Space medicine team reaches for the stars to cure diseases
At first glance, the words “space medicine” may bring to mind images of astronauts floating in zero gravity and managing emergencies aboard distant spacecraft. But for Bentley Bobrow, MD, UTHealth Houston’s inaugural vice president for health care innovation, and Kris Lehnhardt, MD, the first director of the UTHealth Houston Space Medicine Program, that’s only part of the story.
“There’s a common misconception that space medicine is only about caring for astronauts in orbit,” said Bobrow, who is the Nancy, Clive and Pierce Runnells Distinguished Professor in Emergency Medicine at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston. “But some of the most promising impacts of this work are here on Earth — from discovering new cancer therapies to preventing dementia and improving rural health care delivery. As we learn to monitor and care for humans in space, we uncover insights that will transform lives back home.”
Over the past year and with the shared vision to build the nation’s most applied and translational space medicine program, Bobrow and Lehnhardt have built an expansive network of researchers, clinicians, and engineers tackling the physiological, technical, and environmental challenges of spaceflight. One that not only supports human exploration of space but directly improves lives on Earth.
“We’re not doing science just for the sake of it,” Lehnhardt said. “We want our work to change the way people practice medicine, both on a spacecraft and in a community clinic in rural Texas.”
The team’s rapidly expanding portfolio of projects reflects that mission. From virtual, reality-based clinical training to the development of printable skin grafts in microgravity, each initiative bridges leading-edge science with real-world health care needs.
By wanting to build the most applied translational space medicine program in the country, they are “not just studying problems but actively solving them, in ways that impact people on Earth and astronauts in space,” Lehnhardt said.
“We’re looking at the same biological systems — but now it’s in a very different and unique environment,” Lehnhardt said. “What happens to the cardiovascular system in microgravity? What happens to the brain over six months in space? These are questions with profound implications not just for astronauts, but for aging populations, cancer patients, and the five million Texans living in rural communities.”
Building a culture of innovation
Lehnhardt and Bobrow emphasize interdisciplinary collaboration and cross-pollination of ideas.
“We’re trying to create a place where researchers can come together, share ideas, and pursue the kind of high-impact work that might not fit neatly into traditional categories,” Bobrow said.
That includes forging partnerships across the Texas Medical Center, the state of Texas, with researchers around the world — even engaging with private space companies — and aligning their research goals with NASA’s human health objectives.
“NASA has been really clear,” Lehnhardt said. “They want to invest in things that solve actual medical challenges for spaceflight, and ideally, for patients on Earth as well. That’s exactly what we’re aiming to do here.”
Lehnhardt added being in Houston, a city at the crossroads of space exploration and medical innovation, is a unique advantage. “We’re in a perfect spot. We’re connected to NASA, we’re embedded in the largest medical center in the world, and we have the academic freedom to do bold things.”
The team is well-poised to take advantage of the enormous opportunity presented by the Texas Space Commission, formed in 2023 by the Texas Legislature to promote innovation in the field of space operations and commercial aerospace opportunities, including the integration of space, aeronautics, and aviation industries into the Texas economy.
Reaching people on Earth, one innovation at a time
For both doctors, the long-term vision isn’t just about sending humans farther into space, it’s about improving life here on Earth. That conviction is built into the foundation of each project the team has launched.
“People ask, ‘Why are we spending so much time and money on this when we have many enormous problems here?’ But we don’t see this as either-or,” Bobrow said. “The truth is, space gives us an unparalleled laboratory to accelerate what we know about the human physiology and human health and how to solve some of the most challenging diseases."
Building on that idea, Lehnhardt emphasized that space medicine innovations extend beyond pharmaceuticals to transforming health care delivery itself.
“And it’s not just about new molecules or new drugs,” Lehnhardt added. “It’s also about new systems — like how we monitor health, how we deliver care in remote or hostile environments, and how we train providers in isolation.”
A new frontier for rural and remote care
Perhaps the most direct application of the team’s research to life on Earth is in health care delivery to underserved populations. More than five million Texans live in rural communities, often with limited access to consistent medical care.
