Human Cognitive Performance in Spaceflight and Analogue Environments

Abstract

Maintaining intact cognitive performance is a high priority for space exploration. This review seeks to summarize the cumulative results of existing studies of cognitive performance in spaceflight and analogue environments. We focused on long-duration (>21 d) studies for which no review has previously been conducted. There were 11 published studies identified for long-duration spaceflight (N = 42 subjects) as well as 21 shorter spaceflight studies (N = 70 subjects). Overall, spaceflight cognitive studies ranged from 6-438 d in duration. Some 55 spaceflight analogue studies were also identified, ranging from 6 to 520 d. The diverse nature of experimental procedures and protocols precluded formal meta-analysis. In general, the available evidence fails to strongly support or refute the existence of specific cognitive deficits in low Earth orbit during long-duration spaceflight, which may be due in large part to small numbers of subjects. The studies consistently suggest that novel environments (spaceflight or other) induce variable alterations in cognitive performance across individuals, consistent with known astronaut experiences. This highlights the need to better quantify the magnitude and scope of this interindividual variability, and understand its underlying factors, when predicting in-flight cognitive functioning for extended periods.

Dose- and ApoE Isoform-Dependent Cognitive Injury after Cranial56Fe Irradiation in Female Mice

“…Acute CNS risks include changes in cognition, motor function, behavior, and mood, which may affect performance and human health. Specific examples of human behaviors and cognitive function of interest that may be affected by space flight include short-term memory, learning, spatial orientation, motor function, emotion recognition, risk decision making, vigilance, reaction time, processing speed, circadian regulation, fatigue, and neuropsychological changes (NASA SP-2009-3405, 2009Strangman et al 2014). The late CNS risks are possible degenerative neurological disorders such as AD, dementia, and premature aging.…”

Dammarane Sapogenins Ameliorates Neurocognitive Functional Impairment Induced by Simulated Long-Duration Spaceflight

“…In some previous studies, some evidence of cognitive decline was found (Eddy et al, 1998; Shepanek, 2005), but it was still difficult to use the available evidence from actual spaceflight to estimate the true effects, mainly because of the small numbers of subjects (Strangman et al, 2014). Moreover, the ground-based models used in researches simulated mostly only one or two of the environmental factors, such as microgravity (Seaton et al, 2009), isolation and confinement (Basner et al, 2014), or noise (Cheng et al, 2011), which differ greatly from the real spaceflight environment.…”

Increased Brain Activation for Dual Tasking with 70-Days Head-Down Bed Rest

“…Since then, research has revealed a number of physiological and behavioral changes that are associated with spaceflight, such as alterations in muscle, bone, balance, mobility, cardiovascular function, and cognitive performance (Nicogossian et al, 1994; Manzey and Lorenz, 1998; Buckey, 2006; Mulavara et al, 2010; Strangman et al, 2014). Understanding the consequences of space travel could lead to countermeasures to mitigate spaceflight-related physical and psychological declines, resulting in improved mission performance.…”