Last September, we had the pleasure of hosting at the CRPP the groups of Dr. Christian Liemersdorf (DLR, Head of Applied Aerospace Biology), Dr. Insa Schröder (Group Leader, Uni Darmstadt), Prof. Dr. Volker Busskamp (Uni Bonn), and Prof. Dr. Sherif El Sheikh (TH Köln). These teams, composed of biologists, biophysicists, and chemists, are joining forces to study the behavior of neuron and muscle cell organoids in microgravity. Their research demonstrates that altered gravity conditions significantly influence the structure and function of cells, holding great potential for developing preventive and therapeutic strategies, as well as biotechnological applications, relevant not only to space exploration but also to Earth-based challenges.

The teams conducted their experiments during parabolic flights at Novespace (Mérignac Airport), preparing their samples in the Biolab at the CRPP, under the coordination of our researcher, Laura Alvarez. Earlier this year, Laura participated in a microgravity rocket campaign in Kiruna (Sweden), where she conducted experiments with soft matter systems and connected with the German researchers.

For more information:

– DLR Applied Aerospace Biology
– SoftBiocoll