Beyond Earth: Recent Advancements in Microgravity Biomedical and Genetic Research in Saudi Arabia

Exploring the role of CRISPR in advancing space biotechnology: challenges and solutions for human survival beyond earth

This review comprehensively examines the potential applications of CRISPR in space biotechnology, focusing on enhancing astronaut health by targeting genes associated with muscle atrophy, bone loss, radiation resistance, and immune function and the use of CRISPR-engineered microorganisms to support closed-loop life-support systems.

Aging in Spaceflight, Oxidative Stress, and Microbiome Dysbiosis: A Comprehensive Review

The evolutionary theory of aging demonstrates that the force of natural selection declines with age in multicellular organisms. Two population genetic mechanisms are consistent with the evolutionary theory: mutation accumulation and antagonistic pleiotropy. These in turn account for the physiological, cellular, and molecular mechanisms associated with aging. Spaceflight provides an opportunity to examine how organisms physiologically acclimate to environmental conditions. Mitochondria and the gut microbiome are central regulators of host metabolism, redox homeostasis, immune function, and physiological resilience, and both are impacted by host adaptations and acclimations. Mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress have consequently emerged as important candidate mechanisms linking biological aging and spaceflight-associated physiological change. This review examines evidence surrounding mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative stress, and gut microbiome dysbiosis across humans, mice, and fruit flies under spaceflight and corresponding terrestrial control conditions. This review reports further on the progression of theory and recent evidence from spaceflight missions for how biomarker genes most associated with mutation accumulation and antagonistic pleiotropy appear to have a core role in natural aging and extreme physiological acclimation.

Spaceflight multi-omics reveals vulnerabilities of human germ cell development

Understanding the impact of spaceflight on human reproduction is critical for interplanetary exploration, yet technical barriers have limited direct studies of germ cell biology in orbit. Here, we utilized an automated bioreactor that supported long-term differentiation of human embryonic stem cells into human induced primordial germ cells (hiPGCs), human induced ovarian follicles (hiOFs), and human induced spermatogonial stem cells (hiSSCs) aboard spacecraft. Integrated real-time imaging, programmable medium perfusion, and in situ preservation enabled time-resolved multi-omics analysis. During missions on China’s Tianzhou-1 and Tianzhou-6 spacecraft, spaceflight reduced hiPGC specification efficiency by approximately 50% and suppressed hiSSC proliferation by 26%. Transcriptome-translatome coordination revealed cell-type-specific dysregulation of extracellular matrix organization, microtubule dynamics, and lipid metabolism. Whole-exome sequencing and DNA methylome analysis demonstrated preserved genomic integrity despite these functional perturbations. These findings provide direct evidence that spaceflight perturbs human germ cell development and establish a scalable framework for monitoring cellular adaptation during deep-space missions.

Tackling aging and chronic disease: How space exploration and the ‘chameleon effect’ of pharmaceuticals can lead the way

Abstract A common misconception surrounding space exploration is that humanity's pursuit of interplanetary travel, such as missions to Mars, is an escape from Earth. In reality, this endeavour offers an invaluable opportunity to address critical biomedical challenges here at home. The extreme conditions of space, including microgravity, cosmic radiation and prolonged isolation, create a natural laboratory for studying human biology under stress, allowing us to explore the boundaries of human resilience. These exposures yield key insights into the biology of aging, the accelerated decline of physiological function and the early onset of chronic diseases. Among the organs most susceptible to environmental stress is the kidney, which is at high risk of failure during long‐duration spaceflight. Its sensitivity makes it an ideal model for understanding how stress accelerates degeneration, both in space and on Earth. By studying kidney function alongside broader cellular processes, we can illuminate how stress drives aging and chronic disease. This is particularly exemplified by the process of cellular necrosis (unprogrammed cell death), which represents a key central node as recently demonstrated. Necrosis acts upstream of processes like cellular senescence and tissue degeneration, and is the mechanism through which multiple environmental factors erode resilience and drive the progression of chronic diseases like kidney disease. Following this exploration of how stress accelerates biological decline, we examine strategies that may protect against such damage, preventing disease and preserving physiological resilience. Pharmaceuticals, with their ability to modulate physiology transiently, are especially powerful in dynamic, real‐world environments where stressors continually change. This ‘chameleon effect’ of pharmaceuticals offers the potential to uncouple biological trade‐offs and enhance adaptive capacity to stress. Understanding these processes in the space environment provides an unprecedented opportunity, difficult to reproduce on Earth, to identify links between exposure and develop targeted interventions to enhance health and resilience on Earth.

A Comprehensive DNA Methylome BodyMap across 12 Organs/Tissues from Spaceflight Mice

Applications of synthetic biology in biomedicine

This review systematically summarizes progress in foundational tools and key supporting technologies of synthetic biology, highlights innovative strategies and clinical value in biosensors, cell therapy, living therapeutics, and smart biomaterials, and provides an in-depth comparison of different chassis cells, delivery vectors, and regulatory circuits in terms of disease suitability, safety, and translational efficiency.