Workshop At Ooty Explores Space Science & Human Biology
‘Astro-Bio 2026’, an advanced scientific workshop on ‘Space Simulation and Human Biology’, held at the JSS College of Pharmacy here, which is numero uno in pharmacy education in south India
Ooty: “Because of technologies from space exploration, we can begin to understand our world’s origins, and our lives are improving. These are the reasons why dedicating a life to the sciences and space exploration is so meaningful and rewarding”- this quote from Emily Calandrelli would amply explain the significance of space exploration which is an adventure research.
Space exploration and space research and research in-vivo in space help mankind to further explore the hidden secrets of the Universe and to create new opportunities and inspire the world through discoveries.
‘Astro-Bio 2026’, an advanced scientific workshop on ‘Space Simulation and Human Biology’, held at the JSS College of Pharmacy here, which is numero uno in pharmacy education in south India and fourth top pharmacy institute in the country as per NIRF ranking, wherein Indian and Russian scientists discussed at length about human health in space, stability of medicines, microgravity research and space food technology to open the avenues further wide for the present and upcoming pharma-researchers to the world of new opportunities in space medicine and human biology.
The scientific workshop was organised by the Department of Pharmaceutics at the college under the Promotion of University Research and Scientific Excellence scheme of the Department of Science and Technology and sponsored by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
The workshop focused on several emerging areas of space science and human biology, including physiological changes during spaceflight, immune and metabolic responses in space, stability of medicines during space missions, microgravity experiments, space food technology and advanced space-simulation research.
Dr. S.P. Dhanabal, principal, JSS College of Pharmacy, touched upon the importance of pharma-technologies that need to go beyond the global atmosphere into the space to help astronauts and space travellers maintain good health during their space odyssey as travelling to space has now become a frequent happening and is expected to grow big in future as even the space-tourism concept has come into being in the present era.
Dr. O.P. Chauhan, scientist ‘G’ and group head, Defence Institute of Biodefence Technologies at Mysuru, delivered the keynote address on ‘Food Technology in Space Flights’. He explained in detail about the various aspects of food required for astronauts, including nutritional requirements, food safety, preservation and the importance of developing suitable food technologies for long-duration space missions to sustain life and health in space.
One of the major highlights of the workshop was an online scientific session by Dr. Vassilieva Gallina Yu, head of the Laboratory for the Study of Bone, Hemodynamic and Metabolic Effects of Extreme Impacts at the Institute of Biomedical Problems, Moscow. Drawing upon Russian research conducted aboard the International Space Station, she spoke on the mechanisms involved in maintaining the homeostatic regulation of human immune and metabolic status under space flight conditions.
The session provided participants insights into how the human body responds and adapts to the unique physiological challenges associated with living and working in space.
Dr. Sudarshan Patil Kulkarni, Professor and head, Department of Electronics and Communications at JSS Science and Technology University at Mysuru, dwelt at length on ‘Nanosatellite and Medical Research’. He discussed the potential applications of nanosatellite technology in medical and biological research and its emerging role in future space-based scientific investigations.
Dr. Subbarao, Professor, Department of Biochemistry, JSS Medical College at Mysuru, delivered a talk on ‘In-Vitro Microgravity Experiments’ and explained the scientific approaches used to simulate microgravity conditions in laboratory settings and study their effects on biological processes. The session provided students and researchers with a better understanding of how earth-based experimental models can contribute to research related to human health in space.
The afternoon session featured hands-on training in space simulation and advanced spectroscopy with chemometric analysis. The participants were introduced to practical approaches in space-simulation experiments, advanced spectroscopic techniques and scientific data analysis, providing them with valuable exposure to contemporary research methodologies.
