Mice sent to the ISS return to Earth hairier

May 29, 2015 12:48 GMT  ·  By
Mice sent to the International Space Station return to Earth hairier
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   Mice sent to the International Space Station return to Earth hairier

Astronauts sent on a mission to Mars or some other orb in the Solar System, maybe even beyond it, might return to Earth looking less like people and more like the elusive Yeti, Liege University researchers and their colleagues write in a new paper in the journal Nature

Thus, a series of experiments carried out on mice revealed that, at least in the case of such rodents, space conditions make hair grow thicker and faster. If this is also true for humans, astronauts of the future should expect an extreme and not-so-pleasant makeover while in space.

How space made mice hairier

In their report, the Liege University scientists and fellow researchers explain that the mice whose body hair they had the honor to study ended up in their laboratory after having spent three months aboard the International Space Station.

During this time, the rodents lived in special drawer-like habitats. Have a look at the photo below to get a better idea of what the mice's home aboard the International Space Station looked like.

Once back on Earth, they were put to sleep, chopped up and pieces of them were sent to various research facilities. The team of scientists led by Liege University researchers got their skin.

Writing in the journal Nature, the specialists say that, while in space, the rodents' hair grew at an oddly accelerated pace. Here on Earth, hair grows in spurts. Aboard the International Space Station, however, simply kept growing.

The thing is that, for now, researchers are clueless about how and why this happened. They plan to further investigate the issue and hope to soon sort out this mystery.

The rodent's skin was also affected

Returning from space a tad hairier might not be such a big deal. What worries scientists is the fact that, apart from growing body hair at an accelerated pace, the mice sent to live aboard the International Space Station returned to Earth in dire need of skin care.

As detailed in the journal Nature, space conditions damaged the animals' skin in that they made it thinner and drier. In turn, this made the rodents vulnerable to rashes, scratches and irritation.

Evidence indicates that this happened because, while the mice were living aboard the International Space Station, the collagen in their skin was destroyed at a rapid pace. With this structural protein gone, tissues began to degrade, the research team explain.

“These data suggest that a prolonged exposure to space conditions may induce skin atrophy and deregulate hair follicle cycle,” concludes their report in the journal Nature.

The rodents' home in space
The rodents' home in space

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Mice sent to the International Space Station return to Earth hairier
The rodents' home in space
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