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PubMed1998

Advances in food systems for space flight.

Food for space has evolved from cubes and tubes to normal Earth-like food consumed with common utensils. U.S. space food systems have traditionally been based upon the water supply. When on-board water was abundant (e.g., Apollo and Shuttle fuel cells produced water) then dehydrated food was used extensively. The International Space Station will have limited water available for food rehydration so there is little advantage for using dehydrated foods. Experience from Skylab and the Russian Mir space station emphasizes that food variety and quality are important elements in the design of food for closed systems. The evolution of space food has accentuated Earth-like foods, which should be a model for closed environment food systems.

Ecological Systems, Closed↗
PubMed1997

[The effects of space condition on the germination of medicinal plant Carthamus tinctorius].

OBJECTIVE: To substantiate the effects of space condition on the growth and development of medicinal plants. METHODS: The seeds of Carthamus tinctorius L. were set up in retrievable satellites. After returning earth, the germination of these seeds were observed by electrophoresis. The isozymes of peroxidases, esterase and soluble proteins were also evaluated. RESULTS: The average seed germinative rate of the space flight group was higher than that of the earth controlled group, and the peroxidase activity of the space flight group was higher than that of the earth controlled group either. The electrophoresis patterns of isozymes and proteins between the space flight group and the earth controlled group showed only little difference in bud bursting stage. CONCLUSION: Weightlessness and radiation in space affect the germination of Carthamus tinctorius, and they show little effect on gene expression in the stage of germination. Weightlessness may be the important factor to improve the peroxidase activity.

Cosmic Radiation↗
PubMed1999

Perspective on the consequences of short- and long-duration space flight on human physiology.

During the past three decades, humans have made significant progress in accomplishing their aspirations for exploring the Moon and the planets. It is now appreciated that humans undergo a remarkable number of physiologic adaptations in microgravity that affect most physiologic systems. Space motion sickness was one of the first adaptations that humans experienced in microgravity. However, it is self-limiting and, most of the time, is effectively treated pharmacologically. Of particular concern is that, in microgravity, there is marked wasting of the skeletal musculature and skeleton that appears to be unrelenting and could impact on the health and welfare of space travelers during prolonged space flights and on return to earth. Microgravity also has a significant impact on the cardiovascular system that could have potentially serious consequences in terms of cardiovascular health during long-duration space flights. Other adaptations such as decreased T-cell responsiveness and changes in circadian rhythms is only now being explored. We need to understand the role that microgravity has on human physiologic systems in order to develop strategies for permitting humans to experience prolonged microgravity without having significant impact on their health and welfare. Engineering some gravitational force as a component of long-duration space vehicles should be given a high priority.

Adaptation, Physiological↗
PubMed1999

Psychological and behavioral health issues of long-duration space missions.

It will be the responsibility of the long-duration space flight crew to take the actions necessary to maintain their health and well-being and to cope with medical emergencies without direct assistance from support personnel, including maintaining mental health and managing physiological and psychological changes that may impair decision making and performance. The Behavior and Performance Integrated Product Team at Johnson Space Center, working within the Space Medicine, Monitoring, and Countermeasures Program, has identified critical questions pertaining to long-duration space crew behavioral health, psychological adaptation, human factors and habitability, and sleep and circadian rhythms. Among the projects addressing these questions are: the development of tools to assess cognitive functions during space missions; the development of a model of psychological adaptation in isolated and confined environments; tools and methods for selecting individuals and teams well-suited for long-duration missions; identification of mission-critical tasks and performance evaluation; and measures of sleep quality and correlation to mission performance.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1998

The effects of space flight during gestation on rat uterine smooth muscle.

Pregnant rats were flown on a NASA space shuttle during days 11-20 of gestation and the effects of pregnancy maintenance and uterine myometrial smooth muscle were evaluated. There was no effect of space flight on fetal mass in rats examined at recovery on day 20 of gestation (G-20). Rats allowed to go to term delivered vaginally at days 22-23, but space flight significantly decreased pup mass at birth. Space flight did not alter myometrial smooth muscle volume at G-20 and postpartum when compared to flight delayed synchronous controls, but flight animals showed a 37% decrease in myometrial smooth muscle volume between G-20 and postpartum. In contrast, smooth muscle volume of the myometrium of controls, postpartum, was similar to G-20. We conclude that myometrial smooth muscle, which hypertrophies during space flight similar to controls, reacclimates acutely to earth's gravity between G-20 and parturition with a dramatic reduction in volume.

Animals↗
PubMed2001

Genetic changes induced in human cells in Space Shuttle experiment (STS-95).

