title: A cholinomimetic model of motion sickness and space adaptation syndrome.
abstract: The space adaptation syndrome is one of the more vexing problems confronted by our nation's astronauts during their journeys. This syndrome may be a variant of motion sickness, although this possibility has been questioned. Physostigmine, a centrally active cholinesterase inhibitor which increases brain acetylcholine, was found to cause a motion sickness-like syndrome--in psychiatric patients and normals--including nausea, emesis, malaise, dysphoria, increases in serum ACTH, beta-endorphin, cortisol, and prolactin, Neostigmine, a non-centrally acting cholinesterase inhibitor, and saline placebo caused no such effects. The above effects closely parallel those of motion sickness. Thus, the effects of physostigmine may be a convenient model for screening for treatments for motion sickness or space adaptation syndrome, or for predicting who will develop these syndromes.
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological / Q000187:drug effects*; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001519:Behavior / Q000187:drug effects; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000187:drug effects; D002395:Catecholamines / Q000097:blood; D006728:Hormones / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009041:Motion Sickness / Q000139:chemically induced*; D009325:Nausea / Q000139:chemically induced; D010830:Physostigmine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D011674:Pulse / Q000187:drug effects; D013026:Space Flight; D013577:Syndrome
chemical_list: D002395:Catecholamines; D006728:Hormones; D010830:Physostigmine