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NASA NTRS1991

Johnson Space Center's regenerative life support systems test bed

The Regenerative Life Support System (RLSS) Test Bed at NASA's Johnson Space Center is an atmospherically closed, controlled environment facility for the evaluation of regenerative life support systems using higher plants in conjunction with physicochemical life support systems. When completed, the facility will be comprised of two large scale plant growth chambers, each with approximately 10 m(exp 2) growing area. One of the two chambers, the Variable Pressure Growth Chamber (VPGC), will be capable of operating at lower atmospheric pressures to evaluate a range of environments that may be used in Lunar or Martian habitats; the other chamber, the Ambient Pressure Growth Chamber (APGC) will operate at ambient atmospheric pressure. The root zone in each chamber will be configurable for hydroponic or solid state media systems. Research will focus on: (1) in situ resource utilization for CELSS systems, in which simulated lunar soils will be used in selected crop growth studies; (2) integration of biological and physicochemical air and water revitalization systems; (3) effect of atmospheric pressure on system performance; and (4) monitoring and control strategies.

Henninger, Donald L.↗

DOE OSTI2024

High-throughput single-cell transcriptomics of bacteria using combinatorial barcoding

Microbial split-pool ligation transcriptomics (microSPLiT) is a high-throughput single-cell RNA sequencing method for bacteria. With four combinatorial barcoding rounds, microSPLiT can profile transcriptional states in hundreds of thousands of Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria in a single experiment without specialized equipment. As bacterial samples are fixed and permeabilized before barcoding, they can be collected and stored ahead of time. During the first barcoding round, the fixed and permeabilized bacteria are distributed into a 96-well plate, where their transcripts are reverse transcribed into cDNA and labeled with the first well-specific barcode inside the cells. The cells are mixed and redistributed two more times into new 96-well plates, where the second and third barcodes are appended to the cDNA via in-cell ligation reactions. Finally, the cells are mixed and divided into aliquot sub-libraries, which can be stored until future use or prepared for sequencing with the addition of a fourth barcode. It takes 4 days to generate sequencing-ready libraries, including 1 day for collection and overnight fixation of samples. Here, the standard plate setup enables single-cell transcriptional profiling of up to 1 million bacterial cells and up to 96 samples in a single barcoding experiment, with the possibility of expansion by adding barcoding rounds. The protocol requires experience in basic molecular biology techniques, handling of bacterial samples and preparation of DNA libraries for next-generation sequencing. It can be performed by experienced undergraduate or graduate students. Data analysis requires access to computing resources, familiarity with Unix command line and basic experience with Python or R.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2024

Intrinsic and environmental drivers of pairwise cohesion in wild Canis social groups

Animals within social groups respond to costs and benefits of sociality by adjusting the proportion of time they spend in close proximity to other individuals in the group (cohesion). Variation in cohesion between individuals, in turn, shapes important group-level processes such as subgroup formation and fission–fusion dynamics. Although critical to animal sociality, a comprehensive understanding of the factors influencing cohesion remains a gap in our knowledge of cooperative behavior in animals. We tracked 574 individuals from six species within the genus Canis in 15 countries on four continents with GPS telemetry to estimate the time that pairs of individuals within social groups spent in close proximity and test hypotheses regarding drivers of cohesion. Pairs of social canids (Canis spp.) varied widely in the proportion of time they spent together (5%–100%) during seasonal monitoring periods relative to both intrinsic characteristics and environmental conditions. The majority of our data came from three species of wolves (gray wolves, eastern wolves, and red wolves) and coyotes. For these species, cohesion within social groups was greatest between breeding pairs and varied seasonally as the nature of cooperative activities changed relative to annual life history patterns. Across species, wolves were more cohesive than coyotes. For wolves, pairs were less cohesive in larger groups, and when suitable, small prey was present reflecting the constraints of food resources and intragroup competition on social associations. Pair cohesion in wolves declined with increased anthropogenic modification of the landscape and greater climatic variability, underscoring challenges for conserving social top predators in a changing world. We show that pairwise cohesion in social groups varies strongly both within and across Canis species, as individuals respond to changing ecological context defined by resources, competition, and anthropogenic disturbance. Our work highlights that cohesion is a highly plastic component of animal sociality that holds significant promise for elucidating ecological and evolutionary mechanisms underlying cooperative behavior.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

