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NASA NTRS1988

The effects of area postrema lesions and selective vagotomy on motion-induced conditioned taste aversion

Conditioned taste aversion (CTA) is one of several behaviors which was suggested as a putative measure of motion sickness in rats. A review is made of studies which used surgical disruption of area postrema or the vagus nerve to investigate whether CTA and vomiting induced by motion may depend on common neural pathways or structures. When the chemoreceptive function of the area postrema (AP) is destroyed by complete ablation, rats develop CTA and cats and monkeys develop CTA and vomit. Thus the AP is not crucially involved in either CTA or vomiting induced by motion. However, after complete denervation of the stomach or after labyrinthectomy rats do not develop CTA when motion is used as the unconditioned stimulus. Studies of brainstem projections of the vagus nerve, the area postrema, the periaqueductal grey, and the vestibular system are used as the basis for speculation about regions which could mediate both motion-induced vomiting and behavioral food aversion.

conditioned taste aversion↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Manual Crew Override of Vehicle Landings Following G-Transitions

BACKGROUND Manual control during exploration spaceflight consists of both planned automated supervisory control and unplanned crew override. This crew override capability is critical to enable overall mission success during landing contingencies. However, the introduction of manual override capabilities must be implemented to enable crews to mitigate risks introduced by human error. Adaptive changes in the sensorimotor system can manifest during g-transitions as spatial disorientation. While training and landing aids enable successful landing through disorientation, these adaptive changes may increase cognitive demand that needs to be accounted for in the manual control strategy. It is important to characterize these effects as soon as possible following the G-transition to develop appropriate countermeasures. METHODS In this study, we will examine operational piloting tasks following International Space Station (ISS) missions in a simulated lunar landing using a six-degree-of-freedom (6DOF) motion base. The motion-based simulation will be implemented in our laboratory at the Johnson Space Center (JSC) and will be available within hours following the return from commercial crew landings. The primary goals of this study are (1) to understand the impact of spaceflight on crew ability to perform manual crew override tasks, (2) to examine how adaptive changes in vestibular and cognitive function relate to changes in manual crew override proficiency, and (3) compare performance during late “just-in-time” on-board training with early post-flight crew performance. The impact of spaceflight on piloting capability will be assessed from pre- versus post-flight changes in crewmembers assigned to either short duration (< 30 day) or long duration (~6- month) missions to the International Space Station (ISS). Individual differences in post-flight vestibular and cognitive changes include motion sickness reports, measures of tilt motion perception accuracy and precision, and dual-task tracking. During the 6DOF lunar simulation, the crew will manually takeover attitude and rate-of-descent to the nominal or re-designated landing aim point during the approach phase. The outcome measures for the lunar crew override tasks will be the percent time maintaining actual vehicle states, e.g., attitude and rate-of-descent, within recommended guidance during the landing approach, number and maximum deviation outside limits, and root mean square error (RMSE). Given that “just-in-time” (JIT) training is an operational expectation for the Human Landing System (HLS) program, all participants will perform late inflight JIT training for each manual crew override task in which they will participate. Crew proficiency will be captured inflight during JIT training that will be implemented on a laptop with hand controllers to allow the crewmember to practice the landing task procedures like the approach implemented for JIT training with Shuttle landing and ISS telerobotic tasks. COUNTERMEASURE UPDATES The lunar lander simulation has been implemented onto a two-laptop display system where subjects select from alternative landing points, based upon avoiding hazards that the on-board system identifies during the landing. The subject makes inputs using a rotational hand controller (i.e., joystick) and a translational hand controller, which are processed by simulated vehicle dynamics to update the vehicle attitude and rate of descent. Subjects will utilize a combination of flight, situation, and status displays to monitor the state of the simulated vehicle. The simulation exports tilt and translation movements to a 6DOF motion base synced to visual movements and provides representative vestibular cues to the subject while performing the task inside an enclosed cabin featuring a simulated lunar out-the-window view and a heads-down lander cockpit view. RELEVANCE This project will deliver an operational demonstration of crew override capability following spaceflight and identify potential deficits that may require remediation. Comparison of individual vestibular and cognitive changes with crew override performance will help better characterize the manual control risks associated with sensorimotor alterations. The inclusion of “just-in-time” on-board training will ensure we are characterizing changes in override proficiency with this expected countermeasure in place. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: The authors acknowledge contributions from Draper, HLS Joint Test Panel, Crew HLS Interfaces for Piloting Working Group, and Dynamic Skills Trainer (DST) Lab toward the development of the lunar landing simulation. This project is funded by the Human Health Countermeasures Element.

