Dive Brief:
- The next resupply flight to the International Space Station, set to take place early next Monday, will include an Oxford Nanopore's MinION Biomolecule Sequencer that could make it possible to determine organisms' DNA in space.
- Successful DNA sequencing outside Earth could allow astronauts to assess their health and identify remediation strategies while on extended space flights. In addition, space-compatible biomolecule sequencers could theoretically analyze other-world samples for DNA-based life.
- Astronaut Kate Rubins will conduct the Biomolecule Sequencer investigation at the station. The investigation is one of numerous research projects taking place on the International Space Station, with topics that range from bone loss (research sponsored by Eli Lilly) to heart changes in microgravity.
Dive Insight:
The Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS) made a splash last year when astronaut Commander Scott Kelly broadcasted live into last year's Philadelphia Biotechnology Innovation Conference (BIO) and invited the industry to conduct their R&D in space.
It's a win-win situation. Biotechnology and life sciences researchers can conduct experiments in a state of accelerated disruption, due to the often-adverse microgravity environment. Meanwhile, the space community can learn methods and test technology that will facilitate the body's adaptation to extended space conditions.
Take bone loss for example: many bed-ridden patients on Earth suffer from this as a result of extended bed rest. Meanwhile, astronauts suffer similar side effects from long-duration missions.
Eli Lilly's Rodent Research 3 investigation at the space station seeks to investigate the effects of myostatin inhibition to prevent this skeletal muscle atrophy in mice over an extended period of time. The microgravity situation provides an accelerated environment for the investigation than what could be simulated on Earth.
Currently there is no way to conduct microbial identification in space, according to the investigation brief, but NASA plans to test two molecular biology-capable devices during the ongoing ISS mission. At the same time, astronauts will also test the MinION biomolecule sequencer for potential use in microbial identification and for research into how organisms respond to space at the molecular level.
"The first part of the experiment is more technology development: looking to see how this kind of sequencing technology behaves in microgravity. We don't know if bubbles will form or how the sequencing reaction will work without gravity. The second part is, What happens to DNA in space? Sequencing Data on the ISS will enable NASA to see what happens to genetic material in space in real time," said Kate Rubins in a June Q&A for the Scientific American.
Regardless, the potential for DNA sequencing is exciting for the space community and biologists at large. The technology could allow for in-flight microbial identification for crew health assessments, DNA-level monitoring for astronauts and microbes, DNA-based extraterrestrial life analysis, and microbial organism identification.