Hemolysis contributes to anemia during long-duration space flight.

Anemia in astronauts has been noted since the first space missions, but the mechanisms contributing to anemia in space flight have remained unclear. Here, we show that space flight is associated with persistently increased levels of products of hemoglobin degradation, carbon monoxide in alveolar air and iron in serum, in 14 astronauts throughout their 6-month missions onboard the International Space Station. One year after landing, erythrocytic effects persisted, including increased levels of hemolysis, reticulocytosis and hemoglobin.

Measuring Human Hemolysis Clinically and in Extreme Environments Using Endogenous Carbon Monoxide Elimination.

The measure of hemolysis in humans is clinically important. Here we describe methods using a gas chromatograph equipped with a reduction gas detector to detect the human analyte carbon monoxide (CO) that were developed for the extreme environment of the International Space Station. These methods can be adapted to in-hospital use for clinical care with characteristics that may surpass existing measures of hemolysis.