An international collaboration studying the physiological and anatomical cerebral effects of carbon dioxide during head-down tilt bed rest: the SPACECOT study

Exposure to the microgravity environment results in various adaptive and maladaptive physiological changes in the human body, with notable ophthalmic abnormalities developing during 6-mo missions on the International Space Station (ISS). These findings have led to the hypothesis that the loss of gra...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of applied physiology (1985) Vol. 122; no. 6; pp. 1398 - 1405
Main Authors: Marshall-Goebel, Karina, Mulder, Edwin, Donoviel, Dorit, Strangman, Gary, Suarez, Jose I, Venkatasubba Rao, Chethan, Frings-Meuthen, Petra, Limper, Ulrich, Rittweger, Jörn, Bershad, Eric M
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: United States 01.06.2017
Subjects:
Adult
Bed Rest - methods
Brain - blood supply
Brain - physiology
Carbon Dioxide - metabolism
Cerebral Veins - metabolism
Cerebral Veins - physiology
Cross-Over Studies
Double-Blind Method
Head-Down Tilt - physiology
Humans
Intracranial Pressure - physiology
Male
Middle Aged
Rest - physiology
Space Flight - methods
Weightlessness
Weightlessness Simulation - methods
visual impairment
analog
microgravity
spaceflight
intracranial pressure
ISSN:1522-1601
Online Access:Get more information
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Summary:Exposure to the microgravity environment results in various adaptive and maladaptive physiological changes in the human body, with notable ophthalmic abnormalities developing during 6-mo missions on the International Space Station (ISS). These findings have led to the hypothesis that the loss of gravity induces a cephalad fluid shift, decreased cerebral venous outflow, and increased intracranial pressure, which may be further exacerbated by increased ambient carbon dioxide (CO ) levels on the ISS. Here we describe the SPACECOT study (studying the physiological and anatomical cerebral effects of CO during head-down tilt), a randomized, double-blind crossover design study with two conditions: 29 h of 12° head-down tilt (HDT) with ambient air and 29 h of 12° HDT with 0.5% CO The internationally collaborative SPACECOT study utilized an innovative approach to study the effects of headward fluid shifting induced by 12° HDT and increased ambient CO as well as their interaction with a focus on cerebral and ocular anatomy and physiology. Here we provide an in-depth overview of this new approach including the subjects, study design, and implementation, as well as the standardization plan for nutritional intake, environmental parameters, and bed rest procedures. A new approach for investigating the combined effects of cephalad fluid shifting and increased ambient carbon dioxide (CO ) is presented. This may be useful for studying the neuroophthalmic and cerebral effects of spaceflight where cephalad fluid shifts occur in an elevated CO environment.
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ISSN:1522-1601
DOI:10.1152/japplphysiol.00885.2016