Scientists from the University of Antwerp and the University of Liège found out how the human brain changes and adapts to weightlessness after 6 months in space.
It turned out that some of the changes were permanent – even after 8 months back on Earth. Raphael Liegeois, who will soon become the third Belgian in space, recognizes the importance of research “to prepare the next generation of astronauts for longer missions”.
A child learning not to drop a glass on the floor or a tennis player predicting the trajectory of an incoming ball in order to hit it accurately are examples of how the brain incorporates the physical laws of gravity to function optimally on Earth. Astronauts who go into space live in a weightless environment where the brain’s rules of gravity no longer apply.
A new study of brain function in astronauts has revealed how the brain’s organization changed after a six-month mission on the International Space Station (ISS), demonstrating the adaptation required to live in weightlessness.
The University of Antwerp leads this BRAIN-DTI scientific project through the European Space Agency. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data was taken from 14 astronauts’ brains before and several times after their space mission.
Using a special MRI technique, scientists collected data on the brains of astronauts in a resting state without having to engage them in a specific task. This resting-state functional MRI technique allowed researchers to examine the baseline state of the brain and see whether or not this changes after a long space flight.
Learning effect
Recent analyzes of resting brain activity in collaboration with the University of Liège have revealed how functional connectivity, an indicator of how activity in some areas of the brain correlates with activity in others, varies in specific areas.
“We found that connectivity changed after spaceflight in regions that support the integration of different types of information, instead of dealing with only one type at a time, such as visual, auditory or motion information,” say Steven Jillings and Floris Wuyts (University of Antwerp ). “Furthermore, we found that some of these altered communication patterns were maintained throughout the 8-month stay on Earth.” At the same time, some brain changes returned to the level of how the areas functioned before the space mission.”
Both scenarios of change are plausible: sustained changes in brain communication may indicate a learning effect, while transient changes may indicate a more acute adaptation to altered levels of gravity.
“This data set is as special as its participants themselves. In 2016, we were the first in history to show how spaceflight can affect the brain functions of an astronaut. Years later, we are now in a unique position to examine the brains of multiple astronauts multiple times. Therefore, we decipher the potential of the human brain with even greater confidence,” says Dr. Athena Demertzi (GIGA Institute, University of Liege), co-supervisor of this work.
A new generation of astronauts
“Understanding the physiological and behavioral changes induced by weightlessness is key to planning human space exploration. Therefore, mapping changes in brain function using neuroimaging techniques, as done in this work, is an important step to prepare the next generation of astronauts for longer missions,” comments Raphael Liegeois, PhD in Engineering (ULiege) with a PhD in Neuroscience. , a future ESA astronaut.
Scientists are excited by the results, although they know it’s just the first step in understanding the changes in brain communication after space travel. For example, we still need to explore the exact behavioral consequence of these changes in brain communication, understand whether extended time in space may influence these observations, and whether brain properties may be useful in selecting future astronauts or monitoring them during and after space travel.
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