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posted by martyb on Saturday March 16 2019, @05:03PM   Printer-friendly
from the get-shot-in-the-arm-before-getting-shot-into-space dept.

https://phys.org/news/2019-03-dormant-viruses-spaceflight.amp

Herpes viruses reactivate in more than half of crew aboard Space Shuttle and International Space Station missions, according to NASA research published in Frontiers in Microbiology. While only a small proportion develop symptoms, virus reactivation rates increase with spaceflight duration and could present a significant health risk on missions to Mars and beyond.

[...] "NASA astronauts endure weeks or even months exposed to microgravity and cosmic radiation—not to mention the extreme G forces of take-off and re-entry," says senior author Dr. Satish K. Mehta of KBR Wyle at the Johnson Space Center. "This physical challenge is compounded by more familiar stressors like social separation, confinement and an altered sleep-wake cycle."

[...] "During spaceflight there is a rise in secretion of stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline, which are known to suppress the immune system. In keeping with this, we find that astronaut's immune cells—particularly those that normally suppress and eliminate viruses—become less effective during spaceflight and sometimes for up to 60 days after."


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  • (Score: 4, Interesting) by RS3 on Saturday March 16 2019, @10:15PM

    by RS3 (6367) on Saturday March 16 2019, @10:15PM (#815591)

    You make good points. My mom had done bio research in the 1950s and 1960s. Some of her chief scientists and co-workers have won Nobel prizes; I'm just saying she did some significant work, and with people who did major stuff. Anyway, she hypothesized that many conditions, syndromes, diseases, etc., are at least partly caused by viruses. We know that many viruses are the trigger for autoimmune diseases. (Ugh- our body attacking itself.)

    I like to hope that humanity will work toward a cure or at least some way to fight viruses. You might know how much was learned about humans, cells, DNA, RNA, viruses, cancer, immune system, on and on- all due to HIV research. So part of me says yes, do all you can to avoid viruses, but the sad fact is: the more widespread and problematic the viruses become, the more time / effort / priority / money society will push into research.

    Which brings me to another thought I had in response to the article: if viruses thrive in space, maybe that's where we need to do more research?

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