Abstract

Transforming the Future of Human Spaceflight with Bio-Engineered Autonomous Platforms

Jennifer Fogarty, Chief Scientific Officer, Translational Institute for Space Health, Baylor College of Medicine

Humans participating in space exploration will experience many health and performance challenges during space exploration missions. It is paramount that we identify biological vulnerabilities and areas of resilience so that we can design a crew health and performance system approach that protects the human and enables explorers to thrive during the journey, on a planetary surface, and as we become a multiplanetary species. The Translational Research Institute for Space Health (TRISH) is chartered to find and fund cutting edge high-risk research and technology development to address the risks and challenges of human spaceflight. One of the most challenging aspects of doing research on the human risks associated with deep space exploration is having tools that accurately and efficiently reveal the resilience and vulnerabilities we seek to identify without putting humans directly at risk. Bio-engineered platforms such as tissue chips (microphysiological systems) and organoids represent cutting edge approaches to research and personalized medicine that meet space explorations needs. The progressive maturation and validation of these platforms establishes them as necessary tools to conduct biological research and establish personalized preventive and treatment therapies. To become operationally relevant in the constrained and extreme environments associated with space exploration these platforms must become automated. This phase of development will require new approaches to biomarker signal detection and quantification while we continue to build the evidence base to allow interpretation and most importantly actionable results.