“We’re developing tools that can function in extreme environments,” Lehnhardt said. “Space just happens to be the most extreme. But rural medicine, battlefield medicine, wilderness medicine — those are all environments where these tools could save lives.”
Shaping the program’s next phase
Two other leaders — Kristi Mena, PhD, and Xiaoqian Jiang, PhD — are helping shape the program’s next phase by serving on the leadership team for a proposed Space Medicine and AI Center at UTHealth Houston. Both bring critical expertise to the table — Mena in spaceflight public health, and Jiang in artificial intelligence integration.
Mena is professor and regional dean of UTHealth Houston School of Public Health, chair of the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, and Jane Dale Owen Chair in Environmental Health Protection. Jiang is the associate vice president for Medical AI, chair of the Department of Health Data Science and Artificial Intelligence, and Christopher Sarofim Family Professor in Biomedical Informatics and Bioengineering at McWilliams School of Biomedical Informatics at UTHealth Houston.
Mena has worked closely with NASA for two decades, developing human health risk assessment protocols that protect flight crew health aboard the International Space Station and during future Mars missions. Her research has informed food and water safety protocols for astronauts and contributed to long-term sustainability planning.
Mena is proposing a new field, aerospace epidemiology, to understand and mitigate public health risks as commercial space travel expands.
“With more civilians entering space, we need to think like public health professionals,” Mena said. “UTHealth Houston has a chance to lead this emerging discipline.”
On the technology front, Jiang is embedding AI across nearly every project in the program, building autonomous systems that can support astronauts where no doctor is available.
His flagship initiative is the Astronaut Digital Twin: a privacy-preserving, continuously updated model of each astronaut that predicts physiological and mental health risks and recommends personalized countermeasures.
“By tightly coupling advanced AI with precision medicine, we aim to give every crew member a virtual clinical team that travels with them no matter how far from Earth,” Jiang said.
Just as importantly, those same algorithms are being translated to support trauma and critical-care teams here on Earth, especially in rural or austere settings where medical resources are scarce.
The Texas Space Health and Human Performance Network current projects
Astronaut Medical Training Center – Lehnhardt and Nicolas Heft, MD, McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston
This project focuses on advancing astronaut medical training through high-fidelity simulation and virtual reality. By developing an immersive training environment within a simulated spacecraft capsule, the initiative enhances astronauts’ ability to manage medical emergencies in space. The project aims to integrate VR-based modules and realistic training scenarios, ensuring that astronauts acquire critical decision-making skills necessary for handling medical crises during extended missions.
Finite Element Analysis and Astronaut Trauma Prediction – Srihari Menon, PhD, Texas A&M University
In spaceflight, the human body undergoes significant deconditioning due to prolonged exposure to microgravity. Muscle atrophy, bone density loss, and cardiovascular changes are just a few of the known effects. These changes increase an astronaut’s vulnerability to trauma, especially during high-stress events such as launch, landing, or emergency maneuvers. Srihari Menon, PhD, a leading expert in computational biomechanics and a student at Texas A&M University, is partnering with the UTHealth Houston Space Medicine team to tackle this challenge through a pioneering initiative that combines finite element analysis with physics-informed machine learning.
This research project uses detailed biomechanical simulations to model how the human body, especially one weakened by time in microgravity, responds to various mechanical forces and impacts. By incorporating real anatomical data and advanced tissue modeling, Menon’s team is developing AI-driven injury prediction tools that can simulate injury scenarios in near-real time. This allows for a proactive understanding of how astronauts might sustain injuries from sudden accelerations, collisions, or equipment malfunctions.
Ultimately, this work will help safeguard astronaut health while also generating insights with direct terrestrial relevance, such as improving vehicle safety for elderly or frail patients, who similarly experience reduced physiological resilience.
“This kind of modeling allows us to ask critical ‘what if’ questions before an incident occurs,” Menon said. “And the answers we get not only help us protect astronauts but could also transform trauma prevention for vulnerable populations on Earth.”
