12/01/2026
SZTE Research Involving Astronauts Could Boost the Success of Long-Duration Space Missions
What kinds of microbiome changes occur during space travel? How can these shifts be prevented or managed? And how can the microbiome’s dynamics in space be precisely measured, monitored, and influenced using laboratory models and real astronaut data? These were some of the central questions examined by researchers at the University of Szeged (SZTE) in a study carried out with the involvement of astronauts working aboard the International Space Station (ISS). The project’s findings not only hold the potential to play a key role in keeping astronauts healthy during long-duration space missions but may also offer valuable insights here on Earth – for instance, in understanding how stress affects the human microbiome.
Long-duration space missions – including future expeditions to Mars – will depend heavily on protecting astronaut health, which in turn is critical to the success of the entire mission. Recognizing this, scientists at the University of Szeged have developed a research project that may play an important role in meeting this need. Such research is essential, as astronauts are exposed to intense physiological and psychological stress during spaceflight, and these extreme conditions can disrupt the human microbiome – the complex community of microorganisms that supports digestion, immune defense, inflammation control, and numerous metabolic processes. When this balance is disturbed, astronauts may become more vulnerable to infections, inflammatory responses, digestive problems, and a wide range of metabolic disorders.
Led by Dr. Dóra Tombácz, Associate Professor at the Department of Medical Biology of the University of Szeged’s Medical School, the Hungarian research team designed a project to examine how microgravity, cosmic radiation, dietary changes, and other mission-specific stressors jointly influence the gut and oral microbiota, as well as the microbial composition of urine (the so-called urobiome). In short, the research aims to uncover how spaceflight reshapes the human microbiome.
The research examines changes in the gut, urine, and oral microbiome. For this reason, samples from the participating astronauts were collected before launch of the Axiom-4 mission last summer, at multiple points during their stay in space, and after their return to Earth. The Szeged team aims to understand the scale and nature of microbiome shifts during spaceflights.
’Our goal is to complete the analysis of all incoming samples and data by late spring or early summer next year, by which time we expect to publish at least one paper summarizing our results. This research is pioneering in several ways. Earlier studies of a similar nature did not have access to the advanced technologies we can now use; in addition, our work includes not only DNA-based but also RNA-based analyses. We are also examining the urinary microbiome under spaceflight conditions – a completely new direction that may yield highly valuable insights. While previous research focused solely on bacterial communities, our project employs methods that enable us to map the full spectrum of viruses as well, collectively known as the virome. Taken together, these advances provide a foundation for future therapeutic studies that could significantly improve the protection of astronaut health during space missions and, in turn, support mission success. However, it is important to note that extreme stress on Earth can also disrupt the human microbiome – and the knowledge gained from this project may help us address such changes more effectively in the future,’ said Dr. Dóra Tombácz.