Austin M Bollinger↗
NASA NTRS1976

Report of 14-day bedrest simulation of Skylab

Part one of a two-phase bedrest project in which the physiological effects of weightlessness were simulated is presented. The project was designed to approximate the medical testing and dietary control of Skylab. The test period included a three week pre-flight period, a two week bedrest period and a two week post-flight period. The test subjects ate measured amounts of the Skylab diet and drank deionized water to recreate the metabolic balance studies of Skylab. The medical testing program, pre- and postbedrest, was similar to that of Skylab including: lower body negative pressure testing the orthostatic intolerance noted after both spaceflights and bedrest, bicycle ergometry testing the cardiovascular response to graded exercise, postural equilibrium, vestibular studies and electromyograms. Fluid and electrolyte shifts and balance were documented with intake and output records and radionuclide studies. The subjects were observed by a psychiatrist who watched for signs of mental stress in the test environment and changes in mental status.

Johnson, P. C.↗
NASA NTRS1986

NASA Workshop on Animal Gravity-Sensing Systems

The opportunity for space flight has brought about the need for well-planned research programs that recognize the significance of space flight as a scientific research tool for advancing knowledge of life on Earth, and that utilize each flight opportunity to its fullest. For the first time in history, gravity can be almost completely eliminated. Thus, studies can be undertaken that will help to elucidate the importance of gravity to the normal functioning of living organisms, and to determine the effects microgravity may have on an organism. This workshop was convened to organize a plan for space research on animal gravity-sensing systems and the role that gravity plays in the development and normal functioning of these systems. Scientists working in the field of animal gravity-sensing systems use a wide variety of organisms in their research. The workshop presentations dealt with topics which ranged from the indirect gravity receptor of the water flea, Daphnia (whose antennal setae apparently act as current-sensing receptors as the animal moves up and down in water), through specialized statocyst structures found in jellyfish and gastropods, to the more complex vestibular systems that are characteristic of amphibians, avians, and mammals.

Corcoran, M. L.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Functional Task Tests in Partial Gravity During Parabolic Flight

BACKGROUND Critical mission tasks that are required by crews immediately after landing on a planetary surface are seat egress, jump, and walk. To be able to define an effective and comprehensive countermeasure strategy for preserving crew performance during exploration-class missions, there is a need to understand how these functional tasks are actually performed in partial gravity such as on the Moon or Mars. We propose to study the performance in the execution of these tasks during the partial gravity and hypergravity phases of parabolic flight. These tasks will be completed using the same equipment and procedures as the Standard Measures Sensorimotor protocol, which is performed by astronauts returning from spaceflight and by ground-based subjects after prolonged axial body unloading during bed rest. HYPOTHESIS We hypothesize that partial gravity during parabolic flight will cause acute changes in vestibular, proprioceptive, and sensorimotor functions, and these changes will impact the performance of mission critical tasks such as standing, walking, and jumping. The largest changes in performance are expected at the lowest gravity level (0.25g) because subjects will no longer be able to use the gravitational reference for the perception of vertical. Ultimately, this information could be used to assess performance risks and inform the design of countermeasures for NASA exploration-class human missions. METHODS Twelve subjects will be tested during three flights of 30 parabolas, including 10 parabolas at 0.25g, 10 parabolas at 0.5g and 10 parabolas at 0.75g. Subject also will perform tests in 1g between parabolas and in hypergravity (1.8g) during the pull-out phases. Subjects will perform the same tasks as those tested on astronauts returning from spaceflight: sit-to-stand and obstacle walk, tandem walk, jump down, and recovery from fall. Measurements will include: (a) the time for the subject to complete the test (sit-to-stand and obstacle walk, recovery from fall); (b) the time elapsed between the start of motion and the stabilization of upright posture (recovery from fall, jump down); (c) the mean sway speed during quiet standing (recovery from fall, jump down); (d) changes in heart rate and blood pressure (recovery from fall); (e) the percentage of correct steps and torso acceleration (tandem walk); and (f) the severity of motion sickness symptoms. RELEVANCE Although gravitational dose-response curves have been obtained for some biochemical systems in animals, these dose-responses are unknown for most human physiologic systems. Our study will compare the outcomes of 5 functional task tests in 0.25g, 0.5g, 0.75g, 1g, and 1.8g with those previously obtained in ground-based subjects after prolonged axial body unloading and in astronauts immediately after spaceflight. This comparison will help understanding the true extent of functional task performance deficits in partial gravity. The dose-response relationship between gravity level and task performance decrement also will help determining the gravity threshold for these functional tasks. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT This work is supported by the NASA’s Human Research Program Human Health Countermeasures Element

