page_title: STS-65
section_title: Life Sciences Research Objectives
hierarchical_section_title: STS-65 / Life Sciences Research Objectives
context_page_description: STS-65 was a Space Shuttle program mission of Columbia launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, 8 July 1994. The commander of this flight was Robert D. Cabana who would go on later to lead the Kennedy Space Center.
context_section_description: The objective of the newt experiment was to study the early development of gravity-sensing organs (see figure). The utricle and saccule are specialized organs present in the inner ears of all vertebrate animals. They contain otoliths (or otoconia), calcium carbonate stones, which are deposited on a gelatinous membrane that lies over the sensory hair cells. The pull that gravity exerts on the otoliths is sensed by the hair cells, and information about the gravitational stimulus is transmitted to the brain via connecting nerve fibers. The experiment was designed to determine whether otolith production and development of otolith-associated receptor cells and nerve fibers may be altered in the microgravity environment of space.
  The jellyfish experiment was designed to study behavior and development in space. Behavioral parameters studied included swimming, pulsing, and orientation. Study of developmental processes focused on gravity-sensing organs. The experiment also sought to determine the level of artificial gravity stimulus needed to counteract any negative effects of space flight.
  The objective of the plant embryogenesis (PEMBSIS) experiment was to evaluate whether space flight affected the pattern and developmental progression of embryonic daylilies from one well-defined stage to another. It also examined whether cell division (mitosis) and chromosome behavior were modified by the space environment.
caption: Together, the semicircular canals and the otolith organs make up the vestibular apparatus of the inner ear, which provides information to the brain about balance and motion in 3-D space. The gravity-dependent otolith organs, lined with hair cell receptors and otoconia, detect linear acceleration of the head. When the head moves, the otoconia lag behind, bending the hair cell receptors and changing the directional signal to the brain.
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