astronaut taking blood Red blood cells, the blood cells responsible for transporting oxygen through blood vessels, were found to die out 54% more in space than on Earth.
For the first time, it was discovered that this causes so-called ‘space anemia’, in which the red blood cell count of astronauts who traveled to space decreases.
According to the Ottawa Hospital in Canada, a research team led by Dr. Guy Trudell measured and analyzed changes in red blood cells during a six-month International Space Station (ISS) mission on 14 astronauts and analyzed the results of the study in the international scientific journal Nature Medicine. ) was published in
Cosmic anemia has been considered to appear in the process of adapting to the phenomenon of ‘fluid shift’, in which blood flows to the upper body in a state of weightlessness in space. When astronauts arrive at the ISS, blood volume decreases by destroying 10% of red blood cells to maintain the body’s balance, but it has been known to return to normal following regarding 10 days.
However, when the research team directly measured changes in red blood cell counts in astronauts on ISS missions, they found that red blood cell destruction did not occur only in the early stages due to fluid movement, but persisted throughout space life.
On Earth, regarding 2 million red blood cells are created and destroyed every second, but in space, 3 million cells per second are destroyed, resulting in 54% more death. These results did not differ between male and female astronauts.
The research team identified red blood cells that were destroyed by measuring the amount of carbon monoxide (CO) in the breathing samples of astronauts. One molecule of CO is produced when one molecule of heme, the red blood cell pigment, is destroyed, and this is measured.
Although the researchers did not directly measure red blood cell production, they assumed that the number of red blood cells produced increased similarly to the increase in the number of destroyed red blood cells because severe anemia was not induced.
“Fortunately, in zero-gravity space, a reduced red blood cell count is not a problem,” Trudell said. there is,” he said.
In this study, 5 of the 13 astronauts who took blood following landing on Earth showed clinical-level anemia, but recovered following regarding 3 to 4 months.
However, it was confirmed that the amount of red blood cell destruction was still 30% higher than before the flight even when measured one year following returning to Earth. This was interpreted as showing that structural changes in red blood cell control were made during spaceflight and continued for a long time following returning to Earth.
The research team pointed out that this result has several important implications for manned space exploration.
First of all, when selecting astronauts or space tourists, it is necessary to determine whether anemia-related diseases exist.
In addition, it has been suggested that astronauts need a special diet to maintain increased red blood cell production, and further research on how much the human body can sustain increased red blood cell production and annihilation in space should be continued.
The research team said that patients who have limited movement for a long period of time have difficulty exercising or receiving rehabilitation treatment due to anemia.
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