哺乳類小動物を用いた宇宙生物学実験機会の展望

摘要

All living organisms have evolved in Earth's gravity, but during Earth orbit or travel between planets, microgravity takes over. Environment on orbit including reduced gravity, particularly over the long period, may affect living organisms seriously. It is essential to identify, to understand, to manage the health risks and finally to reduce its effects to acceptable levels for ensuring crew safety, health, and performance during and after spaceflight. In fact, solutions to medical problems have rarely come from human research alone. Using an integrated approach of animal, cell, and human research can accelerate discovery. From the point of view, NASA had continued to ensure appropriate funding for implementation 01 high priority facilities, such as the animal habitats and 2.5m-Centrifuge. Nevertheless, the developments of those facility had been canceled on September, 2005. Since the promises of scientific yield from the ISS would be consequently severely compromised without the 2.5m-Centrifuge and NASA's advanced animal habitat, an alternative facility must be developed and be available for all ISS partners. In order to acquire the opportunities of space animal experiment for Japanese researchers continually, and to contribute the space biology, we have been seeking suitable space experiment platforms including not only the ISS but also biosatellites.Currently, the possibility of collaboration between Japan and Russia has been examined in respect to the participation of Japanese researchers in rodent space experiment on the Russian Biosatellite "Bion" or "Foton".%有人火星ミッシヨン計画を今後文字通り、軌道に乗せるためには、"宇宙飛行デコンディショニング（spaceflight deconditioning）"と呼ばれる無重力の影響で起きる生理学的諸問題を事前に解決する手段を獲得しておくこと必要がある。その達成される見込みが立って初めて、有人火星ミッション計画が概念検討レベル上、具体化するからである。そのために企画されたものこそ、国際宇宙ステーション（International Space Station: ISS）における生物学研究の中核施設と位置づけられた2.5mセントリフユージ施設であった。