Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a model for space biology

Abstract

Manned spaceflight continues to be in the agenda of most of the countries involved in space research. Development of human settlements in planets and sustainable space ecosystems where crops can be grown and waste recycled are the exciting aims of some of the future space missions. There is considerable concern on the health of the space travelers during long term travel and stay in these unexplored terrains. Astronauts may be exposed to ionizing radiations and weightlessness due to alterations in gravitational force. Studies on astronauts during and after space travel indicate effects on the immune system, cardiovascular system, bone density etc. It is not clearly known how the space missions may influence DNA replication, transcription, and translation and cell division cycle in humans. Information on these will be vital. Experiments on humans and animals could be cumbersome in space. As such use of eukaryotic models like Saccharomyces cerevisiae could be rewarding. The yeast S. cerevisiae is considered as an excellent model for studying eukaryotic biology and has contributed significantly to our understanding of cancer biology and fundamental metabolic processes in humans. In this review, the potential of S. cerevisiae as a model for space biology has been discussed.