NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration

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Experiment/Payload Overview

Brief Summary

Stability of Pharmacotherapeutic and Nutritional Compounds (Stability) will study the effects of radiation in space on complex organic molecules, such as vitamins and other compounds in food and medicine. This will help researchers develop more stable and reliable pharmaceutical and nutritional countermeasures suitable for future long-duration missions to the moon and Mars.

Principal Investigator

Lakshmi Putcha, Ph.D., Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX

Scott M. Smith, Ph.D., Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX

Co-Investigator(s)/Collaborator(s)

Dario Castagnolo, MARS Center, Napoli, Italy

Leslie A. Braby, Ph.D., Texas A and M University, College Station, TX

Michele Perchonok, Ph.D., Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX

Vickie A. Kloeris, M.S., Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX

Brian Du, Ph.D., Wyle, Houston, TX

Jason Boyd, Ph.D., Universities Space Research Association, Houston, TX

Vernie Daniels, M.S., R.Ph., Wyle Life Sciences, Houston, TX

Payload Developer

Johnson Space Center, Human Research Program, Houston, TX

Sponsoring Space Agency

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Supporting Organization:

Exploration Systems Mission Directorate (ESMD)

ISS Expedition Duration:
April 2006 - April 2009

Expeditions Assigned

|13|14|15|16|17|18|

Previous ISS Missions

Stability is a unique investigation that was begun during ISS Expedition 13.

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Experiment/Payload Description

Research Summary

• Analysis of certain medications returned from the shuttle and ISS indicated that some pharmaceuticals are significantly degraded in space, and this may compromise treatments and health of crews on future exploration missions.



• Stability project will identify those pharmaceuticals, vitamins, and amino acids that degrade in space by collecting data on the magnitude and timecourse of degradation of select nutritionals and pharmaceuticals in space.



• The data gathered from Stability will support the development of mathematical models to predict shelf life of products for long duration exploration missions and provide the foundation for future efforts on alternative formulations, packaging and shielding materials for medicines and foods to ensure integrity and quality of products used by crew during exploration missions.

Description

Data gathered from past Space Shuttle missions suggest that some of the medications packed in the shuttle medical pack degrade even after relatively brief periods (less than 20 days) of space flight. The observed degradation included both physical and chemical characteristics of medicine formulations. The degradation was sufficient to influence FDA stipulated shelf-life for these formulations and may result in a loss of potency. Physical and chemical instability of medications could render treatments with degraded drugs ineffective for assurance of optimal crew health during long duration space exploration missions. An evaluation of subjective data on medications used by crewmembers during space flight indicated that 8% of all treatments administered in the Space Shuttle program were reported ineffective. Pharmaceutical instability may modify effectiveness and safety, and is one possible cause of the ineffectiveness of treatments. Degradation of food products may also render them ineffective in providing health and energy sustenance. The stability of medications and foods used by the crew must be adequate to facilitate safe exploration of space in the future. The Stability of Pharmacotherapeutic and Nutritional Compounds (Stability) investigation evaluates mission critical medications and foods to understand issues relating loss of potency for medicines and to nutritional adequacy of foods in space.

Four identical Stability kits were delivered to the ISS in July 2006 during the STS-121/ULF1.1 mission. The first kit was returned to Earth during the STS-121/ULF1.1 mission. The second kit was returned after 11 months of exposure during the STS-117/13A mission in June 2007. The third kit was returned after 1 year and 7 months of exposure during the STS-122/1E mission in February 2008. The fourth kit was returned on STS-128/ULF2 in November 2008.

Phamaceuticals
Results from the Stability investigation will offer an assessment of the stability and chemical integrity of medications in adverse environments encountered during space missions. This information will also assist in identifying susceptible medications that may require alternate methods of preparation, dispensing and storage to improve stability and minimize loss of potency during space missions. Estimates of shelf life and potency from Stability data can be used for the selection, modification and development of drug dosage forms and storage techniques for the International Space Station (ISS), and future long-duration missions. The data will also enhance our understanding of the conditions that contribute to pharmaceutical instability and help define mitigation strategies that assure adequate drug stability for human exploration of space.

Nutritients
Nutrients are vital for every cellular process in the body, both on Earth and in space. It is evident that the status of certain vitamins in the body is altered during long duration space missions, but it is not known if vitamin metabolism is altered, if the vitamins in the food supply have been degraded, or if the food supply contains enough of each nutrient throughout the mission. For example, other studies have shown that folate status is decreased after 3- to 4-month missions. It is possible that high levels of ionizing radiation or long-term storage could destroy nutrients in foods or decrease their bioavailability. Either of these would lead to impaired nutritional status in crews consuming these foods.

Stablity results from nutritional products could provide important information about the susceptibility of vitamins, amino acids and fatty acids in the space food system to adverse environmental factors encountered during space missions. These results will assist in determining if modified requirements are necessary to avoid malnutrition in crewmembers. The results will also indicate whether improved packaging designs will be needed to protect food from irradiation and long-term storage conditions during long duration space exploration missions. This data will be useful in identifying alternate methods of preparation and storage of these specific food systems to minimize loss of nutritional value during long duration space exploration missions.

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Applications

Space Applications

Results of this investigation will provide important information on the susceptibility of select pharmaceuticals and foods to adverse environmental factors encountered during space missions.

Earth Applications

The results of this investigation will help understand the effects of adverse environments on food and medicines, this information will assist Earth based explorers make healthy choices for long term exploration of remote and adverse habitats like the Antarctic, arctic and the world oceans.

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Operations

Operational Requirements

Each stability kit consists of 35 pharmaceutical preparations and 7 food items that include vitamin supplements, a passive dosimeter and a temperature monitor. Each kit will be stored for different periods of time to gather time course data on radiation and temperature conditions on board. All sample kits flew to ISS on STS-121/ULF1.1 in July 2006. Kit 1 was returned on STS-121/ULF1.1 in July 2006; Kit 2 was returned on STS-117/13A in June 2007; Kit 3 will return on STS-122/1E in February 2008; Kit four will be returned on a future flight. Storage requirements for all three kits are that they must be stowed together on ISS, the location in relation to on-board radiation monitors must be identified, and they should not be stowed next to a heat source.

Operational Protocols

Stability is a passive investigation that will require minimal crew time while on orbit. The crew will transfer the sample kits from Shuttle to ISS; then back to Shuttle at the appropriate time intervals. Following return to Earth the samples will undergo a battery of physical and chemical evaluations to determine shelf-life and degradation profiles of medications and estimate vitamin and amino acid contents in food preparations.

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Results/More Information

There are not results to report at this time (Evans et al. 2009).

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Related Web Sites

NASA Food Technology Commercial Space Center

International Space Station Medical Project (ISSMP)

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Publications

Results Publications

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Ground Based Results Publications

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ISS Patent Publications

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ISS Spinoffs Publications

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Related Publications

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Images

NASA Image: ISS006E13969 - Flight Engineer Nikolai Budarin takes inventory of medical equipment on the FGB during ISS Expedition 6.
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NASA Image: ISS009E08874 - NASA ISS Science Officer Mike Fincke smiles at the camera as juggles newly arrived fruit during Expedition 9. Nutrients from fresh fruit periodically delivered to ISS help keep through crew healthy throughout their stay on ISS.
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NASA Image: ISS007E06445 - Expedition 7 Commander Yuri Malenchenko (left) and Science Officer Ed Lu (right - holding food can) stand around a table in the galley and share a meal in the Zvezda Service Module. A food packet floats between them. Various utensils packets are attached to the edge of the table. Various condiment bottles are also visible attached to the bulkhead beside Malenchenko. Preserving food for long duration exploration missions is important to teh safety and health of the crew.
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NASA Image: ISS007E07832 - Expedition 7 Science Officer Ed Lu prepares to add garlic paste to a food packet while preparing a meal in the galley area of the Zvezda Service Module. A can of green peas and eating utensils are visible on the table in front of him. Preserving food for long duration exploration missions is important to teh safety and health of the crew.
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NASA Image: ISS007E06700 - Food cans and packets floating freely on board ISS during Expedition 7. Preserving food for long duration exploration missions is important to teh safety and health of the crew.
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Scientists at Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston, TX analyzing the Stability samples returned on STS-121. The Stability experiment is the first experiment as part of the new integrated ISS Medical Project (ISSMP).
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Video screen shot of the Stability ground control inside the Orbiter Environment Simulator (OES) chambers at Kennedy Space Center. Inset image is the medical contents of Stability. Four identical Stability payloads were sent to ISS, to be returned to Earth at different intervals for analysis of degradation.
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NASA Image: P1010019 - Stability Kit 3 before flight to ISS on STS-121/ULF1.1.
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Temperature Data Logger and Dosimeter that will be placed inside of the Stability kits.
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Information provided by the investigation team to the ISS Program Scientist's Office.
If updates are needed to the summary please contact JSC-ISS-Program-Science-Group.