{
  "id": 19155401,
  "title": "Tardigrades survive reversible dormancy during spaceflight: In-orbit revival, post-flight recovery, and transcriptomic responses",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/09/tardigrades-survive-reversible-dormancy-during-spaceflight-in-orbit",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-11-09T00:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "bioRxiv",
    "slug": "biorxiv",
    "url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.11.06.764766v1?rss=1"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Space travel presents numerous challenges, such as scarce resources and long durations in microgravity and radiation. To address these issues, researchers examined tardigrades, tiny invertebrates known for their ability to enter a reversible dormancy state. The scientists discovered that dormant tardigrades could endure extreme conditions, including near-zero temperatures, vacuum environments, intense radiation, and desiccation. Dormant tardigrades were transported to the International Space Station (ISS), where they were revived on board, returned to dormancy, and revived once more upon returning to Earth. Out of the 64-day experimental period, around 45% of the space-flown tardigrades survived. The surviving tardigrades had made two dormancy-revival cycles, spent 18 days on the ISS, and went through extended periods without sustenance. Importantly, these revived tardigrades were still capable of reproduction. Genome analysis of the ISS-exposed tardigrades showed the activation of genes related to protein folding and stress responses, while genes involved in energy metabolism and protein synthesis were suppressed. This research demonstrates the successful revival and re-induction of dormancy in a multicellular organism beyond Earth, paving the way for exploring dormancy-based strategies for future long-duration space missions.",
  "summary": "Long-duration space missions face substantial challenges, including limited resources and prolonged exposure to microgravity and radiation. Transporting organisms in a dormant state and reviving them at their destination could help overcome some of these limitations. However, the feasibility of this strategy has not been experimentally demonstrated in multicellular animals beyond Earth. Here, we…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}