TO THE MOON, MARS, AND BEYOND

Many folks would like to see us back on the Moon and developing its resources.

Thursday, January 03, 2013

Radiation, Alzheimer’s Disease and Fermi


Paul Gilster and NASA Watch's Keith Cowling have some comments about space radiation research.
Maybe you would like to know before you take you next trip to a star or the next passing asteroid.
- LRK -

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Radiation, Alzheimer’s Disease and Fermi

by PAUL GILSTER on JANUARY 2, 2013
In a sobering start to the New Year, at least for partisans of manned missions to deep space, new work out of the University of Rochester indicates that galactic cosmic radiation may accelerate the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. The study, led by the university’s Kerry O’Banion, is hardly the first time that the impact of radiation in space has been studied, with previous work aimed at cancer risks as well as cardiovascular and musculoskeletal issues. But O’Banion’s work points to radiation’s effects on biological processes in the brain, reaching striking conclusions:
“Galactic cosmic radiation poses a significant threat to future astronauts,” said O’Banion. “The possibility that radiation exposure in space may give rise to health problems such as cancer has long been recognized. However, this study shows for the first time that exposure to radiation levels equivalent to a mission to Mars could produce cognitive problems and speed up changes in the brain that are associated with Alzheimer’s disease.”

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At NASA Watch, Keith's post.
- LRK -

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Important Research Results NASA Is Ignoring

By Keith Cowing on January 1, 2013 1:22 PM

"Galactic cosmic radiation poses a significant threat to future astronauts," said M. Kerry O'Banion, M.D., Ph.D., a professor in the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy and the senior author of the study. "The possibility that radiation exposure in space may give rise to health problems such as cancer has long been recognized. However, this study shows for the first time that exposure to radiation levels equivalent to a mission to Mars could produce cognitive problems and speed up changes in the brain that are associated with Alzheimer's disease."
 Keith's note: I can't seem to find any mention of this NASA-funded research at NASA.gov. Given the animal rights controversy that surrounded these experiments, and the results of this specific research project (with clear relevance to missions to asteroids, Mars, etc.), you'd think that NASA would want taxpayers, stakeholders, and the media, to know about these findings. Guess not.
NASA produces a regular listing of publications (NASA Spaceline Current Awareness) on the space life science research it funds. However, NASA is unable to find a way to publish it online. As a result no one really gets to see what the agency does - unless they visit SpaceRef, that is. We have a complete archive online stretching back to 1999.
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http://spaceref.com/news/viewsr.html?pid=43007
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Galactic Cosmic Radiation Leads to Cognitive Impairment and Increased Aβ Plaque Accumulation in a Mouse Model of Alzheimer’s Disease

Jonathan D. Cherry,

Bin Liu, Jeffrey L. Frost, Cynthia A. Lemere, Jacqueline P. Williams, John A. Olschowka, M. Kerry O’Banion

Abstract

Galactic Cosmic Radiation consisting of high-energy, high-charged (HZE) particles poses a significant threat to future astronauts in deep space. Aside from cancer, concerns have been raised about late degenerative risks, including effects on the brain. In this study we examined the effects of 56Fe particle irradiation in an APP/PS1 mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). We demonstrated 6 months after exposure to 10 and 100 cGy 56Fe radiation at 1 GeV/µ, that APP/PS1 mice show decreased cognitive abilities measured by contextual fear conditioning and novel object recognition tests. Furthermore, in male mice we saw acceleration of Aβ plaque pathology using Congo red and 6E10 staining, which was further confirmed by ELISA measures of Aβ isoforms. Increases were not due to higher levels of amyloid precursor protein (APP) or increased cleavage as measured by levels of the β C-terminal fragment of APP. Additionally, we saw no change in microglial activation levels judging by CD68 and Iba-1 immunoreactivities in and around Aβ plaques or insulin degrading enzyme, which has been shown to degrade Aβ. However, immunohistochemical analysis of ICAM-1 showed evidence of endothelial activation after 100 cGy irradiation in male mice, suggesting possible alterations in Aβ trafficking through the blood brain barrier as a possible cause of plaque increase. Overall, our results show for the first time that HZE particle radiation can increase Aβ plaque pathology in an APP/PS1 mouse model of AD.
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Funding: This work was supported by the NASA Space Radiobiology Research Program, Grant NNX08BA09G. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of this manuscript.
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And some links to NASA Space Radiobiology Research.
- LRK -

