Corresponding author Senior Research Scientist Dr Kasthuri Venkateswaran, at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), also added that the damage from the microbes is not yet known.
He said: “Specific microbes in these indoor spaces have been shown to impact human health by influencing our susceptibility to allergies, infectious diseases, or sick building syndrome.
“The influence of the indoor microbiome on human health becomes more important for astronauts during flights due to altered immunity associated with space flight and the lack of sophisticated medical interventions that are available on Earth.”
Mr Venkateswaran noted that like indoor environments on Earth, it is incredibly easy for the bacteria to build up due the extreme environment of the space station.
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