Radiation Protection with Oral Fullerene Nanoparticles – Sunil Krishnan, MD, McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston
One of the most significant threats to astronaut health during deep-space missions is prolonged exposure to cosmic radiation, which can cause DNA damage, accelerate aging, and increase the risk of cancer and neurodegenerative disease. Sunil Krishnan, MD, professor in the Vivian L. Smith Department of Neurosurgery and John P. and Kathrine G. McGovern Distinguished Chair at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston, is leading a groundbreaking effort to counter this risk using orally administered fullerene-based nanoparticles.
Fullerenes, carbon-based nanostructures shaped like hollow spheres, are known for their exceptional antioxidant properties. In this project, Krishnan’s team is developing biocompatible nanoparticles designed to scavenge harmful free radicals generated by space radiation, protecting cells from oxidative stress and genomic instability. Unlike bulky shielding solutions, this innovative approach offers a lightweight, systemic countermeasure that can be taken as a simple oral dose.
By providing a practical, ingestible form of radiation protection, this research could significantly extend the duration and safety of crewed space missions beyond low Earth orbit. It also holds promise for protecting patients on Earth undergoing radiation therapy, as well as workers in high-exposure environments such as aviation, nuclear energy, and disaster response.
“This is a unique opportunity to take a major health challenge in spaceflight and develop a solution that could help millions of people on Earth,” Krishnan said. “It’s translational science at its best.”
Remote Vital Signs Monitoring for Astronauts – Sam Beger, MD, MPH, UTHealth Houston Space Medicine, and Gerard Coté, PhD, Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station
Continuous health monitoring is essential for astronaut safety and mission success, especially in the isolated, high-risk environments of deep space. Sam Beger, MD, MPH, space medicine fellow at UTHealth Houston, is working closely with Gerard Coté, PhD, associate agency director of Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station, and the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Texas A&M University to develop a leading-edge, mobile health monitoring system tailored for spaceflight.
The project focuses on designing a vacuum-safe, 100% oxygen-compliant wearable system capable of capturing and interpreting real-time physiological data in microgravity. By combining advanced biosensor technology with AI-powered analytics, the system can monitor vital signs such as heart rate, oxygen saturation, respiration, and more, alerting crew and mission control to subtle changes before they escalate into medical emergencies. This integrated platform not only supports in-flight health surveillance and rapid decision-making, but also lays the foundation for autonomous medical care during long-duration missions, where immediate Earth-based assistance may not be possible.
“Space demands self-sufficiency,” Beger said. “Our goal is to give astronauts the tools to understand and manage their health — anytime, anywhere. And just as importantly, this work could enhance remote care delivery in rural or underserved communities on Earth.”
Preserving Bone Health with Low-Intensity Vibration — Mary Farach-Carson, PhD, UTHealth Houston School of Dentistry
Prolonged exposure to microgravity leads to rapid bone loss and disrupted calcium homeostasis, placing astronauts at high risk for fractures and long-term skeletal deterioration. Mary Farach-Carson, PhD, professor, associate dean for Research, director of clinical and translational research, and a leading expert in bone biology at UTHealth Houston School of Dentistry, is pioneering the use of low-intensity vibration as a nonpharmacologic countermeasure to preserve bone health during spaceflight.
Low-intensity vibration technology delivers gentle mechanical signals that stimulate osteoblast activity and maintain bone density, mimicking the effects of gravity-dependent loading that is lost in space. Farach-Carson’s research builds on her previous work developing bone marrow analogs, 3D-engineered tissues that mimic native bone environments, allowing for advanced study of mechanoregulation in microgravity.
This next phase of the project focuses on integrating low-intensity vibration into these engineered bone models to create a robust, space-compatible system for testing and validating bone-preserving strategies. The ultimate goal is to develop a deployable countermeasure that can be used on long-duration missions to Mars and beyond, while also offering new therapeutic insights for osteoporosis patients on Earth.
“Bone loss in space happens much faster than on Earth, making it an ideal model to study skeletal degeneration,” Farach-Carson said. “If we can stop or slow that process in space, we can change the game for millions suffering from bone loss here at home.”
Farach-Carson is also a faculty member at MD Anderson Cancer Center UTHealth Houston Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences.