ALBERT

Description: Exposure to space flight causes adaptations in multiple physiological systems including changes in sensorimotor, cardiovascular, and neuromuscular systems. These changes may affect a crewmember s ability to perform critical mission tasks immediately after landing on a planetary surface. The overall goal of this project is to determine the effects of space flight on functional tests that are representative of high priority exploration mission tasks and to identify the key underlying physiological factors that contribute to decrements in performance. To achieve this goal we developed an interdisciplinary testing protocol (Functional Task Test, FTT) that evaluates both astronaut functional performance and related physiological changes. Functional tests include ladder climbing, hatch opening, jump down, manual manipulation of objects and tool use, seat egress and obstacle avoidance, recovery from a fall and object translation tasks. Physiological measures include assessments of postural and gait control, dynamic visual acuity, fine motor control, plasma volume, orthostatic intolerance, upper- and lower-body muscle strength, power, endurance, control, and neuromuscular drive. Crewmembers perform this integrated test protocol before and after short (Shuttle) and long-duration (ISS) space flight. Data are collected on two sessions before flight, on landing day (Shuttle only) and 1, 6 and 30 days after landing. Preliminary results from both Shuttle and ISS crewmembers indicate decrement in performance of the functional tasks after both short and long-duration space flight. On-going data collection continues to improve the statistical power required to map changes in functional task performance to alterations in physiological systems. The information obtained from this study will be used to design and implement countermeasures that specifically target the physiological systems most responsible for the altered functional performance associated with space flight.

Description: The goal of the Functional Task Test study is to determine the effects of space flight on functional tests that are representative of high priority exploration mission tasks and to identify the key underlying physiological factors that contribute to decrements in performance. Ultimately this information will be used to assess performance risks and inform the design of countermeasures for exploration class missions. We are currently conducting studies on both ISS crewmembers and on subjects experiencing 70 days of 6 degrees head-down bed-rest as an analog for space flight. Bed-rest provides the opportunity for us to investigate the role of prolonged axial body unloading in isolation from the other physiological effects produced by exposure to the microgravity environment of space flight. This allows us to parse out the contribution of the body unloading component on functional performance. In this on-going study both ISS crewmembers and bed-rest subjects were tested using an interdisciplinary protocol that evaluated functional performance and related physiological changes before and after 6 months in space and 70 days of 6 head-down bed-rest, respectively. Functional tests included ladder climbing, hatch opening, jump down, manual manipulation of objects and tool use, seat egress and obstacle avoidance, recovery from a fall, and object translation tasks. Crewmembers were tested three times before flight, and on 1, 6 and 30 days after landing. Bed-rest subjects were tested three times before bed-rest and immediately after getting up from bed-rest as well as 1, 6 and 12 days after reambulation. A comparison of bed-rest and space flight data showed a significant concordance in performance changes across all functional tests. Tasks requiring a greater demand for dynamic control of postural equilibrium (i.e. fall recovery, seat egress/obstacle avoidance during walking, object translation, jump down) showed the greatest decrement in performance. Functional tests with reduced requirements for postural stability (i.e. hatch opening, ladder climb, manual manipulation of objects and tool use) showed little reduction in performance. Bed-rest results indicate that body support unloading experienced during space flight plays a central role in postflight alteration of functional task performance. These data point to the importance of providing axial body loading as a central component of an inflight training system that will integrate cardiovascular, resistance and sensorimotor adaptability training modalities into a single interdisciplinary countermeasure system.

Description: The concentrations of the hydrogen radicals OH and HO2 in the middle and upper troposphere were measured simultaneously with those of NO, O3, CO, H2O, CH4, non-methane hydrocarbons, and with the ultraviolet and visible radiation field. The data allow a direct examination of the processes that produce O3 in this region of the atmosphere. Comparison of the measured concentrations of OH and HO2 with calculations based on their production from water vapor, ozone, and methane demonstrate that these sources are insufficient to explain the observed radical concentrations in the upper troposphere. The photolysis of carbonyl and peroxide compounds transported to this region from the lower troposphere may provide the source of HO, required to sustain the measured abundances of these radical species. The mechanism by which NO affects the production Of O3 is also illustrated by the measurements. In the upper tropospheric air masses sampled, the production rate for ozone (determined from the measured concentrations of HO2 and NO) is calculated to be about I part per billion by volume each day. This production rate is faster than previously thought and implies that anthropogenic activities that add NO to the upper troposphere, such as biomass burning and aviation, will lead to production of more 03 than expected.

Description: We analyze the structure of magnetospheric transients observed at the dusk-side low-latitude magnetopause with the Interball Tail Probe. Ion and magnetic field measurements are used to investigate one particular transient in more detail. This transient has distinct non-symmetric structure with the plasma characteristics and the flow properties of the leading part of the transient being quite different from those in the trailing part of the transient. The region separating these two parts corresponds to the change of the sign in the B(n) component. These observations support an earlier conclusion that some plasma irregularities within the Low Latitude Boundary Layer (LLBL), formed as a result of sporadic reconnection, disconnect from the magnetopause, propagate and dissipate in the magnetosphere, and form what we call Disconnected Magnetosheath Transfer Events (DMTEs).