NASA NTRS2020

Maternal provisioning gives young-of-the-year Hammerheads a head start in early life

For species that do not provide parental care after birth, excess maternal provisioning during development, beyond what is required for embryogenesis, provides offspring with resources to increase their chances of survival. Maternally derived resources are expected to be important for buffering offspring against limited food resources at birth or time needed to learn how to properly feed. Young-of-the-year (YOY) cryptic Scalloped Hammerheads (Sphyrna lewini) and Carolina Hammerheads (Sphyrna gilberti) were sampled from nurseries along the US Atlantic Coast and compared for a number of biological condition metrics across three developmental stages. Large declines in liver lipid content and hepatosomatic indices were found in neonatal sharks, using umbilical scar healing as a proxy for time since birth. Feeding commenced quickly as 96% of sharks had prey remnants in their stomachs. The combination of rapid exhaustion of maternally provided resources and high occurrence of stomachs with prey contents indicate that nursery quality, with respect to prey availability, may be important for YOY hammerhead survivorship. While externally the two species are morphologically similar, longer length-at-birth in S. lewini and higher hepatic condition in neonatal S. gilberti suggest that aspects of reproductive biology, including physiology, may differ between species. While more information is needed to distinguish life history differences between these two species, data collected from YOY may serve as a useful proxy to inform management when adult samples of cryptic species are difficult to collect.

none↗

NASA NTRS1994

Electrochemical Technology for Oxygen Removal and Measurement in the CELSS Test Facility, Engineering Development Unit

The Life Support Flight Program is evaluating regenerative technologies, including those that utilize higher plants, as a means to reduce resupply over long duration space missions. Constructed to assist in the evaluation process is the CELSS Test Facility Engineering Development Unit (CTF-EDU) an environmentally closed (less than 1% mass and thermal leakage) technology test bed. This ground based fully functional prototype is currently configured to support crop growth, utilizing the power, volume and mass resources allocated for two space station racks. Sub-system technologies were selected considering their impact on available resources, their ability to minimize integration issues, and their degree of modularity. Gas specific mass handling is a key sub-system technology for both biological and physical/chemical life support technologies. The CTF-EDU requires such a system to accommodate non-linear oxygen production from crops, by enabling the control system to change and sustain partial pressure set points in the growth volume. Electrochemical cells are one of the technologies that were examined for oxygen handling in the CTF-EDU. They have been additionally considered to meet other regenerative life support functions, such as oxygen generation, the production of potable water from composite waste streams, and for having the potential to integrate life support functions with those of propulsion and energy storage. An oxygen removal system based on an electrochemical cell was chosen for the EDU due to it's low power, volume and mass requirements (10W, 0.000027 cu m, 4.5 kg) and because of the minimal number of integration considerations. Unlike it's competitors, the system doesn't require post treatments of its byproducts, or heat and power intensive regenerations, that also mandate system redundancy or cycling. The EDUs oxygen removal system only requires two resources, which are already essential to controlled plant growth: electricity and water. Additionally, the amount of oxygen that is removed from the EDU is directly proportional to the cell input current via Faraday's constant, potentially allowing for a mol/electron measurement of photosynthetic rate. The currently operative oxygen removal system has maintained reduced oxygen set points within the EDU, and preparation is underway to verify of the accuracy of electrochemical measurement of oxygen production and hence, photosynthesis. This paper examines the working principles of the electrochemical cell, outlines the overall design of the oxygen removal system and its integration with other EDU subsystems, and summarizes test results obtained over crop growth cycles in the CTF-EDU.

Drews, Michael E.↗

DOE OSTI2025

Evaluation of Howard A. Hanson Dam Juvenile Fish Passage and Survival Study: Downstream Passage and Survival (Acoustic Telemetry) (Task Final Report)

The Downstream Passage and Survival (Acoustic Telemetry) task was one of several tasks for the Evaluation of Howard A. Hanson Dam (HAHD) Juvenile Fish Passage and Survival study. For this task, a juvenile fish passage and survival study was conducted at HAHD from March 10, 2024 through June 27, 2024 for arrays in the HAHD Reservoir and Green River, and through July 9, 2024 for the arrays in the Duwamish River. Fish releases occurred over four times from March through May. Active tag (acoustic telemetry) technology was used to provide biological baseline information for the passage and survival of juvenile Puget Sound (PS) Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha). Results will be used by biologists, engineers, resource managers, and regional decision-makers to inform the engineering design of the new fish passage facility (FPF) at HAHD. However, hatchery sub-yearling PS Chinook salmon of the appropriate size for tag implantation during the study period (> 95 mm in fork length, Geist et al. 2018) were unavailable. Therefore, yearling Coho salmon (O. kisutch) were used as a surrogate species for this acoustic telemetry study.