BACKGROUND: Results of past space experiments suggest that the biological effect of space radiation could be enhanced under microgravity. To assess the radiation risk for humans during long-term spaceflight, it is very important to clarify whether human cells exhibit a synergistic effect of radiation and microgravity. HYPOTHESIS: If significant synergism occurs in human cells, genetic changes induced during spaceflight may be detected by using human tumor HCT-116 cells which are hypermutable due to a defect in the DNA mismatch repair system. METHODS: Cultured HCT-116 cells were loaded on the Space Shuttle Discovery (STS-95) and grown during the 9-d mission. After landing, many single-cell clones were isolated, microsatellite repetitive sequences in each clone were amplified by PCR, and mutations in the microsatellite loci were detected as changes in the length of PCR fragments. Mutation frequencies of ouabain-resistant phenotype were also analyzed. RESULTS: The frequencies of microsatellite mutations as well as ouabain-resistant mutations in the flight sample were similar to those of the ground control samples. Some cells were treated in space with bleomycin which mimics the action of radiation, but the frequencies of microsatellite mutations were not significantly different between the flight and the ground control samples. CONCLUSION: Under the present flight conditions, neither space radiation (about 20 mSv during this mission) nor microgravity caused excess mutations in human cells.

Bleomycin↗
PubMed2001

A topographic instructive signal guides the adjustment of the auditory space map in the optic tectum.

Maps of auditory space in the midbrain of the barn owl (Tyto alba) are calibrated by visual experience. When owls are raised wearing prismatic spectacles that displace the visual field in azimuth, the auditory receptive fields of neurons in the optic tectum shift to compensate for the optical displacement of the visual field. This shift results primarily from a shift in the tuning of tectal neurons for interaural time difference. The visually based instructive signal that guides this plasticity could be based on a topographic, point-by-point comparison between auditory and visual space maps or on a foveation-dependent visual assessment of the accuracy of auditory orienting responses. To distinguish between these two possibilities, we subjected owls to optical conditions that differed in the center of gaze and the visual periphery. A topographic signal would cause the portions of the space map representing the central and peripheral regions of visual space to adjust differently, according to the optical conditions that exist in each region. In contrast, a foveation-based signal would cause both portions of the map to adjust similarly, according to the optical conditions that exist at the center of gaze. In six of seven experiments, adaptive changes were as predicted by a topographic instructive signal. Although the results do not rule out the possible contribution of a foveation-based signal, they demonstrate that a topographic instructive signal is, indeed, involved in the calibration of the auditory space map in the barn owl optic tectum.

Adaptation, Physiological↗
PubMed2001

Space radiation research in the new millenium--from where we come and where we go.

Space radiation research had a significant impact in the past. The physical interaction of heavy charged particles with living matter and the development of models, including microdosimetry, were stimulated by problems encountered in space. New phenomena were discovered. Advanced dosimetric techniques had to be developed and computational methods to describe the radiation field in space. The understanding of the radiobiology of heavy ions, necessary for a well-founded risk assessment and prompted by space radiation research, constitutes also the basis for heavy ion radiotherapy. So far unknown areas like the interaction of microgravity and radiation were opened. The space station will give even more opportunities. For the first time it will be possible to investigate animals for a longer time under the influence of both microgravity and radiation. Living systems can be exposed under well defined conditions with parallel physical measurements. Solar particle events are still an unsolved problem. Significant improvement in their predictability and quantitative description can be expected. All this will not only give exciting opportunities for research but will also translate into immediate benefit for human beings. This paper will attempt to give an overview of the past achievements and glance into the future.

Animals↗
PubMed2001

Influence of the shielding on the space radiation biological effectiveness.

A research program in space radiobiology is described in this report. The program is focused on the effect of the shielding on the biological effects of heavy ions. Both experiments and models are included in the program. Experiments aim to determine genetic effects of heavy ions with or without shielding. Mathematical models, based on Monte Carlo codes, will be used to interpret the biological results. The final goal is to get a feasible model able to predict the radiation-induced biological damage in space, given the free-space radiation field and the space vessel shielding. The grant is supported by the Italian Space Agency (ASI), and involves Italian radiation biophysics groups (Universities of Milan and Naples, National Institute of Health in Rome), in collaboration with NASA (USA), NIRS (Japan), CERN (Switzerland), Brookhaven National Laboratories (USA), and TERA (Italy).

Chromosome Aberrations↗
PubMed2001

[Principle demonstration of nutrient delivery system in a space vegetable planting prototype facility].

