Stefan Schneider

• Prof. Dr. Dr.
• Centre for Health and Integrative Physiology in Space (CHIPS) at Deutsche Sporthochschule Köln

A number of studies have well described central cardiovascular changes caused by changing gravity levels as they occur e.g. during parabolic flight. However limited data exists describing the effect of microgravity on the cerebrovascular system and brain perfusion, which might heavily affect the intracranial pressure (ICP). In this study, performed...

Space analog research has increased over the last few years with new analogs appearing every year. Research in this field is very important for future real mission planning, selection and training of astronauts. Analog environments offer specific characteristics that resemble to some extent the environment of a real space mission. These analog envi...

The plans of international space agencies to return to the Moon and explore deep space, including Mars, highlight the challenges of human adaptation and stress the need for a thorough analysis of the factors that facilitate, limit and modify human performance under extreme environments. This study investigates the influence of partial gravity on be...

The effects of hypergravity and the associated increased pressure on the human body have not yet been studied in detail, but are of great importance for the safety of astronauts on space missions and could have a long-term impact on rehabilitation strategies for neurological patients. Considering the plans of international space agencies with the e...

Isolation is stressful and negatively affects sleep and mood and might also affect the structure and function of the brain. Physical exercise improves brain function. We investigated the influence of physical exercise during isolation on sleep, affect, and neurobehavioral function. N = 16 were isolated for 30 days with daily exercise routines (ISO1...

Background Preventive lifestyle strategies have shown promise to slow down or prevent age-related cognitive decline. However, evidence on the reciprocal longitudinal relationships between nutrition biomarkers and cognitive and physical performance is lacking. Studying nutritional, cognitive, and physical profiles over time may help to overcome this...

Purpose Our aim was to compare cerebrovascular and systemic vascular function between older adults with and without mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and to determine which measures of vascular function best predict the presence of MCI. Methods In 41 adults with MCI and 33 adults without MCI (control) we compared middle cerebral artery velocity (MC...

Exercise could prevent physical and psychological deteriorations, especially during pandemic times of lock-down scenarios and social isolation. But to meet both, the common exercise protocols require optimization based on holistic investigations and with respect to underlying processes. This study aimed to explore individual chronic and acute effec...

Exercise could prevent physical and psychological deteriorations, especially during pandemic times of lock-down scenarios and social isolation. But to meet both, the common exercise protocols require optimization based on holistic investigations and with respect to underlying processes. This study aimed to clarify individual chronic and acute effec...

Introduction. Astronauts will encounter isolated, confined and extreme (ICE) conditions during future missions, and will have to be able to adapt. Until recently, however, few places on Earth could serve as acceptable space analogues (i.e., submarine and polar regions). The coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19)-related lockdowns around the globe prov...

Aim: The aim of this pilot study was to examine the acute effect of a psychomotor intervention (PMI) on auditory-verbal memory, emotional state, and electrocortical activity recorded by electroencephalography on subjectively healthy older adults (sHE) and older adults diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment (MCIs). Methods: Eleven MCIs and 11 s...

Exercise intervention studies in mild cognitive impairment (MCI), a prodromal stage of Alzheimer's disease (AD), have demonstrated inconsistent yet promising results. Addressing the limitations of previous studies, this trial investigated the effects of a 12-month structured exercise program on the progression of MCI. The NeuroExercise study is a m...

Objective The analysis of event-related potentials (ERPs) is a useful tool to differentiate between healthy older adults, and individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Less is known about the ERPs’ sensitivity of differentiating between individuals with subjective cognitive impairment (SCI) and MCI, as early evidence indicates similar brain...

Introduction: Aging is associated with impaired cerebrovascular blood flow and function, attributed to reduced vasodilatory capacity of the cerebrovascular network. Older adults may also have an impaired relationship between changes in blood pressure and cerebral blood flow; however, previous reports conflict. This study aimed to compare the blood...

Background Despite demographic change and increased life and health demands of the younger generations, numerous companies, especially small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), continue to shy away from the quantitative and qualitative expansion of workplace health promotion (WHP) as a means of maintaining workability and employee loyalty. Objec...

Zusammenfassung Neben den motorischen Symptomen wie Rigor, Tremor, Bradykinese und posturale Instabilität führt Morbus Parkinson oftmals auch zu einer Beeinträchtigung der kognitiven Leistungsfähigkeit. Um dem kognitiven Abbau vorzubeugen, gewinnen Sport und Bewegung an Bedeutung. Allerdings sind ihre Effekte auf die Kognition bei Morbus Parkinson...

