Researchers
at Northumbria University are asking people to spend two months in bed to identify
how astronauts’ bodies decondition while they’re exploring outer space.
Astronauts
spending time in space experience significant deconditioning of their bodies
due to the reduced gravity environment. Their muscles become smaller and
weaker, and their bones lose density.
The
‘bedrest study’ is supported by the European Space Agency (ESA), NASA and
German Aerospace Centre (DLR). It will take place until December 2019 at the German Aerospace Centre’s
‘envihab’ facility in Cologne.
In
total, 24 participants will spend 60 days in bed, where they will continuously
lie in a head down tilt position. Their bodies will decondition during this
time. During the bedrest period, participants will be exposed to
artificial gravity for 30 minutes each day using the ‘short arm centrifuge’ at
the bedrest facility. This piece of equipment spins the participants so
that they are pulled down onto their feet, thus simulating the gravitational
loading normally experienced when standing up against Earth’s gravity.
A
team from Northumbria University’s Aerospace Medicine and Rehabilitation
Laboratory, led by Professor Nick Caplan, was selected as one of six European
Space Agency (ESA) and three NASA projects to take part in the bedrest
campaign. Their study is funded by the UK Space Agency. Professor Caplan
and his team are interested in spinal postural deconditioning, an issue
relevant not just to astronauts, but also to people on Earth with low back pain
and age-related problems with balance.
The
study will use the human centrifuge to explore the effectiveness of daily
exposure to artificial gravity in preventing spinal problems from developing.
It will also test the effectiveness of a rehabilitation device – which
resembles a customised gym cross trainer and is known as the Functional
Re-adaptive Exercise Device (FRED) – in the early weeks following the 60 day
bed rest period.
The
FRED has been investigated for a number of years by the Northumbria team, in
collaboration with the ESA Space Medicine Team, as a potential rehabilitation
tool for astronauts after they return to Earth.
Professor
Caplan said: “The bedrest study is providing an ideal platform for us to
determine how suitable our device is for use in the rehabilitation of
astronauts when they have spent time aboard the International Space Station in
microgravity.
“We
will be using advanced neurophysiological and medical imaging techniques to
understand how the spinal postural muscles adapt to simulated microgravity and
determine the effectiveness of a rehabilitation programme designed for use not
just in astronauts, but also in populations on Earth, such as people with low
back pain or those with postural instability.”
Science Minister Chris Skidmore said: “By learning
about how to tackle muscle wasting in astronauts who experience zero gravity in
space, this pioneering research hopes to lessen the impact on future
spaceflights, something which will be particularly important if we ever send
humans on the long journey to Mars. It has benefits on Earth too, helping the
thousands of patients who develop muscle weakness from lengthy stays in a
hospital bed.
“We will need to embrace new technology like this
to meet the needs of our ageing society, which is why through our modern
Industrial Strategy, this Government is giving the biggest boost to R&D
funding in UK history.”
