON treatments. Low LET radiation, IRON, and spaceflight did not significantly affect diversity or richness, or elevate pathogenic genera. Spaceflight increased Clostridiales and decreased Lactobacillales, and similar trends were observed in the experiment using a ground-based model of microgravity, suggesting altered gravity may affect colonic microbiota. Although we noted no differences in colon epithelial injury or inflammation, spaceflight elevated TGFβ gene expression. Microbiota and mucosal characterization in these models is a first step in understanding the impact of the space environment on intestinal health.

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“…SF mice were housed in NASA's animal enclosure modules (AEMs) located on the orbiter's middeck, maintained on a 12-h light-dark cycle, and provided food (21) and water ad libitum. Age-matched GC mice were housed in identical AEMs within an orbital environment simulator at Kennedy Space Center (KSC; FL, USA) to replicate the temperature, humidity, and partial pressure of CO 2 on the space shuttle middeck.…”

Section: Animalsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spaceflight‐induced alterations in cerebral artery vasoconstrictor, mechanical, and structural properties: implications for elevated cerebral perfusion and intracranial pressure

Taylor¹,

Hanna²,

Behnke³

et al. 2013

The FASEB Journal

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Evidence indicates that cerebral blood flow is both increased and diminished in astronauts on return to Earth. Data from ground-based animal models simulating the effects of microgravity have shown that decrements in cerebral perfusion are associated with enhanced vasoconstriction and structural remodeling of cerebral arteries. Based on these results, the purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that 13 d of spaceflight [Space Transportation System (STS)-135 shuttle mission] enhances myogenic vasoconstriction, increases medial wall thickness, and elicits no change in the mechanical properties of mouse cerebral arteries. Basilar and posterior communicating arteries (PCAs) were isolated from 9-wk-old female C57BL/6 mice for in vitro vascular and mechanical testing. Contrary to that hypothesized, myogenic vasoconstrictor responses were lower and vascular distensibility greater in arteries from spaceflight group (SF) mice (n=7) relative to ground-based control group (GC) mice (n=12). Basilar artery maximal diameter was greater in SF mice (SF: 236±9 μm and GC: 215±5 μm) with no difference in medial wall thickness (SF: 12.4±1.6 μm; GC: 12.2±1.2 μm). Stiffness of the PCA, as characterized via nanoindentation, was lower in SF mice (SF: 3.4±0.3 N/m; GC: 5.4±0.8 N/m). Collectively, spaceflight-induced reductions in myogenic vasoconstriction and stiffness and increases in maximal diameter of cerebral arteries signify that elevations in brain blood flow may occur during spaceflight. Such changes in cerebral vascular control of perfusion could contribute to increases in intracranial pressure and an associated impairment of visual acuity in astronauts during spaceflight.

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Evaluation of the nutrient-upgraded rodent food bar for rodent spaceflight experiments

Cited by 20 publications

References 12 publications

Validation of a New Rodent Experimental System to Investigate Consequences of Long Duration Space Habitation

Validation of a New Rodent Experimental System to Investigate Consequences of Long Duration Space Habitation

Space Environmental Factor Impacts upon Murine Colon Microbiota and Mucosal Homeostasis

Spaceflight‐induced alterations in cerebral artery vasoconstrictor, mechanical, and structural properties: implications for elevated cerebral perfusion and intracranial pressure

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