Transcriptomic Shifts in Multipotent Mesenchymal Stromal Cells during Microgravity Simulation

Abstract

Abstract: One of the most obvious manifestations of the negative impact of space flight factors on the human physiology is osteopenia. With the active development of manned space flights and the increase in the duration of humans' persistence in weightlessness, there is a growing need to understand the mechanisms of changes occurring at the cellular level involved in the replenishment of bone tissue. Using the RNA sequencing method, changes in the transcriptome profile of MMSCs were studied after a 5-day simulation of the microgravity effects. During the analysis, a pronounced downregulation of genes, which products are involved in processes associated with cell proliferation, in particular, in the mitotic phase of the cell cycle, was found in the experimental group of cells. These shifts in the transcriptional profile of MMSCs were confirmed using fluorescence microscopy. The results obtained indicate a decrease in the proliferative activity of MMSCs cultured under conditions of simulated microgravity for 5 days.