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The weakening of the immunity of astronauts will be predicted

13.03.2012

NASA scientists have developed technology that can detect weakened immunity in advance and protect astronauts from a number of unpleasant infectious diseases. New diagnostic technology could also be useful on Earth - it will shorten the duration of illnesses and reduce the side effects of treatment and the risk of complications. Physiological, emotional and psychological stress associated with space flight and other complex activities can lead to a weakened immune system and the activation of viruses, such as herpes, which leads to damage to the skin and internal organs.

Astronauts are in almost perfect isolation from human society and therefore infectious epidemics do not threaten them. However, NASA scientists are concerned about how the immune system will function during future long-duration deep space missions. Therefore, experts decided to develop a test to assess the state of the human immune system. Choosing one or more biomarkers that show the effectiveness of the immune system in healthy people is a very difficult task. However, the herpes virus can become such a marker, which helps to make an early diagnosis of changes in the immune system. There can be eight types of herpes virus in the human body, and almost all people are infected with one or more types of these viruses.

Herpes viruses cause various illnesses, including herpetic fever (herpes simplex virus or HSV), infectious mononucleosis (Epstein-Barr virus or EBV), chickenpox, and shingles (varicella-zoster virus or VZV). In addition, herpes suppresses the immune system and can cause the development of certain types of cancer.
Herpes is present in the blood of at least 95% of the adult population of the Earth, including the blood of astronauts. Thus, measuring the status of herpes viruses in human body fluids is a much needed immune biomarker.

Johnson Space Center researchers have found that four types of the herpes virus can become active and appear in bodily fluids during spaceflight. This happens due to the weakening of cellular immunity: viruses emerge from their latent state and turn into active infectious agents. Replicated viruses enter saliva, urine, or blood and can be detected using the polymerase chain reaction. To detect the activation of herpes, NASA specialists have developed a special test strip, on which a sample of the patient's saliva must be applied. In case of weakened immunity and activation of herpes, the test strip turns red.

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