September 6, 2005

Dear Dr. Griffin:

We write to express our deepest concerns about the potential cancellation of biological research and supporting equipment for the International Space Station (ISS). The Advanced Animal Habitats, the 2.5M Centrifuge facility, and its accommodation module are particularly important for priorities in space exploration. The signatories to this letter include one American and two Japanese science organizations. The Japanese Society for Biological Sciences in Space (JSBSS) is the largest scientific society devoted to space biology outside of the United States. The Japan Society of Aerospace and Environmental Medicine (JSASEM) has represented scientists and professionals of aerospace medicine in Japan for more than a half century since its founding. The Exploration Life and Medical Sciences (ELMS) Coalition has broad membership representing scientists in space life sciences, space entrepreneurs and public advocates (1). In the U.S, the ELMS Coalition represents scientists of the American Society for Gravitational and Space Biology (ASGSB), the Aerospace Medical Association (AsMA), the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), and the American Society of Plant Biologists. As the disastrous ramifications of the proposed cancellations, postponements and reductions in space life sciences becomes known, the number of individual scientists and societies wishing to join the ELMS Coalition continues to grow.

During the past nine months we have sent, separately, several letters regarding the value of life science research on the ISS to the responsible national space agencies. Despite assurances from NASA that no decisions have been made regarding the continued development of NASA's life science equipment for ISS, we were distressed to read recently of NASA's plans for the near elimination of biological research on the ISS, "NASA Office of Legislative Affairs Memo: NASA Plans for Plant and Animal Research", reported by SpaceRef.com on 12 August, 2005. We have also learned that NASA has not identified funding in FY06 for basic space biological research and has greatly curtailed funding for biomedical research. In light of this information, we wish to express our strongest concerns on this issue in this joint letter to you.

Many health problems associated with human spaceflight have been identified but still require further investigation, as noted in recent articles in Nature (2) and Scientific American (3). It is noteworthy that the Nature article is based on interviews with astronauts while the Scientific American article is co-authored by the Director of the National Space Biomedical Research Institute and the Chief of NASA's Space Medicine and Health Care Systems Office. The NASA BioAstronautics roadmap (4) indicates the criticality of each topic and appropriate animal models needed for research. In addition, a workshop held last year among NASA and university leaders in biomedical research (5) provided the current status of our knowledge about the medical risks associated with human space flight as well as the need for research with appropriate animal and cell models to complement those issues that cannot be adequately addressed with humans, e.g. wound healing, fracture repair, drug response in microgravity. The evaluation of each research topic and strategic planning of science was carefully conducted and witnessed by many scientists and engineers. To be consistent with sound medical and scientific practice as well as the recommendations of the CAIB report (6), such decisions must continue to be derived from discussions among qualified experts, without conflicts of interest, and must be subject to review in an open forum. We do not believe that this sound practice has been utilized in reaching impending decisions for biological research within NASA. It is evident from the programs and practices of medical research organizations around the world that basic research using animal models is needed for understanding biological effects of microgravity and space radiation. As stated by NASA's Chief Medical Officer, "A robust animal experiment capability can provide quantified, mechanistic biomedical knowledge, and contribute in the development and testing of countermeasures and new medical technologies" (7).

In Japan, society members of JSBSS and JSASEM have closely watched the development of the Centrifuge facility conducted by NASA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) since its planning and definition phase. Japanese scientists participated in the review of science requirements for the AAH. Based on understanding its value as a research tool, these scientists expressed a strong desire to collaborate under an international scheme involving the International Space Life Sciences Working Group (ISLSWG). Under the auspices of the ISLSWG, members representing the space life sciences from the US, Japan, Europe and other space-faring nations agreed to develop ISS research equipment that is complementary, thus maximizing the limited resources of each nation. The unilateral cancellation of such key equipment as the AAH, the Life Sciences Glovebox (LSG) and the Centrifuge destroys the synergy of the ISLSWG collaborative program and greatly diminishes the return on each country's investment. Life scientists have been selected through international joint research announcements and have been conducting preparatory ground based research for nearly a decade. Their selection and preparatory work was predicated on the availability of a suite of equipment that now seems to be in jeopardy of cancellation.