Objective. To develop a nutrient delivery system for space vegetable planting prototype facility to be used in future space station, and to preliminarily testify its feasibility through ground-based demonstration experiments. Method. A nutrient delivery system in a space vegetable planting prototype facility was designed and fabricated, and ground based demonstration experiments of plant cultivation were conducted. Result. Nutrient could be steadily delivered to plant cultivation matrixes through capillary action, water content of planting matrixes could be controlled automatically and maintained constant, and the planted material lettuce showed basically normal morphology and color. Conclusion. The nutrient delivery system in a space vegetable planting prototype facility could basically meet the requirements for plant nutrient delivery under space microgravity environmental condition.

Capillary Action↗
PubMed2000

[Ultraviolet radiation and long term space flight].

With the prolongation of space flight, influences of various aerospace environmental factors on the astronauts become more and more severe, while ultraviolet radiation is lacking. Some studies indicated that low doses of ultraviolet rays are useful and essential for human body. In space flight, ultraviolet rays can improve the hygienic condition in the space cabin, enhance astronaut's working ability and resistance to unfavorable factors, prevent mineral metabolic disorders, cure purulent skin diseases and deallergize the allergens. So in long-term space flight, moderate amount of ultraviolet rays in the space cabin would be beneficial.

Aerospace Medicine↗
PubMed1973

Effects of space flight factors on the heredity of higher and lower plants.

The effects were studied of a long-term space exposure (72 days) aboard the Salyut orbital station on the following: dry seeds of Crepis capillaris (L.) Wallr. and Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh, haploid and diploid strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae mutant for adenine locus (ad) and strain LARG-I of Chlorella vulgaris Beijer. A modifying effect of space factors on radiobiological action of gamma-irradiation from 137Cs was determined with the higher plant seeds and Chlorella culture. For this, the material was partly irradiated prior to, and partly after the flight at doses of 3, 30 and 10 kr for C. capillaris, A. thaliana and Chl. vulgaris, respectively. It was shown that: (1) Space factors caused reduced survival of Arabidopsis seedlings and Chlorella and yeast cultures, reduced productivity of Chlorella cells, increased mutability of Chlorella and yeast cells and increased frequency of chromosome aberrations in cells of Crepis root meristem. There are, however, a few exceptions: cell germination of C. capillaris was enhanced while mutability of A. thaliana seeds declined. (2) Space factors increased the adverse effects of the pre-flight irradiation on all the parameters of the cultures tested. (3) Space factors had no genetic effect on the objects tested. They have, however, caused a stronger inhibition of seed germination and augmenting survival of A. thaliana seedlings and Chlorella cells.

Arabidopsis↗
PubMed1963

United States experience on the utilization of man's capabilities in a space environment.

This paper concerns the stresses on the flight crew in various phases of space flight missions and the ability of the crew to perform piloting-type tasks as well as other specific operations in the presence of these stresses. The mission phases include powered flight, free flight, space maneuvers, atmospheric entry, terminal phase, and surface operation. The stresses of the space environment are caused by forces and or motions or lack thereof, the space environment itself, the nature of the environment within the spacecraft, and the mental and physical demands on the flight crew. Among crew functions are control of the onboard systems, navigation and guidance of the spacecraft, maintenance and emergency operation, communications, and the conduct of scientific experiments. The paper draws on information obtained from the flight research to date as well as from ground tests and analyses. From the results one can conclude that man can very ably withstand the stresses of short duration missions into near space and has demonstrated ability to perform the type of tasks associated with flight crew operation. The chief unknown factors of future flight operations are the stresses produced by longer duration missions. Consideration of the problems involved leads to the conclusion that they are amenable to engineering solution at some expense to spacecraft weight and performance. It appears desirable therefore to utilize the flight crew to a high degree in future missions in the type of tasks where human judgment is needed or where significant simplification of on-board equipment may result.

Acceleration↗
PubMed2002

Toward a unified account of spacing effects in explicit cued-memory tasks.

Memory for repeated items improves when presentations are spaced during study. This effect is found in memory tasks using different types of material, paradigms, and participant populations. Although several explanations have been proposed, none explains the presence of spacing effects in cued-memory tasks for unfamiliar stimuli. Two experiments assessed the spacing effect on a yes-no recognition-memory task using nonwords and words as targets. The main results showed that changing the font between repeated occurrences of targets at study removed the spacing effect for nonwords only. A 3rd experiment using lexical decision showed that the font manipulation reduced repetition priming of nonwords when items were repeated at Lag 0. These results suggest that short-term perceptual priming supports spacing effects in cued-memory tasks for unfamiliar stimuli.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed2003

Space radiation health: a brief primer.

