How space missions affect the human brain

Summary

Research indicates that long-duration space missions result in alterations to the brain's white matter structure in astronauts.

Abstract

A recent study has discovered that prolonged space travel induces significant changes in the white matter tracts of astronauts' brains. The study, which involved analyzing diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) data from 12 astronauts before and after spending approximately six months on the International Space Station, utilized fiber tractography to identify these changes. The alterations were observed in the neural connections between motor areas, suggesting an adaptation to the weightless environment of space. These changes were still evident seven months post-flight. The findings, published in the Frontiers in Neural Circuits Journal, underscore the importance of understanding the impact of spaceflight on the human body, especially with the prospect of future missions to Mars, which could last up to nine months or longer. The research suggests that while there are existing countermeasures for muscle and bone loss, similar measures for the brain might be necessary, posing a new challenge for space medicine.

Opinions

Andrej Doroshin from Drexel University, the lead author, notes that the observed changes in the brain's motor areas reflect a drastic adjustment in movement strategies in space compared to Earth.
Dr. Floris Wuyts from the University of Antwerp, who led the study, confirms that the changes in motor areas are indicative of adaptation following spaceflight and are now shown to affect the connections between these regions.
The researchers emphasize the necessity of further long-term studies on the human brain to prepare for Mars missions, which will be significantly longer than current space flights.
The study highlights that if future research confirms the need for brain-specific countermeasures, it will be crucial to address this in space exploration medicine.

How space missions affect the human brain

A new study conducted by an international team of researchers revealed that long-term space flights lead to changes in the structure of the astronaut’s brain.

During the research, the team examined diffusion magnetic resonance (dMRI) data collected from 12 astronauts who spent an average of six months on the International Space Station, with scans performed before and after the flight. Using a brain imaging technique known as fiber tractography, the team “found significant microstructural changes in several large tracts of white matter,” according to a study published in the Frontiers in Neural Circuits Journal. As Neuroscience News explains, white matter “refers to the parts of the brain responsible for communication between gray matter and the body and between different regions of gray matter”, with gray matter essentially controlling information processing and white matter being the channel for brain communication.

“We found changes in neural connections between several motor areas of the brain,” said Andrej Doroshin of Drekel University, lead author of the study. “Motor areas are the brain centers where movement commands are initiated. In the weightless state, the astronaut needs to drastically adjust his movement strategies, compared to the Earth. Our study shows that their brains, so to speak, have been altered. “

The team also confirmed that these changes were visible in a scan taken seven months after the space flight.

“We know from previous studies that these motor areas show signs of adaptation after space flights. “Now we have the first indications that this is reflected in the level of connections between those regions,” said Dr. Floris Woods from the University of Antwerp, who led the study.

The researchers further argue that their analysis highlights the need to understand how spaceflight affects human bodies, “in order to explore extremes.”

“Since the missions to Mars last at least nine months, more long-term studies on the human brain will be needed,” they wrote.

Scientists have noted that although there are countermeasures to “muscle and bone loss,” “if future research provides evidence that countermeasures are necessary for the brain, then we must begin to answer this challenging question.”