The Institute of Nuclear Medicine & Allied Sciences (INMAS), a Delhi-based laboratory under the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO), is hosting the International Radiobiology Conference on Biological Effects of Space Radiation, Heavy Ions, and Human Space Missions – Mechanisms & Biomedical Countermeasures at the Manekshaw Centre, Delhi, from February 27 to March 1, 2025.
Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, inaugurated the conference as the Chief Guest, while Dr. Samir V. Kamat, Secretary of the Department of Defence R&D and Chairman of DRDO, was the Guest of Honour.
In his inaugural address, Prof. Sood commended INMAS for organizing the event and emphasized that space radiation is one of the most critical challenges in space exploration, posing serious health risks to astronauts on long-duration missions. He praised INMAS for its efforts in tackling these challenges.
Dr. Samir V. Kamat highlighted the necessity of an integrated approach to address space radiation concerns, bringing together experts from diverse fields such as radiobiology, physics, engineering, and medicine. He stressed that such interdisciplinary collaboration is essential for developing innovative technologies to protect astronauts in space.
He further noted that space exploration is now a key priority, with significant advancements including long-term human presence on the International Space Station (ISS) and lunar missions. Developing protective strategies would ensure astronaut safety, paving the way for future deep-space missions, including those to Mars.
The three-day conference will cover discussions aligned with its theme, focusing on key areas such as biomarkers of exposure and susceptibility, chronic effects and carcinogenesis, combined stressors (microgravity, confinement, circadian misalignment, isolation, and space radiation), acute and long-term effects of heavy ions, mathematical modeling and simulation, medical countermeasures, cellular and molecular mechanisms, muscle and bone loss, degenerative diseases and cognition, and heavy ion radiation chemistry.