Université de Montréal
IMPACTS OF LONG-TERM SPACE TRAVEL UPON ASTRONAUT HEALTH - ANALYSIS OF MARS500 CREW MICROBIOMES USING IMPROVED METAGENOMICS
The microbiome is intricately involved in human health. One concern in spaceflight is the potential negative impact of long-term habitat confinement upon microbiome health. The MARS500 project investigated this by sampling the microbiome of six astronauts over the longest ground-based confined habitat experiment conducted to-date. The project objective is to determine common microbiome changes in the crew of the MARS500 experiment. Improved metagenomic assessment technologies mean that significant differences in microbiome species can be identified over the 520-day experiment. Findings should reveal insight into the long-term impacts of spaceflight upon astronaut health and provide a unique view of confined environments.