Melatonin is expected to be used in astronauts to combat osteoporosis

Bone absorption refers to the physiological phenomenon of decreasing the volume and density of bone tissue at a lower stress levelUsually bone absorption and bone growth coexist, forming a dynamic balance, while space weightlessness and higher levels of ionizing radiation environment can easily cause osteoporosis in astronautsResearchers at Kanazawa University in Japan,, reported in the American Journal of Pine Fruit Research that, in collaboration with Japanese astronauts on the International Space Station, the use of goldfish scales in space to conduct experiments on melatonin and then bring samples back to EarthThe researchers say goldfish scales and mammalian bones have the same hormone response mechanism and can therefore be used as bone research modelsBone bud cells of goldfish squamous, cells in the early stages of bone cell development, produce melatoninstudy found that in the space environment, the synthesis levels of goldfish scaly melatonin droppedComparative experiments showed that compared with goldfish scales without melatonin, the absorption of goldfish's scalebone after artificial addition of melatonin was inhibited and bone absorption slowed downteam believes the findings suggest that it is possible to develop drugs using melatonin in the future to help astronauts entering space prevent and treat osteoporosis.