Weightlessness leads to an increase granulosa cells in the growing follicle

Anna Yu Kikina; Mariia S Matrosova; Elena Yu Gorbacheva; Ksenia K Gogichaeva; Konstantin A Toniyan; Valery V Boyarintsev; Oleg V Kotov; Irina V Ogneva

doi:10.1038/s41526-024-00413-4

Weightlessness leads to an increase granulosa cells in the growing follicle

NPJ Microgravity. 2024 Jun 22;10(1):70. doi: 10.1038/s41526-024-00413-4.

Authors

Anna Yu Kikina¹, Mariia S Matrosova^{2

3}, Elena Yu Gorbacheva^{4

5}, Ksenia K Gogichaeva⁴, Konstantin A Toniyan^{4

5}, Valery V Boyarintsev⁶, Oleg V Kotov⁴, Irina V Ogneva^{7

8}

Affiliations

¹ Gagarin Research and Test Cosmonaut Training Center, 141160, Star City, Moscow Region, Russia.
² Radiology Department, European Medical Center, 129090, Moscow, Russia.
³ Research Center of Neurology, 125367, Moscow, Russia.
⁴ Cell Biophysics Lab, State Scientific Center of the Russian Federation Institute of Biomedical Problems of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 123007, Moscow, Russia.
⁵ Gynecology Department, FGBU KB1 (Volynskaya) UDP RF, 121352, Moscow, Russia.
⁶ Emergency and Extreme Medicine Department, Central State Medical Academy UDP RF, 121359, Moscow, Russia.
⁷ Cell Biophysics Lab, State Scientific Center of the Russian Federation Institute of Biomedical Problems of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 123007, Moscow, Russia. [email protected].
⁸ Medical and Biological Physics Department, I.M. Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University, 119991, Moscow, Russia. [email protected].

Abstract

The participation of women in space programs of increasing flight duration requires research of their reproductive system from the perspective of subsequent childbearing and healthy aging. For the first time, we present hormonal and structural data on the dynamics of recovery after a 157-day space flight in a woman of reproductive age. There were no clinically significant changes in the reproductive system, but detailed analysis shows that weightlessness leads to an increase in the proportion of early antral follicles and granulosa cells in large antral follicles. Returning to Earth's gravity reduces the number and diameter of early antral follicles.