13 HYDRO ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2021

Mars: new insights and unresolved questions

Mars exploration motivates the search for extraterrestrial life, the development of space technologies, and the design of human missions and habitations. Here, we seek new insights and pose unresolved questions relating to the natural history of Mars, habitability, robotic and human exploration, planetary protection, and the impacts on human society.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2024

Using an Isotope Enabled Mass Balance to Evaluate Existing Land Surface Models

Abstract Land surface models (LSMs) play a crucial role in elucidating water and carbon cycles by simulating processes such as plant transpiration and evaporation from bare soil, yet calibration often relies on comparing LSM outputs of landscape total evapotranspiration ( ET ) and discharge with measured bulk fluxes. Discrepancies in partitioning into component fluxes predicted by various LSMs have been noted, prompting the need for improved evaluation methods. Stable water isotopes serve as effective tracers of component hydrologic fluxes, but data and model integration challenges have hindered their widespread application. Leveraging National Ecological Observation Network measurements of water isotope ratios at 16 US sites over 3 years combined with LSM‐modeled fluxes, we employed an isotope‐enabled mass balance framework to simulate ET isotope values ( δET ) within three operational LSMs (Mosaic, Noah, and VIC) to evaluate their partitioning. Models simulating δET values consistent with observations were deemed more reflective of water cycling in these ecosystems. Mosaic exhibited the best overall performance (Kling‐Gupta Efficiency of 0.28). For both Mosaic and Noah there were robust correlations between bare soil evaporation fraction and error (negative) as well as transpiration fraction and error (positive). We found the point at which errors are smallest ( x ‐intercept of the multi‐site regression) is at a higher transpiration fraction than is currently specified in the models. Which means that transpiration fraction is underestimated on average. Stable isotope tracers offer an additional tool for model evaluation and identifying areas for improvement, potentially enhancing LSM simulations and our understanding of land‐surface hydrologic processes.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2021

Filling gaps in our understanding of belowground plant traits across the world: an introduction to a Virtual Issue

The belowground world is one of the final frontiers in terrestrial ecology. The tangling of plant roots with the surrounding soil below is a lifeline for the humble forbs and towering trees above, and roots play a key role in shaping ecosystem carbon, water and nutrient cycling (Bardgett et al., 2014). Ecologists have long sought to better understand the ecosystem-scale consequences of differing plant strategies, above- and belowground, by relating plant characteristics, or traits, to plant function (Grime, 1977; Pregitzer, 2002). While developing trait–function linkages is arguably more difficult for plant traits that are hidden belowground, root and rhizosphere ecologists continue to fan out across grasslands and forests with their shovels, isotopes, and specialized cameras, seeking a better understanding of the secret lives of roots. Over the years, New Phytologist has served as a virtual town square for scientists to discuss their hard-won observations on the interplay among belowground plant traits, microbial activity, and edaphic and environmental conditions from biomes around the world (Norby & Jackson, 2000; Pregitzer, 2002; Matamala & Stover, 2013; Norby & Iversen, 2017). In this Editorial we highlight the newest papers that update and add to our understanding of the role of root and rhizosphere traits in broader ecosystem processes. We focused on papers published in New Phytologist between 1 January 2019 and 31 December 2020 and extended this window to papers still in ‘early view’ up to the time of writing. Because of the overwhelming number of papers, we did not include those with a decidedly genomic focus or that served primarily as data syntheses, reviews, insights or commentaries.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2020

Terabase Metagenome Sequencing of Grassland Soil Microbiomes

ABSTRACT To enable an in-depth survey of the metabolic potential of complex soil microbiomes, we performed ultra-deep metagenome sequencing, collecting >1 Tb of sequence data from three grassland soils representing different precipitation regimes.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2025

Tunturi virus isolates and metagenome-assembled viral genomes provide insights into the virome of Acidobacteriota in Arctic tundra soils