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NASA Awards Space Radiobiology Research Grants September 9, 2011
NASA's Human Research Program Awards Space Radiobiology Research Grants
NASA is funding nine proposals from eight states to investigate questions about the effects of space radiation on human explorers. The selected proposals from researchers in California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York and Texas have a total value of approximately $12 million.
NASA Selects 12 Space Radiobiology Research Proposals August 31, 2012
This National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Research Announcement (NRA) solicits ground-based proposals for the Space Radiation Element of the Human Research Program in the area of Space Radiation Biology utilizing beams of high energy heavy ions simulating space radiation at the NASA Space Radiation Laboratory (NSRL), at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) in Upton, New York. The major goal of NASA’s space radiation research is to enable the human exploration of space without exceeding limiting risks from space radiation.
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And some information on Brookhaven National Laboratory.
- LRK -

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NASA Space Radiation Laboratory at Brookhaven

Because astronauts are spending more time in space, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is working with Brookhaven National Laboratory and others here on Earth to learn about the possible risks to human beings exposed to space radiation. To study the radiobiological effects using beams that simulate the cosmic rays found in space, a $34-million NASA Space Radiation Laboratory (NSRL) has been established at Brookhaven Lab.
Jointly managed during the four-year construction by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science and NASA’s Johnson Space Center, the facility employs beams of heavy ions extracted from Brookhaven’s Booster accelerator, the best in America for radiobiology studies. NSRL also features its own beam line dedicated to radiobiology research, as well as state-of-the-art specimen-preparation areas.
When the NSRL became operational during summer 2003, over 75 experimenters from some 20 institutions from the U.S. and abroad took part in what was the tenth running of heavy-ion beams at Brookhaven solely for radiobiology research. With the NSRL on line, instead of running only once or twice a year, radiobiology and physics experiments are conducted three to four times per year, for three to four weeks per run.
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Thanks for looking up with me.
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http://spaceradiation.usra.edu/
http://spaceradiation.usra.edu/aboutUs/
About Us
The goal of NASA's Space Radiation Element (SRPE) is to enable humans to explore space without exceeding an acceptable level of risk from exposure to space radiation.

To achieve this goal, the SRPE pursues a robust and active research program that encompasses biological, biomedical and radiation physics expertise to provide:
  • Recommendations for space radiation permissible exposure limits for exploration missions
  • Discovery of the mechanisms of biological effects from celestial radiation such as protons and heavy ions, including potential differences between celestial and terresterial radiation, such as X-rays or gamma-rays in producing biological effects
  • Radiobiological data, projection models, and computational tools to assess and project astronauts risk of cancer, central nervous system and degenerative diseases, and acute radiation syndromes from space radiation
  • Computational tools and models to project astronaut risk and to assess vehicle design for radiation protection
  • Assessment of updated technologies if needed, for monitoring radiation exposure, and recommendations on technologies to be used operationally
  • Uncertainty reductions to enable radiation protection design and crew constraints for lunar and Mars missions
  • Discovery of biological countermeasures for space radiation risks, and the accurate assessment of the effectiveness of physical, biological, or biological countermeasures or mitigations
The purpose of this web site is to communicate news and to promote awareness of the SRPE research program and activities.  The web site is produced and managed by the Universities Space Research Association Division of Space Life Sciences.
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http://www.nasa.gov/directorates/heo/slpsra/index.html

In the current ISS era, the United States now has an orbiting laboratory that provides a facility for conducting long-duration experiments in microgravity. This allows continuous and interactive research similar to Earth-based laboratories, enabling scientists to pursue innovations and discoveries not currently achievable by other means. NASA's Space Life and Physical Sciences Research and Applications Division (SLPSRA) has been formulated to execute high quality, high value research and application activities in the areas of Space Life Sciences (SLS), Physical Sciences (PS), Human Research and Crew Health and Safety by mitigating the risks to the crews, and conducting research and developing technologies that will allow humans to travel safely and productively in the environment of space.
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WHAT THE MIND CAN CONCEIVE, AND BELIEVE, IT WILL ACHIEVE - LRK -
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