Life Science Space Research in Czechoslovakia and Slovak Republic

Space research activities in the field of space biology and medicine have been conducted mostly under international cooperation in the Intercosmos program, with the participation of scientists from Eastern Europe, the United States, France, Austria, and Germany. The effects of microgravity on animal and human organisms, the effects of ionizing radiation, the embryonic development of quail, the degree of stress loads, and the function of the vestibular system after exposure to weightlessness were all studied in more than 45 experiments with biosatellites of the Bion-Cosmos series and in nine spaceflights with human subjects. Several original results were obtained: The significant activation of the sympathoadrenal and adrenocortical systems was noted in rats after spaceflights of 7 to 20 days duration. The artificial gravity onboard the biosatellite eliminated the stress response of the adrenocortical system and also changed related enzyme activities in liver tissue. No effect of artificial gravity on the sympathoadrenal system was observed. Studies of the effects of ionizing radiation on intact and regenerating rat liver showed increased genome instability. The increase of apoptotic fragments of deoxyribonucleic acids was noted in the spleen of animals exposed to microgravity. Studies of the effects of microgravity on the ontogenesis of Japanese quail, using the special incubator devices (Incubator 1 and 2) on the Mir space station, demonstrated that the embryo development of the quail was normal in the conditions of microgravity. The Plasma 01, 02 and 03 instruments were specially designed for collecting and processing blood samples during spaceflights. These devices were used on the space stations Salyut and Mir for the evaluation of stress loads in astronauts during spaceflights. It was demonstrated that there was only slight activation of the sympathoadrenal function during short and long stays in microgravity. A marked increase in plasma stress hormone levels was, however, noted during the postflight period. Studies of the neuroendocrine response to the stressogenic effects of workload, insulin induced hypoglycemia, an oral glucose tolerance test, and mental stress (the Endotest project) during spaceflight, showed that the response of plasma hormone levels to workload and metabolic load were altered by staying in real microgravity. Vestibular proprioceptive interaction for body orientation in astronauts after spaceflight was studied by using the Vestibulograph apparatus. The successful adaptation of vestibular system functions to microgravity was observed in the Senso-asymetria project, performed before, during, and after spaceflight. These results were published in more than 650 articles in scientific journals.