Chinese artificial embryos are part of an experiment to learn more about how human pregnancies might develop in microgravity conditions
By Adam Kovac edited by Claire Cameron
Scientific photo library – ZEPHYR/Getty Images
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A clutch of artificial human embryos on China’s Tiangong space station could help researchers better understand whether human pregnancies in space are possible and safe.
The Chinese Academy of Sciences says the experiment is the first study of artificial human embryos in space. THE artificial embryos are actually structures derived from stem cells and mimic the formation of embryos during the first days of pregnancy. These structures could not develop into humans even if they were implanted in a uterus. Researchers initially designed these artificial embryonic structures as a model to study early moments of development due to widespread international rules to restrict research on real human embryos older than two weeks after fertilization.
“The human artificial embryo is made of human stem cells as raw material,” Yu Leqian, head of the project, said in a statement. statement. “It is not a true human embryo and does not have the capacity to develop into an individual. However, it can serve as a model for studying early human development.”
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The artificial embryos were launched to the Tiangong space station earlier this month and a control group is being examined in an Earth-based laboratory. The experiment was scheduled to last five days, after which the samples aboard the space station were frozen. They will ultimately be returned to Earth for analysis.
“We hope that by comparing the development of space and terrestrial samples, we can identify factors affecting early human embryonic growth in the space environment, and address the risks and challenges that humans may face during long-term space habitation,” Yu said.
Fertility in space has long been a subject of study, and the results so far have been mixed. In 1994, NASA astronauts succeeded coupled Japanese rice fish aboard a space shuttle. Yet several other experiments conducted on fruit flies in low Earth orbit suggested that insect larvae had a higher mortality rate in that environment than on Earth. A past effort to raise mouse embryos in space did not succeed either, and the rats’ mating attempts also did not result in pregnancies. And in 2014, another mating experiment involving geckos nearly ended in disaster after the Russian satellite they were on lost contact with ground control. As contact with the spaceship was re-established, the geckos perished before they could make more.
The science of human reproduction in microgravity is rarer, for perhaps obvious reasons. But as NASA and private space companies such as Elon Musk’s SpaceX have begun exploring long-term bases on the Moon and Mars, the area has attracted more interest. Earlier this year, Australian scientists placed human sperm in a microgravity simulation chamber to see if they could navigate an artificial female reproductive system. The sperm, apparently confused by the low gravity, tended to get lost en route to their final destination.
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