All gerbils on the satellite "Bion-M" were killed - BBC

All gerbils and half of the mice that flew for a month on the Earth’s orbit a spacecraft “Bion-M» ? 1, were killed during the flight, transfers «Interfax» .

«All geckos alive. Mice we got less than half, but that was expected. Unfortunately, due to the failure of equipment we have lost all gerbils, “- said the head of the laboratory of the Institute of Biomedical Problems, Russian Academy of Sciences, Doctor of Biological Sciences, director of the experiment” Bion-M “Vladimir Sychev.

In

“Bion” space flew , in particular, eight Mongolian gerbils 45 and “genetically pure” mice – so-called linear click. Their genome is carefully controlled so that scientists can detect any genetic changes. From orbit, also returned geckos lizards, fish, micro-organisms and plants.