Was Wählen-Gehen, schlaue Kinder und Den-Hund-Rausbringen gemeinsam haben..

Purpose A number of studies has well described central cardiovascular changes caused by changing gravity levels as they occur e.g. during parabolic flight. limited data exists describing the effect of microgravity on the cerebrovascular system and brain perfusion. Methods In this study middle cerebral artery velocity (MCAv) of 16 participants was...

Since the beginning of manned spaceflight, the challenge for space science is to avoid or minimize physiological degeneration processes of the musculoskeletal and cardiovascular system caused by missing gravity. With ongoing mission duration it becomes clear that weightlessness and isolation in space has an impact also on cognitive performance and...

Background: Activity tracking devices gain popularity in research, which is due to their multiple features (e.g. heart rate monitor, step count) and easy handling. Nevertheless, many devices used for research are lacking validation of specific features. This study aimed to assess the validity of the Polar M400© activity tracker to count steps in o...

The number of studies on work breaks and the importance of this subject is growing rapidly, with research showing that work breaks increase employees' wellbeing and performance and workplace safety. However, comparing the results of work break research is difficult since the study designs and methods are heterogeneous and there is no standard theor...

FROM ANTARCTICA TO ALZHEIMERS – EXERCISE HELPS TO PREVENT COGNITIVE DECLINE INTRODUCTION Regular physical exercise has been proven to counteract physiological deconditioning caused by a sedentary lifestyle. More recently, human and animal studies have demonstrated that regular physical activity also targets brain function by increasing cognition a...

In rehabilitation settings, exercise intensity is often monitored with Borg's rating of perceived exertion (RPE). However, previous studies showed that severe cognitive impairment may limit the usability of the RPE. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between RPE and heart rate (HR), and to establish whether a target RPE can be use...

The increasing demand of space flights requires a profound knowledge of the chronologic reactions of the human body to extreme conditions. Prior studies already have shown the adverse effects of long-term isolation on psycho-physiological well-being. The chronology of the effects and whether short-term isolation periods already lead to similar effe...

Objective To investigate the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and cognitive response to a short bout of high-intensity aerobic exercise in older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Methods Participants were randomised to one of two testing schedules, completing either a standardised exercise test (group A) or a resting control con...

Age-associated cognitive impairment in general and dementia in particular are a global concern. Preventive lifestyle strategies are highly used but there is a lack of information on the reciprocal relationships between nutrition biomarkers and measures of both cognitive and physical performance. To fill this gap of knowledge, the relationship betwe...

Changes in gravity conditions have previously been reported to influence brain hemodynamics as well as neuronal activity. This paper attempts to identify a possible link between changes in brain blood flow and neuronal activity during microgravity. Middle cerebral artery flow velocity (MCAv) was measured using Doppler ultrasound. Brain cortical act...

Previous studies showed a decrease in reaction time during the weightlessness phase of a parabolic flight. This effect was found to be stronger with increasing task complexity and was independent of previous experience of weightlessness as well as anti-nausea medication. Analysis of event related potentials showed a decreased amplitude of the N100-...

Background Supervised exercise training alleviates motor symptoms in people with Parkinson’s disease (PD). However, the efficacy of exercise to improve nonmotor symptoms such as cognitive function is less well known. Objective To systematically review evidence on the efficacy of different exercise modes (coordination exercise, resistance exercise,...

Purpose: Aging is associated with impaired cerebral blood flow (CBF) and increased risk of cerebrovascular disease. Acute increases in CBF during exercise may initiate improvements in cerebrovascular health, but the CBF response is diminished during continuous exercise in older adults. The effect of interval exercise for promoting increases in CBF...

Concordia station in Antarctica is one of the most remote human outpost on Earth. Because of its geographical location, a winterover at Concordia shares a lot of stressors with a space mission. Following a recent study on the markers of sleep pressure during wakefulness on board of the International Space Station, we were investigating if long term...

Purpose: The aim of the study was to test whether or not the arteriovenous oxygen concentration difference (avDO2) kinetics at the pulmonary (avDO2pulm) and muscle (avDO2musc) levels is significantly different during dynamic exercise. Methods: A re-analysis involving six publications dealing with kinetic analysis was utilized with an overall sam...

