Expedition 74 astronauts aboard the International Space Station are uncovering how bacteria that causes pneumonia can lead to long-term damage in the heart. Researchers are leveraging the space environment to observe how stem cell derived heart tissues respond to bacterial infections, to discover new methods to manage cardiovascular health and infectious diseases.
In space, bacteria tend to be more severe and have enhanced drug resistance. Scientists are harnessing these traits to exaggerate their effect on heart cells and reveal important cellular responses that would be difficult to detect on Earth. Pinpointing the factors that make bacterial infections more severe in space could reveal targets for treatment. Dr. Palaniappan Sethu, professor of Medicine and Biomedical Engineering at the University of Alabama at Birmingham says, “By exacerbating the infection, we anticipate clear separation of the infection and control groups, making it easier to identify subtle factors that promote bacterial virulence”.
The Streptococcus pneumoniae bacteria is the leading cause of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP), an infection which causes millions of deaths each year. More than a quarter of adults hospitalized for CAP develop heart disease and patients that survive severe cases have an increased risk even after the pneumonia has been fully eradicated.
This research is also important as humans venture further into space. For over 25 years, researcher …