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Spending long periods in space not only leads to muscle atrophy and reduced bone density, but also has lasting effects on the brain, suggests a study.
The study, led by a team of neuroscientists from the University of Antwerp in Belgium and the Ludwig-Maximilians University (LMU) of Munich, showed that differential changes in the three Major volumes of brain tissue remain detectable for at least six months at the end of their last mission.
"Our findings indicate prolonged changes in the cerebrospinal fluid circulation pattern over a period of at least seven months after returning to Earth," said Professor Peter zu Eulenburg of the LMU.
"However, the fact that significant changes to the gray matter and white matter are leading to changes in cognition remains to be determined at this time," he added.
The study, reported in the New England Journal of Medicine, was conducted on ten cosmonauts, who had each spent an average of 189 days aboard the International Space Station (ISS).
Magnetic resonance tomography (MRT) examinations performed in the days following return to Earth revealed that gray matter volume was reduced compared to pre-launch.
Seven months later, this effect was partly reversed, but still detectable.
In contrast, the volume of cerebrospinal fluid, which fills the internal and external cavities of the brain, increased in the cortex during prolonged exposure to microgravity.
In addition, the volume of the white matter tissues (the parts of the brain composed mainly of nerve fibers) seemed to have remained unchanged during the investigation immediately after landing.
However, the subsequent review six months later showed a generalized reduction in volume compared with the previous two measurements.
In this case, the team postulated that during a long passage through space, the volume of the white matter could be slowly replaced by an influx of cerebrospinal fluid.
On return to Earth, this process is then gradually reversed, resulting in a relative reduction in the volume of white matter.
According to the researchers, it is essential to continue studies using a broader range of diagnostic methods, to minimize the risks associated with long-term missions and to characterize any clinical significance of the findings.
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