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In 2025, six zebrafish are set to journey to China's space station, assisting scientists in exploring how the space environment impacts the muscle and bone development of vertebrates.
This research is expected to bolster long term human survival in space and pave the way for interplanetary habitation.
According to Wang Gaohong from the Institute of Hydrobiology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, A fish bowl in China's Tiangong space Station will house six zebrafish and six grams of Ceratophyllum this year.
The study will focus on the impact of microgravity on the proteins in the zebrafish's bones and muscles.
In April 2024, a container with four zebrafish and four grams of Serratophyllum was sent to the space station on the Shenzhou 18 manned spacecraft, forming China's first space based, self sustaining aquatic ecosystem.
This ecosystem ran smoothly for about 43 days, setting a global record for the longest operational duration of such a system.
During the 43 day space experiment, Wang and fellow scientists observed that the Ceratophyllum and zebrafish initially showed instability in various metrics, but gradually self regulated and adapted to each other.
Wang said that initially the zebrafish had displayed abnormal spatial behavior such as upside down swimming and circling, for fish, like humans, cannot discern up from down in microgravity, leading to disoriented movement.
The water samples collected from this space aquatic ecosystem returned to Earth with the Shenzhou 18 spacecraft in November 2024 and scientists are now delving deeper into their analysis.
Zebrafish share a high genomic similarity with humans.
They are small, reproduce rapidly, and have a short development cycle, making them a prime model organism in life sciences.
Microgravity in space can induce a range of pathophysiological phenomena in humans, including cardiovascular issues, weakened immunity, bone loss, muscle atrophy and hormonal imbalances.
This study will help to enhance the collective understanding of how the space environment impacts genes, cells and overall life.
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A celestial body recently discovered by a Chinese observatory has been confirmed as a comet by the International Astronomical Union.
Astronomers at the Purple Mountain Observatory under the Chinese Academy of Sciences first spotted the comet on January 5, 2025.
This marks the ninth comet discovery made by this astronomical observatory situated in Nanjing in east China's Jiangsu Province.