Abstract
As the range and duration of human ventures into space increase, it becomes imperative that we understand the effects of the cosmic environment on astronaut health. Molecular technologies now widely used in research and medicine will need to become available in space to ensure appropriate care of astronauts. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is the gold standard for DNA analysis, yet its potential for use on-orbit remains under-explored. We describe DNA amplification aboard the International Space Station (ISS) through the use of a miniaturized miniPCR system. Target sequences in plasmid, zebrafish genomic DNA, and bisulfite-treated DNA were successfully amplified under a variety of conditions. Methylation-specific primers differentially amplified bisulfite-treated samples as would be expected under standard laboratory conditions. Our findings establish proof of concept for targeted detection of DNA sequences during spaceflight and lay a foundation for future uses ranging from environmental monitoring to on-orbit diagnostics.
Highlights
On Earth, human health is continually improved by the use of molecular diagnostic techniques, these technologies remain largely untested in space conditions
We conducted extensive stability studies of complete reactions on Earth and determined that reactions were viable after prolonged storage periods of at least 3 months (Fig. 1a), more than the time expected to lapse between sample preparation on Earth and operations at the International Space Station (ISS). ‘‘Complete’’ reactions, including template DNA, primers, polymerase, deoxynucleotides and reaction buffer were prepared on Earth and launched frozen on an ISS National Lab mission to the ISS4 (Fig. 1b)
Aboard the ISS, the miniPCR device was connected to the onboard computer in the maintenance work area (MWA) for the duration of the experiment and stowed away for later use (Fig. 1c)
Summary
On Earth, human health is continually improved by the use of molecular diagnostic techniques, these technologies remain largely untested in space conditions. To test hardware performance and its capacity to amplify DNA under a variety of conditions in space, we conducted four runs in the miniPCR thermal cycler. For each experiment duplicate reactions were prepared, stored under similar conditions, and amplified on Earth in parallel with those in the International Space Station (ISS).
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