If you can’t swing $20 million to go into space, or even $250,000 for three minutes of weightlessness, don’t sweat it, your health is better because of it.
A new study from the University of California San Diego’s Sanford Stem Cell Institute found that spaceflight accelerates the aging of human hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) - the ones that keep our blood and immune systems healthy. Published in Cell Stem Cell, the research used AI-powered nano bioreactor systems on four SpaceX resupply missions to the International Space Station to track stem cell changes in real time. The results weren’t pretty: the cells lost some ability to make healthy new ones, became more vulnerable to DNA damage, and showed signs of telomere shortening - all markers of accelerated aging.
For the earth-bound among us, your cells will thank you.