Space : the great laboratory for the health on the Earth

Pesquet/SIPA

Published the 16.10.2017 at 08: 00

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The international space station is an incredible playground for scientists. At each mission, the astronauts sent to 400 km above the Earth, participate in medical studies which are aimed at improving their health but also that of the common mortal.

A large number of experiments which have been fuelled Thomas Pesquet, an astronaut the French party 6 months in orbit. Back on the Ground since last June, the ex-airline pilot has presented a few to the Academy of Sciences on Tuesday, October 10.

Look ancient

His blood vessels and his heart have, in particular, been the subject of careful research. Because in space these bodies are the victims of accelerated aging. A phenomenon in large part to microgravity and the decreased physical activity.

Professor Pierre Boutouyrie, pharmacologist and cardiologist at the Georges Pompidou european Hospital, not have been able to disclose the personal data of an astronaut. In contrast, he describes the first results obtained in the study of bed rest bed rest which simulates the effect of microgravity. Between January and April, 10 volunteers have agreed to stay lying down. Ten other participants will take their place this fall.

“In the space of two months, we are seeing an aging of the arteries, which is of the order of 10 to 15 years, which is highly significant, summarized by the researcher. There is also a change of the structure of arteries with an increase in the diameter of the carotid artery and a decrease in the diameter of the arteries of the legs which is much more important than what we had anticipated “.

After having been bed-ridden for 2 months, these volunteers follow a rehabilitation program. Different countermeasures are tested. The results, still unknown, may guide doctors to new treatments of cardiovascular diseases.

Bone loss is irreversible ?

The arterial system is not the only one to hobnob in space. The bones of the astronauts are also affected by weightlessness. In the course of their mission, the interior of their bones is deteriorating. A mechanism similar to the osteoporosis that is of interest to Laurence Vico, director of research at Inserm and works on the weaknesses to the bone.

The astronauts left in space in the pass several times in its scanner high resolution, to evaluate their bone loss. “And we have had some surprises. We observed that bone non-carriers, such as the wrist, with no evidence of loss immediately after the flight begins to deteriorate 3 months after the return to Earth “, explained the researcher to Pourquoidocteur. The phenomenon worried her a lot, to the point that she wondered if it was reversible.

This bone loss could be explained by the fact that, in space, the stem cells in the bone marrow become more fat cells that in cells that build the bone. A lot of these stem cells should be sent into space during the flight Space X to understand the underlying mechanism.