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U-937 Toxicity Testing of Lunar Dust Stimulant (JSC-1A-vf)With NASA planning to extend the human presence to the moon by 2020, the dangers of the lunar environment must be assessed and appropriate countermeasures must be developed. Possible toxic effects of the lunar dust are of particular importance to human health because of the dust's chemical composition, reactivity, and small size. This project focuses on the toxicity of lunar dust stimulant (JSC-1A-vf), in both its active and passive forms, using U-937 human monocyte cells. Simulant was mechanically activated from its passive form by grinding, and its ability to produce hydroxyl radicals was determined. To test for toxicity, active and passivated simulant was diluted in media and applied to the cells for various time periods. Toxicity was then estimated using flow cytometry on the Guava Personal Cell Analysis system. Preliminary results suggest that passivated stimulant is slightly toxic, with an increase in toxicity for activated stimulant. Toxicity results may be affected by cell lysing behavior and quenching of hydroxyl radical production by the cell media.
Document ID
20070026352
Acquisition Source
Johnson Space Center
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Bales, Kristyn
(NASA Johnson Space Center Houston, TX, United States)
Hammond, Dianne
(NASA Johnson Space Center Houston, TX, United States)
Wallace, William
(Universities Space Research Association Houston, TX, United States)
Jeevarajan, Antony
(NASA Johnson Space Center Houston, TX, United States)
Date Acquired
August 23, 2013
Publication Date
July 24, 2007
Subject Category
Life Sciences (General)
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other

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