How does the human body react to a microgravity, physical and mental stress, or radiation? The CANCER experiment, which represents a unique combination of space medicine and molecular oncology, aims to bring new insights in this area. The results will be important not only for future space flights, but also for conventional medicine – especially in the areas of non-invasive diagnostics, immunity monitoring, and the prediction of stress- and age-related diseases, including cancer.
The objective of the CANCER (Comprehensive Analysis for Neoplastic Cell Expansion and Regulation in Microgravity) experiment is to determine how factors such as stress, microgravity, and other circumstances associated with space travel affect the human body at the cellular and molecular levels. One of the main parameters being studied is circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA), i.e., short fragments of genetic material that are released from cells into the bloodstream, e.g., during their natural renewal, death, as a result of stress, tissue damage, or tumor growth. It is in these cases that the concentration of cfDNA in the blood increases significantly.
Using modern sequencing methods, scientists can determine from these fragments which tissues the DNA comes from and what changes it carries, allowing them to monitor the state of the organism without the need for invasive sampling. This approach is known as liquid biopsy and is currently used, for example, for the early detection of tumors or to monitor the effects of cancer treatment. In the CANCER project, this method will be used to monitor physiological changes in an astronaut's body during a space mission—as a tool that can signal stress, inflammatory response, or tissue damage even before clinical symptoms appear.
The experiment will focus on collecting and analyzing biological samples from astronauts before, during, and after space flight. It will also monitor the possible reactivation of so-called latent viruses, i.e., viruses that are normally found in the human body in an inactive form but can be reactivated when immunity is weakened or under stress. In microgravity, there are demonstrable changes in immune regulation and a decrease in the effectiveness of certain components of the immune system, which makes virus reactivation more likely, and that is why it is important for scientists that the experiment takes place in Earth's orbit. Blood and urine samples taken before, during, and after the flight will be analyzed using next-generation sequencing (NGS) methods, which will allow even trace amounts of viral DNA to be detected. The results will help clarify how the space environment affects the immune balance and long-term health of astronauts.
Last but not least, experts will also examine glycans and glycoproteins, i.e., sugar chains bound to proteins that play a key role in cell communication, foreign structure recognition, and immune response control. The findings may contribute to the development of new biomarkers of health and adaptation to extreme environments, while also helping to optimize preventive measures for long-term space missions.
doc. Mgr. Roman Hrstka, Ph.D.
Masaryk Memorial Cancer Institute, Brno
Head of a research group and Deputy Director of the national research infrastructure BBMRI.cz
Roman Hrstka is the head of a research group at the Masaryk Memorial Cancer Institute and also serves as director of BBMRI.cz, a nationwide research infrastructure that connects Czech biobanking centers and provides high-quality facilities for research on biological samples.
His professional focus is on finding new cancer biomarkers, i.e., molecules that can detect the presence of a tumor, predict response to treatment, or monitor the course of the disease. Roman Hrstka's team is also developing modern biosensors for rapid and inexpensive DNA and RNA detection, which may simplify laboratory diagnostics in the future.
In the CANCER project, his group is responsible for analyzing astronauts' biological samples and monitoring circulating DNA in the blood. This data can help scientists understand how the space environment affects the human body, immunity, and the risk of tumor growth, while also providing new insights that can be used in conventional medicine.
MUDr. Petr Müller, Ph.D
Masaryk Memorial Cancer Institute, Brno
Head of a research group focused on stress biology and protein homeostasis
Petr Müller leads a research group that studies the biology of cellular stress – how cells cope with demanding conditions, damage, or energy deficiency. His team investigates how cells maintain balance in the production and repair of their proteins, known as protein homeostasis, which is crucial for their survival.
These processes play a fundamental role not only in cancer, where cells face severe internal stress, but also in the adaptation of organisms to extreme environments, such as microgravity, radiation, or the long-term stress experienced by astronauts during space missions.
In the CANCER project, Petr Müller's team focuses on the molecular responses of cells to stress in space. It investigates how microgravity and other factors of the space environment affect the regulatory pathways that control balance, repair, and cell renewal in the body.
The recently established Slovak national node, coordinated by the Biobank for Cancer and Rare Diseases at the Faculty of Medicine of Comenius University in Martin, welcomed experts from BBMRI.cz – the Czech Biobank Network.
As part of this collaboration, educational seminars, educational materials, excursions, and popular science articles are planned with the aim of raising awareness about biobanks and biobanking not only among cancer patients but also among the general public.
