Paving the way to better understand the effects of prolonged spaceflight on operational performance and its neural bases

Alex Stahn; D Bucher; P zu Eulenburg; P Denise; Nathan Smith; F Pagnini; O White

doi:10.1038/s41526-023-00295-y

Paving the way to better understand the effects of prolonged spaceflight on operational performance and its neural bases

Alex Stahn
, D Bucher
, P zu Eulenburg
, P Denise
, Nathan Smith
, F Pagnini
, O White

Charite University hospital
University of Pennsylvania
University of Heidelberg
Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich
Université de Caen Normandie
Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore
Université de Bourgogne

Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article › peer-review

20 Citations (Scopus)

2 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

Space exploration objectives will soon move from low Earth orbit to distant destinations like Moon and Mars. The present work provides an up-to-date roadmap that identifies critical research gaps related to human behavior and performance in altered gravity and space. The roadmap summarizes (1) key neurobehavioral challenges associated with spaceflight, (2) the need to consider sex as a biological variable, (3) the use of integrative omics technologies to elucidate mechanisms underlying changes in the brain and behavior, and (4) the importance of understanding the neural representation of gravity throughout the brain and its multisensory processing. We then highlight the need for a variety of target-specific countermeasures, and a personalized administration schedule as two critical strategies for mitigating potentially adverse effects of spaceflight on the central nervous system and performance. We conclude with a summary of key priorities for the roadmaps of current and future space programs and stress the importance of new collaborative strategies across agencies and researchers for fostering an integrative cross- and transdisciplinary approach from cells, molecules to neural circuits and cognitive performance. Finally, we highlight that space research in neurocognitive science goes beyond monitoring and mitigating risks in astronauts but could also have significant benefits for the population on Earth.

Original language	English
Article number	59
Number of pages	10
Journal	npj Microgravity
Volume	9
Issue number	1
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/s41526-023-00295-y
Publication status	Published - 31 Jul 2023

Bibliographical note

Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons license and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2023, The Author(s).

Funding

This research was supported by the European Space Agency (ESA).

Funders
European Space Agency

Access to Document

10.1038/s41526-023-00295-yLicence: CC BY

Smith2023VoRFinal published version, 942 KBLicence: CC BY

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41526-023-00295-y

Cite this

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abstract = "Space exploration objectives will soon move from low Earth orbit to distant destinations like Moon and Mars. The present work provides an up-to-date roadmap that identifies critical research gaps related to human behavior and performance in altered gravity and space. The roadmap summarizes (1) key neurobehavioral challenges associated with spaceflight, (2) the need to consider sex as a biological variable, (3) the use of integrative omics technologies to elucidate mechanisms underlying changes in the brain and behavior, and (4) the importance of understanding the neural representation of gravity throughout the brain and its multisensory processing. We then highlight the need for a variety of target-specific countermeasures, and a personalized administration schedule as two critical strategies for mitigating potentially adverse effects of spaceflight on the central nervous system and performance. We conclude with a summary of key priorities for the roadmaps of current and future space programs and stress the importance of new collaborative strategies across agencies and researchers for fostering an integrative cross- and transdisciplinary approach from cells, molecules to neural circuits and cognitive performance. Finally, we highlight that space research in neurocognitive science goes beyond monitoring and mitigating risks in astronauts but could also have significant benefits for the population on Earth.",

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Paving the way to better understand the effects of prolonged spaceflight on operational performance and its neural bases

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Funding

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