Background By 2030, about 74 million people will be diagnosed with dementia, and many more will experience subjective (SCI) or mild cognitive impairment (MCI). As physical inactivity has been identified to be a strong modifiable risk factor for dementia, exercise and physical activity (PA) may be important parameters to predict the progression from...

Prevention trials in subjects with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), especially lifestyle interventions, can be difficult to carry out, particularly the recruitment and retention of subjects. We experienced these challenges in our multi-site one-year exercise trial in MCI, NeuroExercise. Trial recruitment rates differed significantly across sites; t...

Purpose: The aim of the study was to test for significant differences in non-invasively estimated muscle oxygen uptake ([Formula: see text]) kinetics, assessed by a square-wave exercise protocol (STEP) as well as by a time series approach with pseudorandom binary sequence (PRBS) work rate (WR) changes. Methods: Seventeen healthy and active indiv...

Work breaks are known to have positive effects on employees’ health, performance, and safety. Using a sample of twelve employees working in a stressful and cognitively demanding working environment, this experimental field study examined how different types of work breaks (boxing, deep relaxation, and usual breaks) affect participants’ mood, cognit...

The aim of this study was to determine the hemodynamic and neuroendocrinological responses to different levels and protocols of artificial gravity, especially in comparison to what is expected during a moderate bout of exercise. Ten male participants were exposed to artificial gravity using two different protocols: the first was a centrifugation pr...

Handbuch der Religionen - Das Nachschlagewerk für Wissenschaft und Praxis Das Handbuch der Religionen ist ein in Anspruch und Umfang einzigartiges, wissenschaftlich fundiertes Nachschlagewerk über das gesamte Spektrum der Religionen in Deutschland und im deutschsprachigen Raum. Das Handbuch der Religionen bietet: - wissenschaftlich fundiertes Orien...

Objective: The aim of this study was to compare the influence of a class of aerobic exercise and an arts class on brain cortical activity and possible effects on cognitive performance. Subject and methods: Electroencephalography was used to record the electro cortical activity of sixteen (16) school children (8-10 years) before and after an aero...

Purpose: The aim of the study was to compare the responses of pulmonary (V'O2pulm) and muscle (V'O2musc) oxygen uptake kinetics before (PRE) and after (POST) six weeks of endurance exercise training. Methods: Nine untrained individuals performed pseudo-random binary sequences work rate changes between 30W and 80W at PRE and POST training interve...

Purpose: The goal of the study was to compare the kinetics responses of heart rate (HR) and pulmonary (V’O2pulm) and muscular (V’O2musc) oxygen uptake during dynamic leg exercise across different acute ambient temperature conditions in a climatic chamber. Methods: Thirteen physically healthy, active male volunteers performed pseudo-random binary se...

Background: Recent research suggests using an imaginary version of the Timed Up and Go test (TUG) for a first assessment of cognitive impairment. By using the time difference between a real (TUGr) and an imagined (TUGi) TUG task, the objective of this study was to examine the effect of cognitive impairment on motor imagery ability. Methods: Fift...

Research on motor behavioural processes preceding voluntary movements often refers to analysing the readiness potential (RP). For this, decades of studies used laboratory setups with controlled sports-related actions. Further, recent applied approaches focus on athlete-non-athlete comparisons, omitting possible effects of training history on RP. Ho...

Background: Exercise interventions to prevent dementia and delay cognitive decline have gained considerable attention in recent years. Human and animal studies have demonstrated that regular physical activity targets brain function by increasing cognitive reserve. There is also evidence of structural changes caused by exercise in preventing or del...

Purpose: The aim of the study was to compare the kinetics responses of heart rate (HR), pulmonary (V'O2pulm) and predicted muscular (V'O2musc) oxygen uptake between two different pseudo-random binary sequence (PRBS) work rate (WR) amplitudes both below anaerobic threshold. Methods: Eight healthy individuals performed two PRBS WR protocols implyi...

Artificial gravity protocols are used to improve g-tolerance of aviators and discussed as countermeasure during prolonged space flight. Little is known about the impact of artificial gravity on the red blood cells (RBC). The purpose of the study was to test how artificial gravity affects RBC deformability and aggregation, which are important determ...

Parabolic flights represent an important tool in space research to investigate zero gravity on airplanes. Research on these flights often target psychological and biological processes in humans to investigate if and how we can adapt to this unique environment. This research is costly, hard to conduct and clearly heavily relies on humans participati...