Arctic soils are climate-critical areas, where microorganisms play crucial roles in nutrient cycling processes. Acidobacteriota are phylogenetically and physiologically diverse bacteria that are abundant and active in Arctic tundra soils. Still, surprisingly little is known about acidobacterial viruses in general and those residing in the Arctic in particular. Here, we applied both culture-dependent and -independent methods to study the virome of Acidobacteriota in Arctic soils. Five virus isolates, Tunturi 1–5, were obtained from Arctic tundra soils, Kilpisjärvi, Finland (69°N), using Tunturiibacter spp. strains originating from the same area as hosts. The new virus isolates have tailed particles with podo- (Tunturi 1, 2, 3), sipho- (Tunturi 4), or myovirus-like (Tunturi 5) morphologies. The dsDNA genomes of the viral isolates are 63–98 kbp long, except Tunturi 5, which is a jumbo phage with a 309-kbp genome. Tunturi 1 and Tunturi 2 share 88% overall nucleotide identity, while the other three are not related to one another. For over half of the open reading frames in Tunturi genomes, no functions could be predicted. To further assess the Acidobacteriota-associated viral diversity in Kilpisjärvi soils, bulk metagenomes from the same soils were explored and a total of 1881 viral operational taxonomic units (vOTUs) were bioinformatically predicted. Almost all vOTUs (98%) were assigned to the class Caudoviricetes. For 125 vOTUs, including five (near-)complete ones, Acidobacteriota hosts were predicted. Acidobacteriota-linked vOTUs were abundant across sites, especially in fens. Terriglobia-associated proviruses were observed in Kilpisjärvi soils, being related to proviruses from distant soils and other biomes. Approximately genus- or higher-level similarities were found between the Tunturi viruses, Kilpisjärvi vOTUs, and other soil vOTUs, suggesting some shared groups of Acidobacteriota viruses across soils. This study provides acidobacterial virus isolates as laboratory models for future research and adds insights into the diversity of viral communities associated with Acidobacteriota in tundra soils. Predicted virus-host links and viral gene functions suggest various interactions between viruses and their host microorganisms. Largely unknown sequences in the isolates and metagenome-assembled viral genomes highlight a need for more extensive sampling of Arctic soils to better understand viral functions and contributions to ecosystem-wide cycling processes in the Arctic.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

NASA NTRS2011

The International Space Station Research Opportunities and Accomplishments

In 2010, the International Space Station (ISS) construction and assembly was completed to become a world-class scientific research laboratory. We are now in the era of utilization of this unique platform that facilitates ground-breaking research in the microgravity environment. There are opportunities for NASA-funded research; research funded under the auspice of the United States National Laboratory; and research funded by the International Partners - Japan, Europe, Russia and Canada. The ISS facilities offer an opportunity to conduct research in a multitude of disciplines such as biology and biotechnology, physical science, human research, technology demonstration and development; and earth and space science. The ISS is also a unique resource for educational activities that serve to motivate and inspire students to pursue careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. Even though we have just commenced full utilization of the ISS as a science laboratory, early investigations are yielding major results that are leading to such things as vaccine development, improved cancer drug delivery methods and treatment for debilitating diseases, such as Duchenne's Muscular Dystrophy. This paper

Alleyne, Camille W.↗

NASA NTRS2012

A Miniature Laser Desorption/Ionization Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometer for in Situ Analysis of Mars Surface Composition and Identification of Hazard in Advance of Future Manned Exploration

Future landed missions to Mars will be guided by two strategic directions: (1) sample return to Earth, for comprehensive compositional analyses, as recommended by the 2011 NRC Planetary Decadal Survey; and (2) preparation for human exploration in the 2030s and beyond, as laid out by US space policy. The resultant mission architecture will likely require high-fidelity in situ chemical/organic sample analyses within an extremely constrained resource envelope. Both science goals (e.g., MEPAG Goal 1, return sample selection, etc.) as well as identification of any potential toxic and biological hazards to humans, must be addressed. Over the past several years of instrument development, we have found that the adaptable, compact, and highly capable technique of laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LD-TOF-MS) has significant potential to contribute substantially to these dual objectives. This concept thus addresses Challenge Area 1: instrumentation and Investigation Approaches.

