Space embryos
The Chinese have grown mouse embryos in orbit
Oleg Lischuk, N+1
For the first time in history, Chinese scientists have conducted a successful experiment on growing mammalian embryos in space at an early stage of development, Xinhua reports (Chinese scientists develop mammalian embryos in space for the first time).
As Professor of the Zoological Institute at the Chinese Academy of Sciences Duan Enkui told the agency, the experiment he led took place during the mission of the research satellite SJ-10, launched on April 6, 2016.
Among his scientific equipment was an autonomous container "the size of a microwave oven" that supports the life support of six thousand mouse embryos, each of which at the time of launch consisted of two almost identical cells.
600 of these embryos were in the focus of a high-resolution camera that took pictures every four hours for four days and sent them to Earth. Photos from the camera showed that in three days from the moment of launch, the embryos developed to the stage of a full-fledged blastocyst, which is characterized by the beginning of visible cell differentiation and readiness for implantation into the uterine wall. The rate of development generally coincided with embryonic development in terrestrial conditions, Duan noted.
Embryos at the two-cell stage four hours before launch.
Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Embryos at the blastocyst stage 80 hours after launch.
Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences.
After 72 hours in orbit, the remaining embryos were automatically treated with a fixing compound for further study of the influence of space conditions on embryonic development. On April 18, the descent part of the satellite with the container successfully landed in khoshun Sytsyvan in Inner Mongolia.
The descent part of the SJ-10 after returning to Earth
During the 12-day mission on SJ-10, 19 experiments were conducted in the fields of microgravity, biology, fluid physics, materials science, radiology and space flight safety (including arson of combustible materials).
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20.04.2016