Long-duration exercise has been linked with the psychological model of flow. It is expected that the flow experience is characterized by specific changes in cortical activity, especially a transient hypofrontality, which has recently been connected with an increase in cognitive performance post-exercise. Nevertheless, data on neuro-affective and ne...

In order to maintain and improve space mission safety and success, there has been growing interest in the effects of microgravity on cognitive processing. While findings today are quite inconsistent, those studies reporting a decrement in cognitive performance have not been able to distinguish between the direct influence of microgravity and any as...

Spaceflight is known to include the risk for physiological deconditioning as well as mental impairments, endangering mission safety and success. While Space science primarily focussed on physical health in the past, mental health (i.e. cognitive performance and affective state) was widely neglected. Today, not only in Space but also exercise scienc...

Introduction & Aims: Aging and age-related conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease are associated with a decline in cerebral blood flow (CBF). Exercise training is known to delay this age-effect and improve cerebrovascular health. CBF regulation during exercise is complex and may differ with age. Improved understanding of the factors that modulate C...

Increasing evidence indicates that chronic stress, such as social isolation, plays an important role in the development of a variety of psychiatric and somatic disorders. Meanwhile, chronic stress imposed by prolonged isolation and confinement in the spacecraft is also one of the major concerns for the health of future interplanetary space traveler...

This volume of the Series SpringerBriefs in Space Life Sciences summarizes the newest finding in the field of mental health and physiological exercise in Space. Currently two major challenges are impacting human health in the western societies, one being a move towards a sedentary society, the second one being longevity. Both have a considerable im...

Introduction: Handcycling is a relatively new wheelchair sport that has gained increased popularity for people with lower limb disabilities. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of three different grip positions on physical parameters during handcycling in a laboratory setting. Methods: Twenty one able-bodied participants performed three...

Beside its positive impact on physical health, exercise is indicated to positively affect cognitive performance based on a relocation of cortical activity. This study examined the influence of different types of breaks on cognitive performance and related cortical activity in office-based employees. Breaks were filled with exercise, resting or a us...

Virtual reality environments are increasingly being used to encourage individuals to exercise more regularly, including as part of treatment those with mental health or neurological disorders. The success of virtual environments likely depends on whether a sense of presence can be established, where participants become fully immersed in the virtual...

A previous study showed differences between post-exercise brain cortical activities dependent on exercise mode (Brümmer et al. 2011). Because a decrease of brain cortical activity was revealed following running exercise but not bicycling, arm-cranking or isometric strength exercise, it was hypothesized that exercise preference or adaptation might p...

INTRODUCTION Long duration exercise has been linked with the psychological model of Flow. Flow describes a mental state, during which a person is fully immersed in the process of an action. It is expected that the Flow experience is going along with specific changes in cortical activity, especially a transient hypofrontality which has recently been...

Exposure to artificial gravity (AG) at different G loads and durations on human centrifuges has been shown to improve orthostatic tolerance in men. However, the effects on women and of an individual-specific AG training protocol on tolerance are not known. We examined the effects of 90 minutes of AG vs. 90 minutes of supine rest on the orthostatic...

Introduction: Mental impairments, including deterioration of mood and cognitive performance, are known to occur during isolation and space missions, but have been insufficiently investigated. Appropriate countermeasures are required, such as exercise, which is known to prevent mood disorders for prolonged space and isolation missions. Based on the...

The correlation of NIRS (near-infrared spectroscopy) and EEG (electro-cortical activity) in exercise studies has never been shown. Eight sport students performed an incremental bicycle exercise test under normoxic and hypoxic (12.7% O2) conditions respectively. EEG and NIRS recordings of the prefrontal cortex (PFC, Brodmann area 10. 46) were perfor...

Collective evidence indicates that previous exposure to stressful condition might be able to induce changes in brain structure, HPA axis activity and related neurotransmission, and accordingly affect physiological responses to subsequent challenges. During long-term spaceflight, space travelers have to live under the condition of isolation-and-conf...

Recently, virtual environments (VEs) are suggested to encourage users to exercise regularly. The benefits of chronic exercise on cognitive performance are well documented in non-VE neurophysiological and behavioural studies. Based on event-related potentials (ERP) such as the N200 and P300, cognitive processing may be interpreted on a neuronal leve...

Recent studies postulated that increased oxygenation of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) during elevating exercise intensities reflects a specific activation of this region. Furthermore, the drop in PFC oxygenation often measured shortly before exhaustion is interpreted as a main factor limiting exercise. Nevertheless, a limitation of these studies is t...

