Fruit Fly Lab Will Allow Research Into Long-Term Effects Of Spaceflight

Amanda Kooser at CNET News (7/9, 359K) writes that later this year, the ISS will get a host of fruit flies that will allow scientists to study how living in space impacts the immune system. Sharmila Bhattacharya of the Ames Research Center said, The Fruit Fly Lab will allow us to look into a variety of questions, such as the effect of space flight on aging, cardiovascular fitness, sleep, stress, and much more… About 77 percent of known human disease genes have a recognizable match in the genetic code of fruit flies, and 50 percent of fly protein sequences have mammalian analogues. Kooser notes that while fruit flies have been sent to space before, this will be the first time that multiple generations can be studied to determine the long-term effects of spaceflight.