Gilles Clement↗
NASA NTRS2001

Ongoing cell death and immune influences on regeneration in the vestibular sensory organs

Hair cells in the vestibular organs of birds have a relatively short life span. Mature hair cells appear to die spontaneously and are then quickly replaced by new hair cells that arise from the division of epithelial supporting cells. A similar regenerative mechanism also results in hair cell replacement after ototoxic damage. The cellular basis of hair cell turnover in the avian ear is not understood. We are investigating the signaling pathways that lead to hair cell death and the relationship between ongoing cell death and cell production. In addition, work from our lab and others has demonstrated that the avian inner ear contains a resident population of macrophages and that enhanced numbers of macrophages are recruited to sites of hair cells lesions. Those observations suggest that macrophages and their secretory products (cytokines) may be involved in hair cell regeneration. Consistent with that suggestion, we have found that treatment with the anti-inflammatory drug dexamethasone reduces regenerative cell proliferation in the avian ear, and that certain macrophage-secreted cytokines can influence the proliferation of vestibular supporting cells and the survival of statoacoustic neurons. Those results suggest a role for the immune system in the process of sensory regeneration in the inner ear.

Non-NASA Center↗
NASA NTRS2017

Long Duration Head Down Tilt Bed Rest and Spaceflight Effects on Neurocognitive Performance: Extent, Longevity and Neural Bases

We have recently completed a long duration head down tilt bed rest (HDBR) study in which we performed structural and functional magnetic resonance brain imaging to identify the relationships between changes in neurocognitive function and neural structural alterations in a spaceflight analog environment. We are also collecting the same measures in crewmembers prior to and following a six month International Space Station mission. We will present data demonstrating that bed rest resulted in functional mobility and balance deterioration with recovery post-HDBR. We observed numerous changes in brain structure, function, and connectivity relative to a control group which were associated with pre to post bed rest changes in sensorimotor function. For example, gray matter volume (GMv) increased in posterior parietal areas and decreased in frontal regions. GMv increases largely overlapped with fluid decreases and vice versa. Larger increases in precentral gyrus (M1)/ postcentral gyrus (S1+2) GMv and fluid decreases were associated with smaller balance decrements. Vestibular activation in the bilateral insular cortex increased with bed rest and subsequently recovered. Larger increases in vestibular activation in multiple brain regions were associated with greater decrements in balance and mobility. We found connectivity increases between left M1 with right S1+2 and the superior parietal lobule, and right vestibular cortex with the cerebellum. Decreases were observed between right Lobule VIII with right S1+2 and the supramarginal gyrus, right posterior parietal cortex (PPC) with occipital regions, and the right superior posterior fissure with right Crus I and II. Connectivity strength between left M1 and right S1+2/superior parietal lobule increased the most in individuals that exhibited the least balance impairments. In sum, we observed HDBR-related changes in measures of brain structure, function, and network connectivity, which correlated with indices of sensorimotor function. Recovery was observed post HDBR but remained incomplete at 12 days post-HDBR. Preliminary findings from our parallel ongoing flight study will be compared and contrasted with bed rest results during this presentation.

Seidler, R. D.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Mechanisms of Sensorimotor Adaptation to Centrifugation

We postulate that centripetal acceleration induced by centrifugation can be used as an inflight sensorimotor countermeasure to retain and/or promote appropriate crewmember responses to sustained changes in gravito-inertial force conditions. Active voluntary motion is required to promote vestibular system conditioning, and both visual and graviceptor sensory feedback are critical for evaluating internal representations of spatial orientation. The goal of our investigation is to use centrifugation to develop an analog to the conflicting visual/gravito-inertial force environment experienced during space flight, and to use voluntary head movements during centrifugation to study mechanisms of adaptation to altered gravity environments. We address the following two hypotheses: (1) Discordant canal-otolith feedback during head movements in a hypergravity tilted environment will cause a reorganization of the spatial processing required for multisensory integration and motor control, resulting in decreased postural stability upon return to normal gravity environment. (2) Adaptation to this "gravito-inertial tilt distortion" will result in a negative after-effect, and readaptation will be expressed by return of postural stability to baseline conditions. During the third year of our grant we concentrated on examining changes in balance control following 90-180 min of centrifugation at 1.4 9. We also began a control study in which we exposed subjects to 90 min of sustained roll tilt in a static (non-rotating) chair. This allowed us to examine adaptation to roll tilt without the hypergravity induced by centrifugation. To these ends, we addressed the question: Is gravity an internal calibration reference for postural control? The remainder of this report is limited to presenting preliminary findings from this study.

