Highlights

  • Hansjorg Schwertz is leading the NASA-funded Megakaryocytes Orbiting in Outer Space and Near Earth (MOON) study, which examines how space flight affects the development and function of megakaryocytes 麻豆精品 S� bone marrow cells 麻豆精品 S� as they create platelets.

  • Pre- and post-mission medical testing of astronauts on the International Space Station has shown that spaceflight changes their immune system and blood clotting ability. A few astronauts have even developed blood clots during a flight or after returning.

  • Schwertz hopes his study will unlock technologies and therapies to keep astronauts 麻豆精品 S� blood clotting mechanisms controlled, prevent abnormal clotting and bring those discoveries back to Earth.

  • Hansjorg Schwertz recently signed on as the associate director for Translational Aerospace Medicine Research at the UCF Center for Aerospace and Extreme Environments Medicine (CASEEM).

When NASA launches its latest voyage to the International Space Station on May 12, it will carry a blood clotting experiment from the UCF College of Medicine 麻豆精品 S檚 newest faculty member. The research will include illuminated bone marrow cells floating in space to find better ways to keep astronauts and Earthlings healthier.

Hansjorg Schwertz specializes in occupational health and focuses his research on how microgravity and radiation in space impact the body 麻豆精品 S檚 blood-clotting functions. After an extensive career overseas and at the University of Utah, he comes to UCF to serve as the associate director for Translational Aerospace Medicine Research at the UCF Center for Aerospace and Extreme Environments Medicine (CASEEM).

As humans prepare for longer missions to the moon, Mars and beyond, the center is exploring how factors such as microgravity, radiation and isolation impact the human body in space and how that knowledge can drive innovation into diagnostics, treatment and disease prevention for patients on Earth.

麻豆精品 S淲hen it comes to putting footprints on the moon, there is no better place to be than UCF, 麻豆精品 S� he says.

Man wearing glasses and red Patagonia pullover stands holding black and metal cube in his hands in front of gray lab equipment
Hansjorg Schwertz specializes in occupational health and focuses his research on how microgravity and radiation in space impact the body 麻豆精品 S檚 blood-clotting functions.

NASA Concerned About Blood Clots in Space

Pre- and post-mission medical testing of astronauts on the International Space Station has shown that spaceflight changes their immune system and blood clotting ability. A few astronauts have even developed blood clots during a flight or after returning. For that reason, Schwertz is leading the NASA-funded Megakaryocytes Orbiting in Outer Space and Near Earth (MOON) study, which he began working on at the University of Utah and continues to collaborate with the university’s researchers on.

麻豆精品 S淲hen it comes to putting footprints on the moon, there is no better place to be than UCF. 麻豆精品 S� 麻豆精品 S� Hansjorg Schwertz

Megakaryocytes are bone marrow cells that create platelets, which circulate in the blood stream and can stop bleeding or form blood clots. Both cells also play a key role in immune responses.

The MOON study is examining how space flight affects the development and function of megakaryocytes as they create platelets. The results could provide important knowledge about the risks of inflammation, immune responses and blood clot formation that will help space travelers and patients on Earth, Schwertz says.

His team is sending human cells to the ISS on board the SpaceX 34 resupply mission. Once they are aboard the space station, astronauts will culture the cells and help to develop megakaryocytes in space.

One part of the experiment is to watch the cells in real time, and how they develop their 麻豆精品 S渄aughter cell, 麻豆精品 S� the platelets. Because the research will be in microgravity, the cells will float. They 麻豆精品 S檒l be stained with fluorescent dye so UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 researcher can examine them remotely at better accuracy.

Schwertz says mentors taught him, 麻豆精品 S渟eeing is believing, 麻豆精品 S� so he is 麻豆精品 S済enuinely excited 麻豆精品 S� to see megakaryocytes float in space.

Advancing Personalized Medicine

One of the challenges of space medicine research is that so few people have gone to space, so the sample pool is small. As space travel and colonization progress, more people will be traveling to and working on the moon and beyond.

Healthwise, many will be different than astronauts who are selected after going through vigorous testing and selection criteria. Thus, space is a new frontier of healthcare.

Schwertz hopes his study will unlock technologies and therapies to keep astronauts 麻豆精品 S� blood clotting mechanisms controlled, prevent abnormal clotting and bring those discoveries back to Earth.

麻豆精品 S淲e 麻豆精品 S檙e examining the impact of space flight on each person 麻豆精品 S檚 cells, 麻豆精品 S� he says. 麻豆精品 S淭his is personalized medicine, and isn 麻豆精品 S檛 that what healthcare is all about? 麻豆精品 S�

Emmanuel Urquieta, vice chair for Aerospace Medicine at the UCF College of Medicine and founding director of CASEEM, Schwertz’s work reflects the program’s broader mission to connect spaceflight research with practical clinical and operational solutions.

麻豆精品 S淥ur aerospace medicine program is intentionally designed to be operational and translational in nature, 麻豆精品 S� Urquieta says. 麻豆精品 S淲e are building a program that can support the real medical needs of exploration missions while rapidly translating discoveries from spaceflight and extreme environments into innovations that improve health here on Earth. 麻豆精品 S�

Schwertz received his M.D. and Ph.D. from the School of Medicine at the University of Mainz, Germany. After a residency in Internal Medicine/Cardiology at the University of Halle, Germany, he did a post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Utah, where he also served as faculty.

In 2012, he  was awarded a prestigious Lichtenberg-Professorship for Experimental Hemostasis and returned to Germany where he directed a research laboratory. He returned to Utah in 2015, where he completed his residency training in Occupational Medicine and was a faculty member, researcher and community physician.

The material is based upon work supported by NASA under award No. 80NSSC22K0255. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.