HRR - Gap - IM-201: Based on immune dysfunction biomarkers identified in Scientific Objective 1, identify, develop, and implement in-flight immune function monitoring tools for support of research during Gateway, Lunar, and Mars missions.

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IM-201: Based on immune dysfunction biomarkers identified in Scientific Objective 1, identify, develop, and implement in-flight immune function monitoring tools for support of research during Gateway, Lunar, and Mars missions.

Last Published: 11/23/20 11:55:10 AM (Central)

Responsible Element: Human Health Countermeasures (HHC)

Status: Open

Description

Present state of knowledge: While development of clinical diagnostic tools for exploration missions is under the purview of HRP’s Exploration Medical Capabilities Element (ExMC), there is also an interest to have the capability to monitor subclinical immune changes that while not clinically actionable have an impact on growing our knowledge of immune function under deep-space conditions, as well as on monitoring countermeasure effectiveness. At present, there is little to no medical laboratory analysis capability on board ISS, and there have been many unsuccessful attempts to develop microgravity-compatible blood analysis capability. The recently validated biomolecule sequencer may afford the capability to monitor reactivation of latent herpes viruses during space flight. Several instruments in development by space agencies or commercial providers may soon be available to provide blood analysis. These include the SBIR-developed rHEALTH instrument, and the Canadian Space Agency’s BIO-A/Power-Blade efforts.

Research approach: Identify commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) devices that can support immune function testing in-flight so that bio-samples do not need to be stored and returned to Earth for analysis post-mission. If no such devices are available in the commercial market, develop such technology as an exploration-forward effort. Because our focus is on subclinical immune changes that are not necessarily clinically-actionable, such devices will likely not overlap with the traditional clinical lab equipment that will be in use by MedOps during exploration missions. COTS devices might be available but may need to be miniaturized for flight.

Target for Closure

Clinically-validated immune function monitoring tools for in-mission use.

Mappings

Risk of Adverse Health Event Due to Altered Immune Response

Active

MinION Viral Detection

Task Book: Entry Unavailable
Principal Investigator: Brian Crucian

Short Title: MinION

Responsible HRP Element: Human Health Countermeasures

Collaborating Org(s):

Exploration Medical Capability (ExMC) Element

Funding Status: Active - Currently funded and in progress

Procurement Mechanism(s):

Directed

Aims:
1. Develop flight compatible sample processing protocols using technology already onboard ISS (or compatible with Gateway) to enable MinION to assay virus DNA in saliva samples.

2. Validate the developed technology against the terrestrial standard assay. The standard is the qPCR assay which has been used for several ISS investigations. This will be accomplished for each relevant virus, via parallel analysis of saliva samples spiked with increasing concentrations of virus DNA

3. Conducts a population survey of at least 20 'normal' subjects. Since shedding of latent herpesviruses is minimal in healthy control subjects, parallel testing may also be performed for higher incidence subjects or patients, as samples are available via our existing suite of ground and flight investigations. This should be permissible as for each parent study, the determination of virus DNA was contained in the original approved proposal.

Resources (None Listed)

Deliverables (1)

Category: Technology or Tool
Subcategory: Systems Solutions, Prototype Hardware or Software

Description:
This is an assay development activity necessary to enable planned countermeasures studies in Antartica and onboard ISS. It is not hypothesis based research, However a hypothesis equivalent would state that we believe adaptation of existing ISS-compatible sample processing technology can be successfully be adapted to extract and amplify DNA from saliva, such that the MinION could detect, identify and quantify the presence of virus DNA.

The developed method and hardware would then be readily available for use during ground and ISS countermeasures studies.

Internal Customers:
None External Customers:
Gateway Program
HRP, HHC,
International Space Station (ISS)
Is a Customer-Supplier Agreement (CSA) Required? No

Documentation:

No Documentation Available

Related Gaps (11)

IM7: It is necessary to correlate the observed effects of spaceflight-associated immune system dysregulation with known terrestrial clinical conditions.

Common Item(s)
	Risk of Adverse Health Event Due to Altered Immune Response

IM-101: Evaluate the effects of deep-space radiation on immune dysfunction, as an additional hazard to the effects of psychophysiological stress and weightlessness.

Common Item(s)
	Risk of Adverse Health Event Due to Altered Immune Response

IM-102: Evaluate the effects of altered atmospheric conditions such as elevated CO2 levels or mildly hypoxic exploration atmosphere on immune dysfunction.

Common Item(s)
	Risk of Adverse Health Event Due to Altered Immune Response

IM-103: Evaluate for novel endogenous viral reactivation

Common Item(s)
	Risk of Adverse Health Event Due to Altered Immune Response

IM-104: Evaluate immune dysfunction on missions greater than six months.

Common Item(s)
	Risk of Adverse Health Event Due to Altered Immune Response

IM-105: Identify immune biomarkers that correlate with known spaceflight-related immune dysfunction and immune outcomes, as a first step in designing in-flight monitoring paradigms.

Common Item(s)
	Risk of Adverse Health Event Due to Altered Immune Response

IM-301: Identify appropriate ground-based analogs to spaceflight-induced immune dysfunction to enable ground validation of preventive/mitigative countermeasures and derive mechanistic insights.

Common Item(s)
	Risk of Adverse Health Event Due to Altered Immune Response

IM-401: Test, optimize and validate nutrition-based preventive/mitigative countermeasures

Common Item(s)
	Risk of Adverse Health Event Due to Altered Immune Response

IM-402: Test, optimize and validate pharmacological preventive/mitigative countermeasures.

Common Item(s)
	Risk of Adverse Health Event Due to Altered Immune Response

IM-403: Test, optimize and validate stress reduction techniques as preventive and mitigative immune dysfunction countermeasures.

Common Item(s)
	Risk of Adverse Health Event Due to Altered Immune Response

IM-501: Test the finalized, integrated, multi-component immune countermeasure in flight.

Common Item(s)
	Risk of Adverse Health Event Due to Altered Immune Response

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PRRs (1)

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