What's Happening?
NASA's Biological Institutional Scientific Collection (NBISC) at Ames Research Center is enhancing its role as a repository for non-human samples from spaceflight investigations. The collection includes samples from NASA-funded studies on gravitational biology and space radiation. These samples are available to researchers worldwide, supporting a wide range of scientific inquiries. The NBISC aims to maximize the scientific return from these rare samples by making them accessible for interdisciplinary research, including studies on muscle atrophy and bone demineralization.
Why It's Important?
The availability of these samples is a valuable resource for the scientific community, enabling research that can lead to significant advancements in understanding the effects of space travel on biological systems. This can inform the development of countermeasures to protect astronaut health and contribute to medical research on Earth. By fostering open science, NASA is promoting collaboration and innovation, potentially leading to breakthroughs in fields such as genomics and microbiology.
