University of Malta co-leads project exploring biological resilience

The University of Malta is co-leading ASTRANOVA, a new international research project investigating how nature’s most resilient organisms could help protect human health in space and on Earth. Prof. Joseph Borg, from the Department of Applied Biomedical Science within the Faculty of Health Sciences, and Dr Josef Borg represented the University at the project’s kick-off meeting on Tuesday 13 October 2026. The meeting took place at the European Space Agency’s European Space Research and Technology Centre in Noordwijk, the Netherlands.

Funded through NATO’s Science for Peace and Security Programme, ASTRANOVA stands for Advanced Space Technologies for Resilience and Adaptation: Novel Omics for Validation and Advancement. It brings together expertise in space biology, molecular science and bioinformatics to investigate how living systems withstand extreme conditions. Prof. Borg co-directs the initiative with Prof. Afshin Beheshti of the University of Pittsburgh. Collaborators include Prof. Christopher Mason of Weill Cornell Medicine and Prof. Jason Podrabsky of Oregon State University, connecting complementary expertise across Malta and the United States.

The research examines how exceptionally resilient organisms protect their cells, regulate metabolism and respond to damage. Combining molecular profiling with computational analysis, the team aims to identify biological indicators of stress and adaptation. These insights could inform approaches to protecting astronauts during long-duration space missions, with potential applications in human recovery and health resilience on Earth.

The University’s participation builds on the MALETH I–III missions, which brought Maltese biomedical experiments to the International Space Station, and ongoing research into astronaut blood biology and haemoglobin regulation.

ASTRANOVA extends this experience through an international collaboration addressing a fundamental question: how can understanding life at its limits help us better protect our own?