Paloski, W. H.↗
NASA NTRS2004

Full-Body Gaze Control Mechanisms Elicited During Locomotion: Effects Of VOR Adaptation

Control of locomotion requires precise interaction between several sensorimotor subsystems. During locomotion the performer must satisfy two performance criteria: maintain stable forward translation and to stabilize gaze (McDonald, et al., 1997). Precise coordination demands integration of multiple sensorimotor subsystems for fulfilling both criteria. In order to test the general hypothesis that the whole body can serve as an integrated gaze stabilization system, we have previously investigated how the multiple, interdependent full-body sensorimotor subsystems respond to changes in gaze stabilization task constraints during locomotion (Mulavara and Bloomberg, 2003). The results suggest that the full body contributes to gaze stabilization during locomotion, and that its different functional elements respond to changes in visual task constraints. The goal of this study was to determine how the multiple, interdependent, full-body sensorimotor subsystems aiding gaze stabilization during locomotion are functionally coordinated after the vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) gain has been altered. We investigated the potential of adaptive remodeling of the full-body gaze control system following exposure to visual-vestibular conflict known to adaptively reduce the VOR. Subjects (n=14) walked (6.4 km/h) on the treadmill before and after they were exposed to 0.5X manifying lenses worn for 30 minutes during self-generated sinusoidal vertical head rotations performed while seated. In this study we measured: temporal parameters of gait, full body sagittal plane segmental kinematics of the head, trunk, thigh, shank and foot, accelerations along the vertical axis at the head and the shank, and the vertical forces acting on the support surface. Results indicate that, following exposure to the 0.5X minifying lenses, there was a significant increase in the duration of stance and stride times, alteration in the amplitude of head movement with respect to space and a significant increase in the amount of knee flexion during the initial stance phase of the gait cycle. This study provides further evidence that the full body contributes to gaze stabilization during locomotion, and that different functional elements are responsive to changes in visual task constraints and are subject to adaptive alteration following exposure to visual-vestibular conflict.

Mulavara, A. P.↗
NASA NTRS2004

Destabilization of Human Balance Control by Static and Dynamic Head Tilts

To better understand the effects of varying head movement frequencies on human balance control, 12 healthy adult humans were studied during static and dynamic (0.14,0.33,0.6 Hz) head tilts of +/-30deg in the pitch and roll planes. Postural sway was measured during upright stance with eyes closed and altered somatosensory inputs provided by a computerized dynamic posturography (CDP) system. Subjects were able to maintain upright stance with static head tilts, although postural sway was increased during neck extension. Postural stability was decreased during dynamic head tilts, and the degree of destabilization varied directly with increasing frequency of head tilt. In the absence of vision and accurate foot support surface inputs, postural stability may be compromised during dynamic head tilts due to a decreased ability of the vestibular system to discern the orientation of gravity.

Paloski, William H.↗
NASA NTRS2000

Transient cardio-respiratory responses to visually induced tilt illusions

Although the orthostatic cardio-respiratory response is primarily mediated by the baroreflex, studies have shown that vestibular cues also contribute in both humans and animals. We have demonstrated a visually mediated response to illusory tilt in some human subjects. Blood pressure, heart and respiration rate, and lung volume were monitored in 16 supine human subjects during two types of visual stimulation, and compared with responses to real passive whole body tilt from supine to head 80 degrees upright. Visual tilt stimuli consisted of either a static scene from an overhead mirror or constant velocity scene motion along different body axes generated by an ultra-wide dome projection system. Visual vertical cues were initially aligned with the longitudinal body axis. Subjective tilt and self-motion were reported verbally. Although significant changes in cardio-respiratory parameters to illusory tilts could not be demonstrated for the entire group, several subjects showed significant transient decreases in mean blood pressure resembling their initial response to passive head-up tilt. Changes in pulse pressure and a slight elevation in heart rate were noted. These transient responses are consistent with the hypothesis that visual-vestibular input contributes to the initial cardiovascular adjustment to a change in posture in humans. On average the static scene elicited perceived tilt without rotation. Dome scene pitch and yaw elicited perceived tilt and rotation, and dome roll motion elicited perceived rotation without tilt. A significant correlation between the magnitude of physiological and subjective reports could not be demonstrated.

