[Research under reduced gravity. Part I: bases of gravitational biology].

The orientation of organisms in space and their morphogenesis in relation to the gravitational field of the Earth are the main topics of research in the field of gravitational biology. For more than 100 years clinostats provided the only possibility to simulate physiological weightlessness. In contrast to animals, plants are characterized by intracellular gravireceptors. Nevertheless, there are some indications, e.g., the minimal energy of approx. 10(-18) J triggering a gravity-dependent response, for similar mechanisms of gravity perception. Stretch-activated ion channels might be the common structural basis.