Getty, S. A.↗

NASA NTRS2012

Groundbreaking Mars Sample Return for Science and Human Exploration

Partnerships between science and human exploration have recent heritage for the Moon (Lunar Precursor Robotics Program, LPRP) and nearearth objects (Exploration Precursor Robotics Program, xPRP). Both programs spent appreciable time and effort determining measurements needed or desired before human missions to these destinations. These measurements may be crucial to human health or spacecraft design, or may be desired to better optimize systems designs such as spacesuits or operations. Both LPRP and xPRP recommended measurements from orbit, by landed missions and by sample return. LPRP conducted the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) and Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) missions, providing high-resolution visible imagery, surface and subsurface temperatures, global topography, mapping of possible water ice deposits, and the biological effects of radiation [1]. LPRP also initiated a landed mission to provide dust and regolith properties, local lighting conditions, assessment of resources, and demonstration of precision landing [2]. This mission was canceled in 2006 due to funding shortfalls. For the Moon, adequate samples of rocks and regolith were returned by the Apollo and Luna programs to conduct needed investigations. Many near-earth asteroids (NEAs) have been observed from the Earth and several have been more extensively characterized by close-flying missions and landings (NEAR, Hayabusa, Rosetta). The current Joint Robotic Precursor Activity program is considering activities such as partnering with the New Frontiers mission OSIRIS-Rex to visit a NEA and return a sample to the Earth. However, a strong consensus of the NEO User Team within xPRP was that a dedicated mission to the asteroid targeted by humans is required [3], ideally including regolith sample return for more extensive characterization and testing on the Earth.

Cohen, Barbara↗

NASA NTRS2021

Space Biology Beyond LEO Instrumentation & Science Series - Science Working Group 2021 Annual Report

Human space exploration was never intended to stop within low Earth orbit (LEO). Although nearly all of biological research in space has taken place in LEO, on the Space Shuttle, International Space Station (ISS), and free-flyer CubeSat missions, NASA's recent shift in emphasis toward human exploration of the Moon and ultimately Mars necessitates a shift in the focus of its research in the biological sciences [1]. Specifically, in 2022 and beyond, the Division of Biological and Physical Sciences seeks to pivot toward a focus on Thriving In DEep Space (TIDES), furthering the fundamental research necessary for understanding risks and mitigation strategies for deep-space stressors on human crew, plants, and their microbiomes. This effort entails both research on model organisms to elucidate the molecular processes underlying the biological consequences of deep-space exposure, and research on the organisms that will be necessary companions to sustain life and facilitate resource utilization in long-duration missions.

R Craig Everroad↗

DOE OSTI2022

ActinoBase: tools and protocols for researchers working on Streptomyces and other filamentous actinobacteria

Actinobacteria is an ancient phylum of Gram-positive bacteria with a characteristic high GC content to their DNA. The ActinoBase Wiki is focused on the filamentous actinobacteria, such as Streptomyces species, and the techniques and growth conditions used to study them. These organisms are studied because of their complex developmental life cycles and diverse specialised metabolism which produces many of the antibiotics currently used in the clinic. ActinoBase is a community effort that provides valuable and freely accessible resources, including protocols and practical information about filamentous actinobacteria. It is aimed at enabling knowledge exchange between members of the international research community working with these fascinating bacteria. ActinoBase is an anchor platform that underpins worldwide efforts to understand the ecology, biology and metabolic potential of these organisms. There are two key differences that set ActinoBase apart from other Wiki-based platforms: [1] ActinoBase is specifically aimed at researchers working on filamentous actinobacteria and is tailored to help users overcome challenges working with these bacteria and [2] it provides a freely accessible resource with global networking opportunities for researchers with a broad range of experience in this field.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Data Sharing in Radiobiology; Towards FAIR