The goals of space radiation health research are to understand qualitatively and quantitatively the ionizing radiations present in the space environment, identify qualitatively and quantitatively the risks associated with these radiations, and discover countermeasures to mitigate these risks. The articles that follow address each of these three components of space radiation health research. This article introduces the basic science and definitions underlying radiation health research and protection. Space radiations consist of energetic protons from the sun, protons and electrons from the sun that are trapped in the Earth's magnetic field, and cosmic rays that include energetic nuclei of H, He, C, N, O and Fe atoms. The risks presented to space travelers by these radiations include cancer due to protons and cosmic-ray exposure, immune failure due to high-dose solar proton storms, and possible neurological effects caused by single tracks of cosmic-ray heavy nuclei. Potential countermeasures include shielding, medication consisting of radical scavengers, anti-oxidant consumption, cytokines, and cell transplants.

Cosmic Radiation↗
PubMed1992

Alteration in human mononuclear leucocytes following space flight.

Reduced in vitro mitogen-stimulated proliferative responses have routinely been observed from astronauts' mononuclear leucocytes following space flight. This study investigated the effect of space flight on subpopulations of peripheral blood mononuclear cells from 30 shuttle astronauts prior to launch, upon landing and 3 days after flight. The total number of peripheral blood leucocytes, granulocytes and monocytes were increased after space flight (5.7 +/- 0.2 versus 7.0 +/- 0.2; 3.1 +/- 0.1 versus 5.0 +/- 0.1; and 0.16 +/- 0.02 versus 0.25 +/- 0.28 x 10(3) cells/mm3, respectively) whereas lymphocytes were decreased (2.2 +/- 0.1 versus 1.7 +/- 0.1 x 10(3) cells/mm3). Flow cytometry analysis on Ficoll-Hypaque isolated mononuclear cells upon landing revealed significant decreases in T-inducer (CD4+, Leu-8+; 32 +/- 2 versus 23 +/- 2%) and T-cytotoxic lymphocytes (CD8+, CD11b-; 17 +/- 1 versus 12 +/- 1%), and increases in monocytes (CD14+; 13 +/- 1 versus 21 +/- 1%) compared to pre-flight and post-flight samples whereas B cells (CD19+), T-helper (CD4+, Leu-8-) and T-suppressor (CD8+, CD11b+) populations did not change. Additional phenotypic analysis of these mononuclear leucocytes from 10 crew members upon landing revealed a reduction in natural killer (NK) cells (CD16+ or CD56+; 9 +/- 1 versus 3 +/- 1%) and an increase in monocytes that were negative for insulin and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) receptor expression. Flow cytometric analysis indicated these hormone receptor negative monocytes were smaller and less granular than receptor positive monocytes. Therefore, a novel population of monocytes may be released into the peripheral blood during the stress of space flight or upon landing. These findings may explain some of the diverse in vitro immunological and endocrine changes observed in crew members following space flight.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Visiting the International Space Station--my mission diary.

Having been fortunate enough to be the first European Astronaut to visit and live aboard the International Space Station, I would like to share with you my personal diary of this very special trip. Space Shuttle 'Endeavour', with an international crew of seven, lifted off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on 19 April for an 11-day mission, which included the delivery of the European-developed 'Raffaello' logistics module to the Station and the attachment of the Station's new 17-metre Canadian Robotic Arm. We returned to Earth, with a landing at Edwards Air Force Base in California, on 1 May. Raffaello had been packed for its outward journey with 10 tons of new Station equipment, including six experiment racks and two storage racks for the US 'Destiny' module, as well as supplies for the astronauts and other equipment for future construction and maintenance work. One of my main tasks during the mission was to oversee the safe unloading of all of the experiments and equipment into the Space Station. I was relieved that the whole exercise went so smoothly and very proud to have been the first astronaut to represent Europe on the International Space Station.

Astronauts↗
PubMed1992

[The posterior intervertebral spaces of the craniovertebral joint].

Closing of the posterior intervertebral spaces of the craniovertebral joint is not performed by the classical posterior atlanto-occipital and atlantoaxial membranes. In the atlanto-occipital space, the connective laminae come from the occipital periosteum and from the anterior fascia of the rectus capitis posterior minor muscle, and pass round the anterior side of the posterior arch of the atlas to reach the spinal dura mater. In the atlantoaxial space, the anterior fasciae of the rectus capitis posterior major muscle and of the inferior oblique muscle, as well as the periosteum of the posterior arch of the atlas, extend to reach the spinal dura mater. Thus, the epidural space is sealed posteriorly by the connective laminae of the atlantoaxial space, and lets above a superior recessus containing the ganglia of the spinal nerves C1 and C2 and in which the vertebral artery transits.

Adult↗