Abstract
Spaceflight may cause hypogravitational motor syndrome (HMS). However, the role of the nervous system in the formation of HMS remains poorly understood. The aim of this study was to estimate the effects of space flights on the cytoskeleton of the neuronal and glial cells in the spinal cord and mechanoreceptors in the toes of thick-toed geckos (Chondrodactylus turneri GRAY, 1864). Thick-toed geckos are able to maintain attachment and natural locomotion in weightlessness. Different types of mechanoreceptors have been described in the toes of geckos. After flight, neurofilament 200 immunoreactivity in mechanoreceptors was lower than in control. In some motor neurons of flight geckos, nonspecific pathomorphological changes were observed, but they were also detected in the control. No signs of gliosis were detected after spaceflight. Cytoskeleton markers adequately reflect changes in the cells of the nervous system. We suggest that geckos’ adhesion is controlled by the nervous system. Our study revealed no significant disturbances in the morphology of the spinal cord after the prolonged space flight, supporting the hypothesis that geckos compensate the alterations, characteristic for other mammals in weightlessness, by tactile stimulation.
Highlights
The development of life on Earth took place under the influence of the forces of gravity
There were cutaneous sense organs (CSO), which protrude above the epidermal surface as a cup-shaped structure with a single cilium in the centre (Figure 1c)
Is a first description of innervation and variability of receptors in the toes of thick-toed geckos, where Paciniform corpuscles (PC), Free nerve endings (FNE), and nerve endings (NE) on accessory cells and CSO were found
Summary
The development of life on Earth took place under the influence of the forces of gravity. A range of physiological alterations and symptoms (headward fluid shifts; headaches; back pain; and changes in the cardiovascular, bone, and muscle systems) are developed in human and experimental animals [3]. They are collectively referred to as space adaptation syndrome (SAS). HMS is developed in conditions of cancellation or significant reduction of gravitational loads It is characterised by the deep disturbances of the main proprioceptive activity—vestibular, muscular, supporting systems—including specific changes in skeletal muscles, in the so-called postural muscles responsible for maintaining posture in the gravity field of the Earth [4,5,6,7,8] and alterations in functional and structural characteristics of the skeletal muscles—atony, atrophy, decreased strength contractions, and increased muscle fatigue [9]
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