According to a British study, the immune system of mammals, including humans, could experience great difficulty in the face of possible microorganisms from other planets. The difficulties would be related to the identification of these microbes and therefore, to the defense of the body against their attacks.
The conquest of space raises health issues . Indeed, the humans who will be sent to colonize the Moon and Mars will have to deal with changes in gravity and cosmic radiation. There are also some studies suggesting that long-duration space travel could profoundly affect the brain or even the intestines.
In a study published in the journal Microorganisms on July 17, 2020, researchers from the University of Exeter (UK) are also interested in potential exposure to micro-organisms from another planet where life would have developed.
The main author of the study, Katja Shaefer, recalls in a press release that life on Earth is based on 22 essential amino acids. However, the person concerned indicates that this research has made it possible to theorize life forms having evolved in an environment with different amino acids. Scientists therefore evoke exo-peptides containing rare amino acids on our planet.
Most importantly, the study leaders claimed to have tested the capacity of the immune system of a mammal to detect them. It was also a question of understanding how the organism could defend itself against a possible attack by extraterrestrial microbes . In order to assess this ability, the researchers used mice, whose immune system is very similar to that of humans.
So the researchers exposed the mice's immune cells to two exo-peptides. The latter mimicked the structure of exo-peptides frequently found on the bodies of meteorites. After the exposure, the scientists noted the triggering of an immune response. However, this one was of a rather low intensity compared to what is observable in normal times.
The conclusion of the study is still only a hypothesis, but this one is quite worrying. Indeed, researchers believe that human contact with extraterrestrial microorganisms could represent an immunological risk. This is a risk for astronauts on mission but also for the Earth. Indeed, some space missions aim to bring back samples from Mars and other exoplanets!
