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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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311 records · Page 18
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Development of a Space Compatible Biomanufacturing System

Space biomanufacturing is a potential In Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) strategy to provide critical consumables and products while minimizing the launched mass for long-duration, deep space missions. On Earth, the primary biological conversion of CO 2 to biomass is through photosynthesis, and sugars from photosynthetic organisms are used as feedstocks for microbial biomanufacturing. The efficiency of non-biological reduction of CO 2 to organic molecules, such as acetate or ethanol, has greatly increased in recent years. We are designing a biomanufacturing system to rely on electrochemical CO 2 conversion products for carbon substrates to support microbial growth and production of recombinant proteins. The preliminary design includes a gas-permeable membrane bioreactor with dry salts that are rehydrated and mixed with the carbon source to support growth of bacteria or yeast. The system architecture has a partially automated bioprocessing system to concentrate biomass and purify recombinant protein. This system is designed to operate semi-autonomously with minimal crew intervention. The specific use-case scenario is to produce a thermal stable carbonic anhydrase to increase the efficiency of a proposed liquid amine CO 2 removal subsystem of an environmental control and life-support system (ECLSS) on Mars.

Recombinant↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

BioNutrients Bioreactors: Design and Materials Considerations for Synthetic Biology

The BioNutrients project aims to develop an on-demand biological production system capable of producing dietary nutrients and other products of interest. A key element of this system is the bioreactor itself, which needs to provide a suitable environment for growth of the selected microorganism(s). To support respiration of the organisms, the bioreactor should have gas-permeable elements to allow metabolically required gases (e.g., oxygen) to enter and byproduct gases (e.g., carbon dioxide) to escape. For systems utilizing yeast for precision fermentation, the system also needs to prevent or minimize the release of ethanol, which has impacts on the Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS). Additionally, the bioreactor must include interfaces for hydrating the microorganism(s), sampling, and crew interface. For experiments on the International Space Station (ISS), the bioreactor must also comply with ISS-levied offgassing, cold stowage, and other safety requirements. This presentation aims to explore these design considerations, using the examples of the bioreactors used for the BioNutrients ISS payload series.

vitamins↗
NASA NTRS1985

Elimination of toxicity from polyurethane foam plugs used for plant culture

Polyurethane foam plugs commonly are used as collars or supports to grow plants in solution culture. Despite their utility, these foam plugs can be quite toxic to plants, particularly to small seedlings. We have observed tissue injury in tests using plugs to support lettuce, red beet, and potato plants in solution culture. Typically, the injury is initiated on the hypocotyl or stem tissue in direct contact with the foam, and appears within 30 hr as a brownish discoloration on the tissue surface. This discoloration can be followed by complete collapse of affected tissue and eventual death of the seedling. When injury does not progress beyond surface browning, the seedling survives but growth is slowed. In this paper, we report on different treatments that can be used to remove the toxicity of these plugs so they can be used in plant research.

Non-NASA Center↗
NASA NTRS1993

cAMP levels in fast- and slow-twitch skeletal muscle after an acute bout of aerobic exercise

The present study examined whether exercise duration was associated with elevated and/or sustained elevations of postexercise adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cAMP) by measuring cAMP levels in skeletal muscle for up to 4 h after acute exercise bouts of durations that are known to either produce (60 min) or not produce (10 min) mitochondrial proliferation after chronic training. Treadmill-acclimatized, but untrained, rats were run at 22 m/min for 0 (control), 10, or 60 min and were killed at various postexercise (0, 0.5, 1, 2, and 4 h) time points. Fast-twitch white and red (quadriceps) and slow-twitch (soleus) muscles were quickly excised, frozen in liquid nitrogen, and assayed for cAMP with a commercial kit. Unexpectedly, cAMP contents in all three muscles were similar to control (nonexercise) at most (21 of 30) time points after a single 10- or 60-min run. Values at 9 of 30 time points were significantly different from control (P < 0.05); i.e., 3 time points were significantly higher than control and 6 were significantly less than control. These data suggest that the cAMP concentration of untrained skeletal muscle after a single bout of endurance-type exercise is not, by itself, associated with exercise duration.

NASA Discipline Musculoskeletal↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Harnessing Synthetic Biology for Biomanufacturing in Space: ​from Fermented Foods to Industrial Enzymes

Biomanufacturing can provide on-demand production of mission-critical compounds and materials to support long-duration space exploration while circumventing the challenges of transporting materials from Earth. Synthetic Biology Project is developing two biomanufacturing capabilities: BioNutrients and CO2-Based Manufacturing. BioNutrients is an ongoing mission aboard the International Space Station focused on the production of perishable nutrients in an on demand for direct for consumption. The first flight experiment of this project targeted the production of carotenoids: β-carotene and zeaxanthin, in recombinant yeast strains. Since then, the project has expanded to encompass the production of the fermented consumables like yogurt and kefir for use as a nutrient delivery mechanism. The CO2-Based Manufacturing system aims to use in situ resources to allow for biomanufacturing with minimal re-supply required. The manufacturing platform is combined with an electrochemical CO2 conversion system which can produce simple carbon substrates to support microbial based biomanufacturing. A comprehensive ground-based platform for recombinant protein purification is in development with the goal of producing a thermostable carbonic anhydrase enzyme from E. coli utilizing CO2-derived acetate. Our group hopes to propel advancements in space biomanufacturing for long duration space flight by harnessing the tools of synthetic biology.

synthetic biology↗