NASA Center JSC↗
NASA NTRS2000

Simulation studies of vestibular macular afferent-discharge patterns using a new, quasi-3-D finite volume method

A quasi-three-dimensional finite-volume numerical simulator was developed to study passive voltage spread in vestibular macular afferents. The method, borrowed from computational fluid dynamics, discretizes events transpiring in small volumes over time. The afferent simulated had three calyces with processes. The number of processes and synapses, and direction and timing of synapse activation, were varied. Simultaneous synapse activation resulted in shortest latency, while directional activation (proximal to distal and distal to proximal) yielded most regular discharges. Color-coded visualizations showed that the simulator discretized events and demonstrated that discharge produced a distal spread of voltage from the spike initiator into the ending. The simulations indicate that directional input, morphology, and timing of synapse activation can affect discharge properties, as must also distal spread of voltage from the spike initiator. The finite volume method has generality and can be applied to more complex neurons to explore discrete synaptic effects in four dimensions.

NASA Center ARC↗
NASA NTRS1992

The nucleus of the optic tract. Its function in gaze stabilization and control of visual-vestibular interaction

1. Electrical stimulation of the nucleus of the optic tract (NOT) induced nystagmus and after-nystagmus with ipsilateral slow phases. The velocity characteristics of the nystagmus were similar to those of the slow component of optokinetic nystagmus (OKN) and to optokinetic after-nystagmus (OKAN), both of which are produced by velocity storage in the vestibular system. When NOT was destroyed, these components disappeared. This indicates that velocity storage is activated from the visual system through NOT. 2. Velocity storage produces compensatory eye-in-head and head-on-body movements through the vestibular system. The association of NOT with velocity storage implies that NOT helps stabilize gaze in space during both passive motion and active locomotion in light with an angular component. It has been suggested that "vestibular-only" neurons in the vestibular nuclei play an important role in generation of velocity storage. Similarities between the rise and fall times of eye velocity during OKN and OKAN to firing rates of vestibular-only neurons suggest that these cells may receive their visual input through NOT. 3. One NOT was injected with muscimol, a GABAA agonist. Ipsilateral OKN and OKAN were lost, suggesting that GABA, which is an inhibitory transmitter in NOT, acts on projection pathways to the brain stem. A striking finding was that visual suppression and habituation of contralateral slow phases of vestibular nystagmus were also abolished after muscimol injection. The latter implies that NOT plays an important role in producing visual suppression of the VOR and habituating its time constant. 4. Habituation is lost after nodulus and uvula lesions and visual suppression after lesions of the flocculus and paraflocculus. We postulate that the disappearance of vestibular habituation and of visual suppression of vestibular responses after muscimol injections was due to dysfacilitation of the prominent NOT-inferior olive pathway, inactivating climbing fibers from the dorsal cap to nodulouvular and flocculoparafloccular Purkinje cells. The prompt loss of habituation when NOT was inactivated, and its return when the GABAergic inhibition dissipated, suggests that although VOR habituation can be relatively permanent, it must be maintained continuously by activity of the vestibulocerebellum.

