LEDs as countermeasure for pituitary/neuroendocrine effects of space flight

What we learn in space, by developing countermeasures for long-term exposure to microgravity and radiation exposure, can lead to tremendous improvements in medical care for patients here on earth. Spaceflight has been shown to impair bone, muscle and cutaneous repair as well as pituitary/neuroendocrine function. The limited information available suggests that delayed healing in microgravity is related to impairedangiogenesis, immune dysfunction and alterations in cell migration. These are also primary factors contributing to non-healing, chronic wounds on earth. The focus of this Phase I was to determine if Light-Emitting Diode (LED) technology used for biostimulation can be enhanced to deliver doses of near-infrared (IR) light deep into the brain, at the level of the pituitary gland, to stimulate neuronal processes, including cytochrome c oxidase activity and neuronal regeneration. This may have multiple benefits as countermeasures to neurologic injury from microgravity and radiation in long-term space flight, such as the ability to restore neuroendocrine function.