The value of scientific data depends on their findability, accessibility, integrability and reusability according to the FAIR principles. Together with the sustainability of data preservation and access, these principles underpin the long term benefits of scientific research. Within the domain of radiobiology we have a huge array of data types, themes and complexities which make standardisation of metadata, data structure and data integration very challenging. Moreover, it is clear that, for example, in the area of disaster preparedness, the ready discovery and availability of multiple types of data, for example on biological effects of exposure, climatology, ecology, human behavioural and attitudinal studies, is important for an integrated scientific approach. Because these data are spread over many databases, journal supplementary information resources and even the computers of the investigators, their discovery and reuse can be challenging. Despite exhortations from funding agencies and scientific institutions over the past two decades there is still a serious deficit in the willingness and in some cases the ability of investigators to share data, and although much may not be formally „Public domain“, information about the existence of the data, their metadata, and how to obtain them should always be available. We report the progress of work on three databases, the STORE and the NASA GeneLab and LSDA repositories to leverage the Radiation Biology Ontology (RBO), a structured terminology for metadata that can be used by all radiation biology-relevant databases to unite federated and automated data searches across multiple databases, for example using web services, and through semantic web technologies supporting data discovery. The initial primary use-cases for RBO were archiving data in the STORE database (https://www.storedb.org/), the repository used for the RadoNorm and Pianoforte Projects among others, and in the NASA Open Science Data Repository (https://osdr.nasa.gov/bio). The scope of radiobiology research ranges from basic physics to radiation oncology to sociolegal studies; no existing ontology had the necessary breadth or depth to fulfill this need. In addition, a formal ontology has the advantage of being usable for machine learning and, importantly, for tasks like data integration, knowledge extraction from the scientific literature and for query extension and data classification. Standardisation of metadata is one of the primary objectives of the FAIR principles for open data; RBO is an important landmark for FAIR-compliant radiation biology data sharing. The RBO is developed using the open-source tools of GitHub and the OBO Foundry-led Ontology Development Kit, and published through GitHub and the NIH/NCBI BioPortal website. This initial phase of concept modeling has yielded an ontology that has more than 300 declared concepts, with more than 3500 additional concepts imported from other OBO Foundry ontologies with relevance to radiation biology (for example, concepts from the ISO standard Basic Formal Ontology, the Environment Ontology and the Gene Ontology). We welcome input into the development of RBO and encourage its adoption.

ontologies↗

NASA NTRS2023

Data Sharing in Radiation Biology: Towards FAIR

The value of scientific data depends on their findability, accessibility, integrability and reusability according to the FAIR principles. Together with the sustainability of data preservation and access, these principles underpin the long term benefits of scientific research. Within the domain of radiobiology we have a huge array of data types, themes and complexities which make standardisation of metadata, data structure and data integration very challenging. Moreover, it is clear that, for example, in the area of disaster preparedness, the ready discovery and availability of multiple types of data, for example on biological effects of exposure, climatology, ecology, human behavioural and attitudinal studies, is important for an integrated scientific approach. Because these data are spread over many databases, journal supplementary information resources and even the computers of the investigators, their discovery and reuse can be challenging. Despite exhortations from funding agencies and scientific institutions over the past two decades there is still a serious deficit in the willingness and in some cases the ability of investigators to share data, and although much may not be formally "Public domain“, information about the existence of the data, their metadata, and how to obtain them should always be available. We report the progress of work on three databases, the STORE and the NASA GeneLab and LSDA repositories to leverage the Radiation Biology Ontology (RBO), a structured terminology for metadata that can be used by all radiation biology-relevant databases to unite federated and automated data searches across multiple databases, for example using web services, and through semantic web technologies supporting data discovery. The initial primary use-cases for RBO were archiving data in the STORE database (https://www.storedb.org/), the repository used for the RadoNorm and Pianoforte Projects among others, and in the NASA Open Science Data Repository (https://osdr.nasa.gov/bio). The scope of radiobiology research ranges from basic physics to radiation oncology to sociolegal studies; no existing ontology had the necessary breadth or depth to fulfill this need. In addition, a formal ontology has the advantage of being usable for machine learning and, importantly, for tasks like data integration, knowledge extraction from the scientific literature and for query extension and data classification. Standardisation of metadata is one of the primary objectives of the FAIR principles for open data; RBO is an important landmark for FAIR-compliant radiation biology data sharing. The RBO is developed using the open-source tools of GitHub and the OBO Foundry-led Ontology Development Kit, and published through GitHub and the NIH/NCBI BioPortal website. This initial phase of concept modeling has yielded an ontology that has more than 300 declared concepts, with more than 3500 additional concepts imported from other OBO Foundry ontologies with relevance to radiation biology (for example, concepts from the ISO standard Basic Formal Ontology, the Environment Ontology and the Gene Ontology). We welcome input into the development of RBO and encourage its adoption.

ontologies↗