Dr. Gerlinde Metz and her team will research the impacts of spaceflight on astronauts' bodies. (Photo: U of L)

By David Opinko

U of L to study effects of spaceflight on astronauts’ bodies

Sep 2, 2025 | 1:18 PM

A team of researchers at the University of Lethbridge (U of L) is receiving new funding from the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).

Dr. Gerlinde Metz, a professor and researcher at the U of L’s Canadian Centre for Behavioural Neuroscience, has received a total of $225,000.

The study will allow the U of L’s researchers to participate in NASA’s first comprehensive multi-level analysis of astronauts.

She says she hopes to gain a better understanding of how the human body adapts to life in space.

“We are grateful for this funding, as it will allow us to determine the complex biological responses to long-duration spaceflight over time,” says Metz. “Our previous research has shown that space travel resulted in sex-specific changes in metabolites involved in energy metabolism, which may be linked to bone loss, muscle regulation and immunity dysfunction.”

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Metz explains that space travel puts a lot of stress on astronauts, including noise, vibration, loss of G-forces, and radiation exposure.

Other studies have revealed physical complications from spaceflight, such as the loss of bone and muscle mass.