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Molecular and Cellular Neuroscience

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Spaceflight

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Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences

Placenta-Expanded Stromal Cell Therapy In A Rodent Model Of Simulated Weightlessness, Amber M. Paul, Linda Rubinstein, Charles Houseman, Metadel Abegaz, Steffy Tabares Ruiz Apr 2021

Placenta-Expanded Stromal Cell Therapy In A Rodent Model Of Simulated Weightlessness, Amber M. Paul, Linda Rubinstein, Charles Houseman, Metadel Abegaz, Steffy Tabares Ruiz

Publications

Long duration spaceflight poses potential health risks to astronauts during flight and re-adaptation after return to Earth. There is an emerging need for NASA to provide successful and reliable therapeutics for long duration missions when capability for medical intervention will be limited. Clinically relevant, human placenta-derived therapeutic stromal cells (PLX-PAD) are a promising therapeutic alternative. We found that treatment of adult female mice with PLX-PAD near the onset of simulated weightlessness by hindlimb unloading (HU, 30 d) was well-tolerated and partially mitigated decrements caused by HU. Specifically, PLX-PAD treatment rescued HU-induced thymic atrophy, and mitigated HU-induced changes in percentages of …


Neutrophil-To-Lymphocyte Ratio: A Biomarker To Monitor The Immune Status Of Astronauts, Amber M. Paul, Siddhita D. Mhatre, Egle Cekanaviciute, Ann-Sofie Schreurs, Candice G.T. Tahimic, Ruth K. Globus, Sulekha Anand, Brian E. Crucian, Sharmila Bhattacharya Nov 2020

Neutrophil-To-Lymphocyte Ratio: A Biomarker To Monitor The Immune Status Of Astronauts, Amber M. Paul, Siddhita D. Mhatre, Egle Cekanaviciute, Ann-Sofie Schreurs, Candice G.T. Tahimic, Ruth K. Globus, Sulekha Anand, Brian E. Crucian, Sharmila Bhattacharya

Publications

A comprehensive understanding of spaceflight factors involved in immune dysfunction and the evaluation of biomarkers to assess in-flight astronaut health are essential goals for NASA. An elevated neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is a potential biomarker candidate, as leukocyte differentials are altered during spaceflight. In the reduced gravity environment of space, rodents and astronauts displayed elevated NLR and granulocyte-to-lymphocyte ratios (GLR), respectively. To simulate microgravity using two well-established ground-based models, we cultured human whole blood-leukocytes in high-aspect rotating wall vessels (HARV-RWV) and used hindlimb unloaded (HU) mice. Both HARV-RWV simulation of leukocytes and HU-exposed mice showed elevated NLR profiles comparable to spaceflight …


Modeled Microgravity Induces Neutrophil Extracellular Trap (Net)Osis Formation And Reduced Phagocytosis Of Polymorphonuclear Neutrophils, Amber M. Paul Nov 2019

Modeled Microgravity Induces Neutrophil Extracellular Trap (Net)Osis Formation And Reduced Phagocytosis Of Polymorphonuclear Neutrophils, Amber M. Paul

Publications

Spaceflight can dysregulate immunity, by way of increasing granulocytes numbers with impaired function. Polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) are granulocytes that are first responders to infection or injury, and consist of the largest pool of immune cells in humans. PMNs function during innate immunity, through phagocytosis and promotion of inflammation, via the release of reactive oxygen species (ROS) mediators and granule-containing enzymes, such as myeloperoxidase (MPO) and NADPH oxidase-2 (NOX-2). In addition, neutrophil extracellular trap (NET) formation is another mechanism of PMN surveillance that works independently of engulfment phagocytosis, and is a last resort function that can induce NETosis or PMN-specific cell …