In 2005, scientists conducted an unusual experiment aboard the International Space Station (ISS) to investigate how microgravity affects reproduction and early development.
asserted
microgravity → conduct → reproduction
According to a
NASA technical publication on ISS research, crickets were fertilised in orbit, allowing scientists to observe embryos and larvae that began developing under microgravity.
uncertain
that → accord → microgravity
The study examined 112 embryos and first-stage larvae from the spaceflight group, along with ground controls.
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study → examine → controls
One of the notable findings was that larvae exposed to microgravity hatched earlier than those developing under normal Earth gravity.
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larvae → expose → gravity
Studying development in space
Gravity is an important part of the environment in which life on Earth has evolved.
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life → study → Earth
From the movement of fluids through the body to the development of the nervous system, biological processes can be influenced by gravitational forces.
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processes → influence → forces
Studying organisms in microgravity allows scientists to separate some of these effects and examine how living systems respond when the usual pull of gravity is greatly reduced.
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pull → study → gravity
The cricket experiment, known as Crickets in Space-2, or CRISP-2, built on earlier research conducted during NASA's Neurolab mission in 1998.
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experiment → know → 1998
Researchers were particularly interested in the development of the cricket nervous system and how altered gravity affected the neurons involved in the animal's response to its environment.
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gravity → alter → environment
Crickets were useful for this research because scientists can identify and study individual neurons in their nervous systems.
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scientists → identify → systems
This makes them valuable models for investigating how gravity influences neural development.
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gravity → make → development
Fertilisation aboard the ISS
A major feature of the 2005 experiment was that fertilisation took place during the spaceflight.
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fertilisation → take → spaceflight
This allowed researchers to study development from an early stage rather than
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researchers → allow → stage
Female house crickets, Acheta domesticus, were housed aboard the ISS and provided with equipment that allowed them to lay eggs.
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them → house → eggs
The resulting embryos developed while exposed to microgravity.
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embryos → result → microgravity
After the mission, researchers examined the embryos and larvae to determine whether their development differed from that of crickets raised under normal gravitational conditions.
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development → examine → conditions
NASA's technical publication records 112 embryos and first-stage larvae from in-flight fertilisation for the study.
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publication → record → study
Researchers also had 103 ground-control specimens, giving them a comparison group that had developed under Earth's normal gravity.
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that → have → gravity
The use of ground controls was important because developmental differences can have many possible causes.
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differences → have → causes
By comparing the space-exposed specimens with animals raised under similar conditions on Earth, scientists could better determine which changes were associated with microgravity.
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changes → compare → microgravity
Larvae hatched earlier
One of the most interesting observations involved the timing of hatching.
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One → hatch → hatching
The larvae that experienced microgravity during their development hatched earlier than the larvae in the ground-control group.
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that → experience → group
This observation suggested that exposure to microgravity could influence the timing of development.
uncertain
exposure → suggest → development
However, the experiment did not show that microgravity simply disrupted the crickets' development.
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microgravity → show → development
The embryos were able to develop, and the researchers observed the formation of the neural structures they were studying.
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they → develop → structures
According to the NASA report, the neurons examined in the spaceflight group developed in broadly similar ways to those in the ground controls.
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neurons → accord → controls
This indicated that microgravity did not prevent the basic development of these important parts of the cricket nervous system.
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microgravity → indicate → system
The combination of normal neural development and earlier hatching made the findings particularly interesting.
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findings → make → development
It suggested that an organism can maintain essential developmental processes while still experiencing changes in the timing of those processes.
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organism → suggest → processes
How organisms adapt
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organisms → adapt → ?
Scientists studying life in space are interested not only in whether organisms survive, but also in how they adapt to unusual conditions.
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they → study → conditions
Microgravity represents a major environmental change, and organisms may respond through biological mechanisms that help them maintain normal development.
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them → represent → development
The cricket experiment provided an opportunity to examine this question at a very early stage.
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experiment → provide → stage
The fact that embryos developed successfully in orbit suggested that the absence of normal gravity did not prevent the basic processes required for development.
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absence → develop → development
At the same time, the difference in hatching time showed that gravity can have more subtle effects.
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gravity → show → effects
Biological development is controlled by complex interactions between genes, cells and environmental conditions.
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development → control → genes
A change in one environmental factor can potentially alter the timing of these processes without causing obvious structural abnormalities.
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change → alter → abnormalities
Why the experiment matters
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experiment → matter → ?
Experiments involving insects can provide useful information for space biology because they allow researchers to study fundamental biological processes in controlled conditions.
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researchers → involve → conditions
They can help scientists investigate questions about development, nervous-system function and adaptation that would be more difficult to examine directly in humans.
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that → help → humans
…and 6 more, not listed.
The Aporia
