Back Pain in Outer Space

Penchev, Radostin; Scheuring, Richard A.; Soto, Adam T.; Miletich, Derek M.; Kerstman, Eric; Cohen, Steven P.

doi:10.1097/aln.0000000000003812

Cited by 11 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 73 publications

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“…In addition, many astronauts suffer from space travel-sickness, the so-called space adaptation syndrome (SAS), associated with nausea and vomiting [ 5 ]. Other health problems are space flight-associated neuro-ocular syndrome (SANS) [ 6 ] and back pain [ 7 ]. Since the spine is stretched by µ g and becomes almost straight, the astronauts’ height increases by up to 7.5 cm on the International Space Station (ISS).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Current Knowledge about the Impact of Microgravity on Gene Regulation

Corydon

Schulz

Richter

et al. 2023

Cells

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Microgravity (µg) has a massive impact on the health of space explorers. Microgravity changes the proliferation, differentiation, and growth of cells. As crewed spaceflights into deep space are being planned along with the commercialization of space travelling, researchers have focused on gene regulation in cells and organisms exposed to real (r-) and simulated (s-) µg. In particular, cancer and metastasis research benefits from the findings obtained under µg conditions. Gene regulation is a key factor in a cell or an organism’s ability to sustain life and respond to environmental changes. It is a universal process to control the amount, location, and timing in which genes are expressed. In this review, we provide an overview of µg-induced changes in the numerous mechanisms involved in gene regulation, including regulatory proteins, microRNAs, and the chemical modification of DNA. In particular, we discuss the current knowledge about the impact of microgravity on gene regulation in different types of bacteria, protists, fungi, animals, humans, and cells with a focus on the brain, eye, endothelium, immune system, cartilage, muscle, bone, and various cancers as well as recent findings in plants. Importantly, the obtained data clearly imply that µg experiments can support translational medicine on Earth.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Since the spine is stretched by µ g and becomes almost straight, the astronauts’ height increases by up to 7.5 cm on the International Space Station (ISS). After the spaceflight, many astronauts continue to experience back pain and report problems with the intervertebral discs [ 7 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Current Knowledge about the Impact of Microgravity on Gene Regulation

Corydon

Schulz

Richter

et al. 2023

Cells

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“…Further study, including a larger cohort of human subjects, will be required to shed light on the underlining mechanisms. Indeed, the falls of Penk1 level could be also involved in the onset of chronic bone pain afflicting people exposed to skeletal unlading condition, such as astronauts and bedridden people [ 43 , 44 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pre-proenkephalin 1 is Downregulated Under Unloading and is Involved in Osteoblast Biology

Puri,

Dannenberg,

Ucci

et al. 2024

Calcif Tissue Int

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Pre-proenkephalin 1 (Penk1) is a pro-neuropeptide that belongs to the typical opioid peptide’s family, having analgesic properties. We previously found Penk1 to be the most downregulated gene in a whole gene profiling analysis performed in osteoblasts subjected to microgravity as a model of mechanical unloading. In this work, Penk1 downregulation was confirmed in the bones of two in vivo models of mechanical unloading: tail-suspended and botulinum toxin A (botox)-injected mice. Consistently, in the sera from healthy volunteers subjected to bed rest, we observed an inverse correlation between PENK1 and bed rest duration. These results prompted us to investigate a role for this factor in bone. Penk1 was highly expressed in mouse bone, but its global deletion failed to impact bone metabolism in vivo. Indeed, Penk1 knock out (Penk1−/−) mice did not show an overt bone phenotype compared to the WT littermates. Conversely, in vitro Penk1 gene expression progressively increased during osteoblast differentiation and its transient silencing in mature osteoblasts by siRNAs upregulated the transcription of the Sost1 gene encoding sclerostin, and decreased Wnt3a and Col1a1 mRNAs, suggesting an altered osteoblast activity due to an impairment of the Wnt pathway. In line with this, osteoblasts treated with the Penk1 encoded peptide, Met-enkephalin, showed an increase of Osx and Col1a1 mRNAs and enhanced nodule mineralization. Interestingly, primary osteoblasts isolated from Penk1−/− mice showed lower metabolic activity, ALP activity, and nodule mineralization, as well as a lower number of CFU-F compared to osteoblasts isolated from WT mice, suggesting that, unlike the transient inhibition, the chronic Penk1 deletion affects both osteoblast differentiation and activity. Taken together, these results highlight a role for Penk1 in the regulation of the response of the bone to mechanical unloading, potentially acting on osteoblast differentiation and activity in a cell-autonomous manner.

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“…More importantly, without exercise, the BMD loss is ten times higher than on Earth ( Rambaut et al, 1975 ; LeBlanc et al, 2000 ; Berger et al, 2008 ), and the recovery rate is 5–6 times lower than the loss rate, particularly for extended missions ( Stupakov et al, 1984 ; LeBlanc et al, 2007 ; Narici and de Boer, 2011 ; Hargens and Vico, 2016 ). Muscle loss causing loss of strength is associated with difficulties accomplishing mission tasks ( Carmeliet et al, 2001 ; Scheuring et al, 2009 ; Kerstman et al, 2012 ; Grimm et al, 2016 ; Penchev et al, 2021 ). The loss of strength is larger than the LBM loss, and involves neurological and structural alterations in the muscles ( Zange et al, 1997 ; Koryak, 2001 ; Narici and de Boer, 2011 ).…”

Section: Musculoskeletal Systemmentioning

confidence: 99%

Long-term space missions’ effects on the human organism: what we do know and what requires further research

Tomsia,

Cieśla,

Śmieszek

et al. 2024

Front. Physiol.

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Space has always fascinated people. Many years have passed since the first spaceflight, and in addition to the enormous technological progress, the level of understanding of human physiology in space is also increasing. The presented paper aims to summarize the recent research findings on the influence of the space environment (microgravity, pressure differences, cosmic radiation, etc.) on the human body systems during short-term and long-term space missions. The review also presents the biggest challenges and problems that must be solved in order to extend safely the time of human stay in space. In the era of increasing engineering capabilities, plans to colonize other planets, and the growing interest in commercial space flights, the most topical issues of modern medicine seems to be understanding the effects of long-term stay in space, and finding solutions to minimize the harmful effects of the space environment on the human body.

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Back Pain in Outer Space

Cited by 11 publications

References 73 publications

Current Knowledge about the Impact of Microgravity on Gene Regulation

Current Knowledge about the Impact of Microgravity on Gene Regulation

Pre-proenkephalin 1 is Downregulated Under Unloading and is Involved in Osteoblast Biology

Long-term space missions’ effects on the human organism: what we do know and what requires further research

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