Does staying in space for long periods of time have negative effects? That’s how it is. It puts pressure on our bodies . In essence, experiencing microgravity leads to changes in our anatomy, as it has never had to adapt to deal with weightlessness, at least not for a long time . The consequences for the body are that the bones lose calcium, the size and shape of the heart change, the eyes become deformed and it could also lead to permanent neurodegeneration.
Now, an international team of researchers has published their findings in the journal Science Advances after studying the brains of 11 cosmonauts from the Russian Space Agency Roscosmos who spent an average of six months on the International Space Station.
The result? They found no evidence to suggest that spending several months in microgravity led to permanent nervous system damage.
The scientists used a type of MRI to produce 3D images of the cosmonauts ‘brains, uncovering minor changes in the cosmonauts’ brains that suggested they were more dexterous but had slightly weaker vision ; some even acquired some kind of new motor skill, such as riding a bike.
The scans also determined the presence of a greater amount of gray matter in the cerebellum (the part of the brain responsible for balance, coordination and posture). However, these changes were due to the displacement of cerebrospinal fluid (without gravity, body fluids tend to accumulate in the head), not to changes in the net amount of gray matter. Which suggests that the cerebellum also moves upward under microgravity conditions.
Changes are not permanent
Previous studies have exposed the long-term damaging effects of space travel on the body, but this new research suggests it is temporary. Any changes observed shortly after the cosmonauts returned to Earth were reversed when their brains were reexamined within the next seven months. Recovery in the upper brain was more pronounced than in the lower brain.
In the same way, regarding the changes in the vision of the astronauts, in the first exam they showed a decrease in visual acuity after being in space, a symptom caused by a condition called neuroocular syndrome associated with space flight; something perhaps related to a greater expansion in the ventricles of the brain, although more observations are needed to understand what exactly is happening in our thinking organ.
“Spaceflight does not leave the human body intact,” says Steven Jillings of the University of Antwerp in Belgium and leader of the work. But in light of the fact that the results were not permanent, this is excellent news for astronauts facing increasingly long periods in space in preparation for missions to Mars in the 2030s, as it will take up to minus nine months to get there.
Referencia: Macro- and microstructural changes in cosmonauts’ brains after long-duration spaceflight. Steven Jillings, Angelique Van Ombergen… Science Advances 04 Sep 2020:
Vol. 6, no. 36, eaaz9488 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aaz9488