Description: Recovery from enhanced chlorine conditions in the lower stratospheric polar regions of both hemispheres is investigated using data from the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS). Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) measurements of ClO within the polar vortices are used to infer ClO(sub x) (ClO + 2Cl202) abundances that are then correlated with simultaneous Cryogenic Limb Array Etalon Spectrometer (CLAES) measurements of ClON02 and Halogen Occultation Experiment (HALOE) measurements of HCl obtained starting within 5 days of the end of the MLS and CLAES high-latitude observing periods in each hemisphere. Time series of vortex-averaged mixing ratios are calculated on two potential temperature surfaces (585 K and 465 K) in the lower stratosphere for approximately month-long intervals during late winter: August 17 - September 17, 1992, in the southern hemisphere and February 12 - March 16, 1993, in the northern hemisphere. The observed mixing ratios are adjusted for the effects of vertical transport using diabatic vertical velocities estimated from CLAES tracer data. In the northern hemisphere, the decrease in ClO, is balanced on both surfaces by an increase in ClON02- In the southern hemisphere, continuing polar stratospheric cloud activity prevents ClO from undergoing sustained decline until about September 3. In contrast to the northern hemisphere, there is no significant chemical change in vortex-averaged ClON02 at 465 K, and there is an apparent decrease in ClON02 at 585 K, even after the enhanced ClO abundances have started to recede. Results from the SLIMCAT chemical transport model initialized with UARS data and run with OH + ClO yields HCl + 02 as an 8% channel suggest that the primary recovery product in the south during this time period is not ClON02, but HCl. HALOE HCl mixing ratios are extrapolated back to the time of the MLS and CLAES data. At 585 K, the chlorine budget can be made to balance by extrapolating HCl back to a value of 0.6 parts per billion by volume (ppbv) at the beginning of the study period; at 465 K, the contribution from extrapolated HCl is not sufficient to offset the loss in ClOx, and there is a slight imbalance between the decrease in reactive chlorine and the change in chlorine reservoirs. The difficulty in closing the chlorine budget in the southern hemisphere may arise from complications caused by ongoing activation, incomplete photochemical assumptions, and/or inadequate data quality.

Description: Pre- and post-flight dynamometry is performed on International Space Station crewmembers to characterize microgravity-induced strength changes. Strength is not assessed in flight due to hardware limitations and there is poor understanding of the time course of in-flight changes. PURPOSE: To assess the reliability of a prototype dynamometer, the X1 Exoskeleton (EXO) and its agreement with a Biodex System 4 (BIO). METHODS: Eight subjects (4 M/4 F) completed 2 counterbalanced testing sessions of knee extension/flexion (KE/KF), 1 with BIO and 1 with EXO, with repeated measures within each session in normal gravity. Test-retest reliability (test 1 and 2) and device agreement (BIO vs. EXO) were evaluated. Later, to assess device agreement for ankle plantarflexion (PF), 10 subjects (4 M/6 F) completed 3 test conditions (BIO, EXO, and BIOEXO); BIOEXO was a hybrid condition comprised of the Biodex dynamometer motor and the X1 footplate and ankle frame. Ankle comparisons were: BIO vs. BIOEXO (footplate differences), BIOEXO vs. EXO (motor differences), and BIO vs. EXO (all differences). Reliability for KE/KF was determined by intraclass correlation (ICC). Device agreement was assessed with: 1) repeated measures ANOVA, 2) a measure of concordance (rho), and 3) average difference. RESULTS: ICCs for KE/KF were 0.99 for BIO and 0.96 to 0.99 for EXO. Agreement was high for KE (concordance: 0.86 to 0.95; average differences: -7 to +9 Nm) and low to moderate for KF (concordance: 0.64 to 0.78; average differences: -4 to -29 Nm, P〈0.05). BIO vs. BIOEXO PF concordance ranged from 0.89 to 0.92 and mean differences ranged from -9 to +3 Nm (BIO 〈 BIOEXO). BIOEXO vs. EXO PF concordance ranged from 0.73 to 0.80 while mean differences were -18 to -36 Nm (BIOEXO 〈 EXO, P〈0.05). PF concordance for BIO vs. EXO was slightly lower (0.61 to 0.84) and mean differences were greater (-27 to -33 Nm; BIO 〈 EXO, P〈0.05). CONCLUSION: BIO and EXO were similarly reliable for KE and KF. KE measures produced high agreement between devices; KF did not. For ankle PF, torque differences due to the two footplates were small. However, the X1 motor reports greater torques than the Biodex motor during PF. This first prototype provides proof of concept for a reliable, robotic-based exoskeleton to perform portable dynamometry for large muscle groups of the lower body.

Description: No abstract available

Description: Changes in leukocyte subpopulations and function after spaceflight have been observed but the mechanisms underlying these changes are not well defined. This study investigated the effects of short-term spaceflight (8-15 days) on circulating leukocyte subsets, stress hormones, immunoglobulin levels, and neutrophil function. At landing, a 1.5-fold increase in neutrophils was observed compared with preflight values; lymphocytes were slightly decreased, whereas the results were variable for monocytes. No significant changes were observed in plasma levels of immunoglobulins, cortisol, or adrenocorticotropic hormone. In contrast, urinary epinephrine, norepinephrine, and cortisol were significantly elevated at landing. Band neutrophils were observed in 9 of 16 astronauts. Neutrophil chemotactic assays showed a 10-fold decrease in the optimal dose response after landing. Neutrophil adhesion to endothelial cells was increased both before and after spaceflight. At landing, the expression of MAC-1 was significantly decreased while L-selectin was significantly increased. These functional alterations may be of clinical significance on long-duration space missions.

Description: The six domains that must be addressed in managing fatigue in operational settings are identified, and examples of how the aviation industry is dealing with the problems in each domain are given. Challenges facing healthcare providers in managing fatigue are also discussed.

Description: Glucose interference in production of microcin B17 by Escherichia coli ZK650 was decreased sevenfold by growth in a ground-based rotating-wall bioreactor operated in the simulated microgravity mode as compared with growth in flasks. When cells were grown in the bioreactor in the normal gravity mode, relief from glucose interference was even more dramatic, amounting to a decrease in glucose interference of over 100-fold.