Spaceflight Environment Induces Mitochondrial Oxidative Damage in Ocular Tissue

A recent report shows that more than 30% of the astronauts returning from Space Shuttle missions or the International Space Station (ISS) were diagnosed with eye problems that can cause reduced visual acuity. We investigate here whether spaceflight environment-associated retinal damage might be related to oxidative stress-induced mitochondrial apoptosis. Female C57BL/6 mice were flown in the space shuttle Atlantis (STS-135), and within 3–5 h of landing, the spaceflight and ground-control mice, similarly housed in animal enclosure modules (AEMs) were euthanized and their eyes were removed for analysis. Changes in expression of genes involved in oxidative stress, mitochondrial and endothelial cell biology were examined. Apoptosis in the retina was analyzed by caspase-3 immunocytochemical analysis and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL) assay. Levels of 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE) protein, an oxidative specific marker for lipid peroxidation were also measured. Evaluatio...