Wake Forest Baptist Health is connected to NASA's current space mission. The Atlantis shuttle is carrying 30 mice in a specialized unit. They're part of a project designed to determine if low gravity environments will cause deterioration of soft tissue structures in the knees.
Heading up this research is Dr. Jeffrey Willey, a fellow in translational radiation oncology in the department of Radiation Oncology and section of Molecular Medicine at Wake Forest School of Medicine. His team is looking at how low gravity impacts joints, especially the menisci (the shock-absorbing cartilage of the knee). He says the result could help scientists better prepare astronauts for extremely long space missions.
There also a control group of about 40 mice on the ground at the Kennedy Space Center. They're in the exact same self-contained unit as the mice at the International Space Station.
Next Thursday, Dr. Willey will meet the space mice in Florida when they land. He and his team will remove the knee menisci from both groups of mice and compare them to determine the impact of low gravity. Dr. Willey expects to have results in a few weeks.
