(ORDO NEWS) — Outer space is fraught with many dangers, but the main problem of long-term travel continues to be radiation.
Outside the Earth, the radiation background becomes hundreds of times more powerful and the nervous tissue of the brain is most susceptible to its effects.
However, technological progress does not stand still and, apparently, a “medicine” has been found that will protect the brain cells of astronauts from damage.
Astronauts who are on board the ISS for a long time complain of cognitive impairment, and doctors note a number of neurological disorders.
Given such a threat to human health, scientists from the University of California began to deal with the negative manifestations of the effects of cosmic radiation.
So the drug PLX5622 was born , which is now undergoing clinical trials. Although, as chemists note, the drug was originally created to fight cancer, but soon it may find application in the space industry.
NASA Space Radiation Laboratory conducted an experiment on mice. They were exposed to an amount of radiation comparable to the cosmic level, and then divided into two groups.
One group received PLX5622 regularly for two weeks, while the other remained under observation without treatment.
After 90 days, it was found that the rodents from the second group began to have disorders of the nervous system and they were poorly oriented in space. The first group was absolutely healthy.
Observations have shown that PLX5622 suppresses the activity of immunocytes, which creates a protective barrier for brain cells.
An important plus of the innovative drug is that it continues to protect the brain for a long time even after stopping the intake, which means it is perfect for long-distance space travel.
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