This ground-based research is bringing new and enabling capabilities forward as opportunities to reduce risk for exploration. For example, a new DNA-based measurement that can gauge radiation damage to individuals has been tested with animals on the ground. This could easily be tested in space within the AAH. This is a landmark opportunity to investigate the biological responses to space radiation and investigate inherent mechanisms of selection of individuals for least sensitivity or creating biological countermeasures. With the elimination of ISS programs, these opportunities will be lost from NASA's exploration program. Imagine the impact on spacecraft and system design if this human health issue is not appropriately addressed.

We believe the Centrifuge and the AAH are core components of the ISS, even after it has been re-defined as a steppingstone for the exploration of the Moon and Mars. The AAH can also be used in unmanned automated tests in high radiation environments. By dropping the AAH and Centrifuge and essentially stopping support for essential ground based programs, the science community built over the past four decades of space biology and medicine research will be lost, all for a shortterm questionable gain in the U.S. space budget. Science is not just knowledge written in a textbook that can be shelved and then dusted off at any time. Science requires stable, consistent support with a long vision and perspective in order to provide a return on investment.

Beyond the scientific issues, cancellation of space biomedical research may hurt the leadership of the United States in space activities by ruining the integrity of international collaboration, which has been an important part of the ISS program. The unilateral cancellation by NASA of one of the underpinnings of the rationale for the ISS, viz scientific research, begs the question - What else will NASA cancel?

We, representing the life science community in Japan, the United States, and colleagues from all over the world, strongly request that you recognize the importance of space biology and biomedical research on the ISS and restore a core capability to sustain life sciences research both on the ground and in space, especially that research enabled by the Advanced Animal Habitat and Centrifuge. We wish to work with you to explore all options in an effort to leverage scientific results with engineering objectives to achieve a safe and effective program of space exploration while advancing human knowledge.



Makoto Asashima
President
The Japanese Society for Biological Science in Space






Ichiro Asukata
Chairman of the Board of Directors
Japan Society of Aerospace and Environmental Medicine



Christopher S. Brown
President of the American Society for Gravitational and Space Biology
Founding Member, The Exploration Life and Medical Sciences Coalition

CC:
Keiji Tachikawa, President, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency
Mary L. Cleave, NASA Associate Administrator for Science
William H. Gerstenmaier, NASA Associate Administrator for Space Operations
Doug Cooke, NASA Associate Administrator for Exploration Systems
Scott Pace, NASA Associate Administrator for the Office of Program Analysis and Evaluation
John H. Marburger. Director, Office of Science and Technology Policy
David P. Radzanowski, Office of Management and Budget, Science and Space Programs
The Honorable Ted Stevens, Chair, Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee
The Honorable Daniel Inouye, Ranking Member, Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee
The Honorable Kay Bailey Hutchison, Chair, Subcommittee on Science and Space, Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee
The Honorable Bill Nelson, Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Science and Space, Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee
The Honorable Thad Cochran, Chair, Senate Appropriations Committee
The Honorable Robert C. Byrd, Ranking Member, Senate Appropriations Committee
The Honorable Richard C. Shelby, Chair, Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, and Science, Senate Appropriations Committee
The Honorable Barbara A. Mikulski, Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, and Science, Senate Appropriations Committee
The Honorable Sherwood L. Boehlert, Chair, House Committee on Science
The Honorable Bart Gordon, Ranking Member, House Committee on Science
The Honorable Ken Calvert, Chair, Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics, House Committe on Science
The Honorable Mark Udall, Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics, House Committe on Science
The Honorable Jerry Lewis, Chair, House Committee on Appropriations
The Honorable Dave Obey, Ranking Member, House Committee on Appropriations
The Honorable Frank Wolf, Chair, Subcommittee on Science State Justice and Commerce Related Agencies, House Committee on Appropriations
The Honorable Alan B. Mollohan, Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Science State Justice and Commerce Related Agencies, House Committee on Appropriations


References
1. elmscoalition.org
2. Nature 436:902-3, August 2005
3. Scientific American sciam.com, posted 8/15/05
4. http://bioastroroadmap.nasa.gov/index.jsp
5. http://www.mbl.edu/CASSLS/ase.htm
6. CAIB Report, US Govt. Printing Office, August 2003
7. NASA Memorandum, 5/4/05, from Chief Medical Officer to Director for the Physical Sciences Division