We will present details and initial lab test results from an integrated bioanalytical microsystem designed to conduct the first biology experiments beyond low Earth orbit (LEO) since Apollo 17 (1972). The 14-kg, 12x24x37-cm BioSentinel spacecraft (Figure 1) assays radiation-responsive yeast in its science payload by measuring DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) repaired via homologous recombination, a mechanism common to all eukaryotes including humans. S. cerevisiae (brewer's yeast) in 288 microwells are provided with nutrient and optically assayed for growth and metabolism via 3-color absorptimetry monthly during the 18-month mission. BioSentinel is one of several secondary payloads to be deployed by NASA's Exploration Mission 1 (EM-1) launch vehicle into approximately 0.95 AU heliocentric orbit in July 2018; it will communicate with Earth from up to 100 million km.
BioSentinel Bioanalytical Microsystem: Characterizing DNA Radiation Damage in Living Organisms Beyond Earth Orbit
2016
2 pages
Report
No indication
English
Space Technology , Clinical Medicine , Astrophysics , Earth orbital environments , Long duration space flight , Manned space flight , Extraterrestrial radiation , Deoxyribonucleic acid , Radiation damage , Yeast , Assaying , Aerospace medicine , Risk assessment , Nanosatellites , Spaceborne experiments
NTRS | 2014
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