Review↗
NASA NTRS2006

Modification of Eccentric Gaze-Holding

Clear vision and accurate localization of objects in the environment are prerequisites for reliable performance of motor tasks. Space flight confronts the crewmember with a stimulus rearrangement that requires adaptation to function effectively with the new requirements of altered spatial orientation and motor coordination. Adaptation and motor learning driven by the effects of cerebellar disorders may share some of the same demands that face our astronauts. One measure of spatial localization shared by the astronauts and those suffering from cerebellar disorders that is easily quantified, and for which a neurobiological substrate has been identified, is the control of the angle of gaze (the "line of sight"). The disturbances of gaze control that have been documented to occur in astronauts and cosmonauts, both in-flight and postflight, can be directly related to changes in the extrinsic gravitational environment and intrinsic proprioceptive mechanisms thus, lending themselves to description by simple non-linear statistical models. Because of the necessity of developing robust normal response populations and normative populations against which abnormal responses can be evaluated, the basic models can be formulated using normal, non-astronaut test subjects and subsequently extended using centrifugation techniques to alter the gravitational and proprioceptive environment of these subjects. Further tests and extensions of the models can be made by studying abnormalities of gaze control in patients with cerebellar disease. A series of investigations were conducted in which a total of 62 subjects were tested to: (1) Define eccentric gaze-holding parameters in a normative population, and (2) explore the effects of linear acceleration on gaze-holding parameters. For these studies gaze-holding was evaluated with the subjects seated upright (the normative values), rolled 45 degrees to both the left and right, or pitched back 30 and 90 degrees. In a separate study the further effects of acceleration on gaze stability was examined during centrifugation (+2 G (sub x) and +2 G (sub z) using a total of 23 subjects. In all of our investigations eccentric gaze-holding was established by having the subjects acquire an eccentric target (+/-30 degrees horizontal, +/- 15 degrees vertical) that was flashed for 750 msec in an otherwise dark room. Subjects were instructed to hold gaze on the remembered position of the flashed target for 20 sec. Immediately following the 20 sec period, subjects were cued to return to the remembered center position and to hold gaze there for an additional 20 sec. Following this 20 sec period the center target was briefly flashed and the subject made any corrective eye movement back to the true center position. Conventionally, the ability to hold eccentric gaze is estimated by fitting the natural log of centripetal eye drifts by linear regression and calculating the time constant (G) of these slow phases of "gaze-evoked nystagmus". However, because our normative subjects sometimes showed essentially no drift (tau (sub c) = m), statistical estimation and inference on the effect of target direction was performed on values of the decay constant theta = 1/(tau (sub c)) which we found was well modeled by a gamma distribution. Subjects showed substantial variance of their eye drifts, which were centrifugal in approximately 20 % of cases, and > 40% for down gaze. Using the ensuing estimated gamma distributions, we were able to conclude that rightward and leftward gaze holding were not significantly different, but that upward gaze holding was significantly worse than downward (p<0.05). We also concluded that vertical gaze holding was significantly worse than horizontal (p<0.05). In the case of left and right roll, we found that both had a similar improvement to horizontal gaze holding (p<0.05), but didn't have a significant effect on vertical gaze holding. For pitch tilts, both tilt angles significantly decreased gaze-holding ility in all directions (p<0.05). Finally, we found that hyper-g centrifugation significantly decreased gaze holding ability in the vertical plane. The main findings of this study are as follows: (1) vertical gaze-holding is less stable than horizontal, (2) gaze-holding to upward targets is less stable than to downward targets, (3) tilt affects gaze holding, and (4) hyper-g affects gaze holding. This difference between horizontal and vertical gaze-holding may be ascribed to separate components of the velocity-to-position neural integrator for eye movements, and to differences in orbital mechanics. The differences between upward and downward gaze-holding may be ascribed to an inherent vertical imbalance in the vestibular system. Because whole body tilt and hyper-g affects gaze-holding, it is implied that the otolith organs have direct connections to the neural integrator and further studies of astronaut gaze-holding are warranted. Our statistical method for representing the range of normal eccentric gaze stability can be readily applied to normals who maybe exposed to environments which may modify the central integrator and require monitoring, and to evaluate patients with gaze-evoked nystagmus by comparing to the above established normative criteria.

Reschke, M. F.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Area postrema ablations in cats: Evidence for separate neural routes for motion- and xylazine-induced CTA and emesis

The effects of off-vertical rotation upon the Intake of tap water Immediately after rotation, and upon conditioned taste aversion, were assessed In mice with the tilt of the rotation axis varying from 5 to 20° from the earth-vertical. Conditioned taste aversion occurred In all mice that were rotated, but the Intake of tap water was suppressed only In mice that were rotated at 15 or 20° of tilt. The greater suppression of tap water Intake and the stronger conditioned aversion In the mouse as the angle of tilt was Increased In this experiment are consistent with predictions from similar experiments with human subjects where motion sickness develops more rapidly as the angle of tilt la Increased. It was suggested that off-vertical rotation may be a useful procedure for Insuring experimental control over vestibular stimulation In animal studies of motion sickness.