In the last decades exercise in space has mainly been used to counteract musculoskeletal and cardiovascular deconditioning. This is in accordance with the mainstream approach of exercise science to preserve and restore physical health. Today we know that exercise holds an additional dimension, affecting not only the peripheral physiological system...

In the last decades exercise in space has mainly been used to counteract musculoskeletal and cardiovascular deconditioning. This is in accordance with the mainstream approach of exercise science to preserve and restore physical health. Today we knowthat exercise holds an additional dimension, affecting not only the peripheral physiological system b...

Keeping astronauts healthy during long duration spaceflight remains a challenge. Artificial gravity (AG) generated by a short arm human centrifuges (SAHC) is proposed as the next generation of integrated countermeasure devices that will allow human beings to safely spend extended durations in space, although comparatively little is known about any...

Physical exercise is important for people living under extreme environmental conditions to stay healthy. Particularly in space, exercise can partially counteract the loss of muscle mass and muscle strength caused by microgravity. Monitoring the adaptation of the musculoskeletal system to assess muscle quality and devise individual training programm...

Neutral buoyancy facilities are used to prepare astronauts and cosmonauts for extra vehicular activities e.g. on-board of the International Space Station. While previous studies indicated a decrease in cognitive performance in an under water setting, they have only provided behavioural data. This study aimed to review whether recording of electro c...

Aim: The aim of this study was to determine psychophysiological responses and cognitive performance after a single bout of artificial gravity, in order to investigate its use as a potential holistic countermeasure for long-duration human space flight, considering mental health. Methods: Sixteen male participants were exposed to two different hyper...

Since the beginning of manned spaceflight, the challenge for space science is to avoid or minimize physiological degeneration processes of the musculoskeletal and cardiovascular system caused by missing gravity. With ongoing mission it became clear that weightlessness and isolation in space has an impact also on cognitive performance and mood. Both...

Imaging the brain during complex and intensive movements is challenging due to the susceptibility of brain-imaging methods for motion and myogenic artifacts. A few studies measured brain activity during either single-joint or low-intensity exercises; however, the cortical activation state during larger movements with increases up to maximal intensi...

Abstract The effect of sleep deprivation on psychophysical performance and well-being is comprehensively investigated. Research investigating the effect of improved sleep is rare. Just as little exists about attempts to support athletic mental state and performance by improving sleep quality. This study aims to investigate whether sleep quality of...

Introduction: Psychiatric diseases have reached one of the top positions for absenteeism in Europe in 2012 and are still increasing. The diagnosis Burnout with its exhaustion syndroms turns to be the most present and cost-intensive disease for national economies and health inscurances. This entails tremendous economic damage in the loss of producti...

Bedingt durch weit reichende Veränderungen in den Lebens- und Arbeitsbedingungen, dem damit verbundenen Gewinn an Freizeit, aber auch dem Verlust an körperlicher Erwerbstätigkeit, ist in den vergangenen Jahrzehnten eine große und vielfältige Gemeinde aktiv Sport Treibender gewachsen. Im Zentrum dieser Bewegung stand und steht – neben einem Gesellig...

To understand whether prolonged confinement results in reductions in physical activity and adaptation in the musculoskeletal system, six subjects were measured during 520 d isolation in the Mars500 study. We tested the hypothesis that physical activity reduces in prolonged confinement and that this would be associated with decrements of neuromuscul...

Artificial gravity has been proposed as a method to counteract the physiological de-conditioning of long duration spaceflight, however the effects of hypergravity on the central nervous system has had little study. The study aims to investigate whether there is a relationship between prefrontal cortex brain activity and prefrontal cortex oxygenatio...

Assessing changes in brain activity under extreme conditions like weightlessness is a desirable, but difficult undertaking. Results from previous studies report specific changes in brain activity connected to an increase or decrease in gravity forces. Nevertheless, so far it remains unclear (1) whether this is connected to a redistribution of blood...

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether previously found decreases of prefrontal electrocortical activity in weightlessness during parabolic flights are due to hemodynamic or altered central-nervous activity within the brain. Two near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) probes placed on the prefrontal cortex were used to record changes of oxy...

a b s t r a c t Recently the psychological effects of space flight have gained in attention. In uncovering the psychological challenges that individuals and teams can face, we need research options that integrate psychosocial aspects with behavioral, performance, technical and environmental issues. Future perspectives in Space Psychology and Human...