C. elegans Biological Investigation on Microbiome Effect in Space (CBIOMES)

The CBIOMES experiment will study the interactions between microbiomes and their hosts using the model organism C. elegans (a nematode worm).

This research will map molecular signatures of three different microbiomes in four genetically distinct C. elegans hosts, investigates different organs, and assesses whole-organism function.

Results from this spaceflight investigation could support future space-based research on microbiome interactions and lead to the development of probiotics, or “living medicines,” to mitigate the effects of microbiome changes in spaceflight and to treat diseases and disorders on Earth.

The CBIOMES experiment is funded through a Space Biology grant titled, “Impact of the Gut Microbiome on the Integrative Physiology of Genetically Diverse Invertebrates” to Principal Investigator Dr. Siva Vanapalli of Texas Tech University. Co-Investigators on this research team also include Dr. Monica Driscoll, Rutgers University, Dr. Buck Samuel, Baylor College Of Medicine, and Dr. Nathaniel J. Szewczyk, Ohio University.

Astrobiology, Space Biology,