Robert A Fox↗
NASA NTRS2017

Spaceflight Effect on White Matter Structural Integrity

Recent reports of elevated brain white matter hyperintensity (WMH) counts and volume in postflight astronaut MRIs suggest that further examination of spaceflight's impact on the microstructure of brain white matter is warranted. To this end, retrospective longitudinal diffusion-weighted MRI scans obtained from 15 astronauts were evaluated. In light of the recent reports of microgravity-induced cephalad fluid shift and gray matter atrophy seen in astronauts, we applied a technique to estimate diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) metrics corrected for free water contamination. This approach enabled the analysis of white matter tissue-specific alterations that are unrelated to fluid shifts, occurring from before spaceflight to after landing. After spaceflight, decreased fractional anisotropy (FA) values were detected in an area encompassing the superior and inferior longitudinal fasciculi and the inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus. Increased radial diffusivity (RD) and decreased axial diffusivity (AD) were also detected within overlapping regions. In addition, FA values in the corticospinal tract decreased and RD measures in the precentral gyrus white matter increased from before to after flight. The results show disrupted structural connectivity of white matter in tracts involved in visuospatial processing, vestibular function, and movement control as a result of spaceflight. The findings may help us understand the structural underpinnings of the extensive spaceflight-induced sensorimotor remodeling. Prospective longitudinal assessment of the white matter integrity in astronauts is needed to characterize the evolution of white matter microstructural changes associated with spaceflight, their behavioral consequences, and the time course of recovery. Supported by a grant from the National Space Biomedical Research Institute, NASA NCC 9-58.

Lee, Jessica K.↗
NASA NTRS1998

Behavioral and Physiological Effects of Hindlimb Unloading in Rats

The overarching objective of this project was to identify changes in neural and biochemical systems of the central and peripheral nervous systems (the CNS and PNS) that are related to disruptions of functional motor responses, or motor control. The identification of neural and biochemical changes that are related to sensory-motor adaptation elicited as animals react to changes in the gravitational field was of particular interest. Thus, the major objective of this work was to study disruptions of motor responses that arise after (sic. due to) chronic exposure to altered gravity (G). To do this, parallel studies investigating changes in neural, sensory, and neuromuscular systems were conducted after animals (rats) experienced chronic exposure to conditions of altered-G. Conditions of altered-G included hyper-G produced by centrifugation, micro-G produced by orbital flight, and simulated micro-G produced by hind limb suspension. A second major interest was to examine the contribution of putative changes in sensory systems to disruptions of motor responses. To do this, motor responses and reflexes of rats were studied following chronic treatment with streptomycin sulfate (STP, an ototoxic chemical) to damage the vestibular hair cells.

Fox, Robert A.↗
NASA NTRS1995

The effects of spaceflight on open-loop and closed-loop postural control mechanisms: human neurovestibular studies on SLS-2

Stabilogram-diffusion analysis was used to examine how prolonged periods in microgravity affect the open-loop and closed-loop postural control mechanisms. It was hypothesized that following spaceflight: (1) the effective stochastic activity of the open-loop postural control schemes in astronauts is increased; (2) the effective stochastic activity and uncorrelated behavior, respectively, of the closed-loop postural control mechanisms in astronauts are increased; and (3) astronauts utilized open-loop postural controls schemes for shorter time intervals and smaller displacements. Four crew members and two alternates from the 14-day Spacelab Life Sciences 2 Mission were included in the study. Each subject was tested under eyes-open, quiet-standing conditions on multiple preflight and postflight days. The subjects' center-of-pressure trajectories were measured with a force platform and analyzed according to stabilogram-diffusion analysis. It was found that the effective stochastic activity of the open-loop postural control schemes in three of the four crew members was increased following spaceflight. This result is interpreted as an indication that there may be in-flight adaptations to higher-level descending postural control pathways, e.g., a postflight increase in the tonic activation of postural muscles. This change may also be the consequence of a compensatory (e.g., "stiffening") postural control strategy that is adopted by astronauts to account for general feeling of postflight unsteadiness. The crew members, as a group, did not exhibit any consistent preflight/postflight differences in the steady-state behavior of their closed-loop postural control mechanisms or in the functional interaction of their open-loop and closed-loop postural control mechanisms. These results are interpreted as indications that although there may be in-flight adaptations to the vestibular system and/or proprioceptive system, input from the visual system can compensate for such changes during undisturbed stance.

NASA Program Flight↗