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No evidence of adverse effects on germination, emergence, and fruit yield due to space exposure of tomato seeds.

Seeds of 'Rutgers California Supreme' tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) were exposed to outer space conditions aboard the long duration exposure facility (LDEF) satellite in the space exposed experiment developed for students (SEEDS) project of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Seeds aboard the LDEF were packed in dacron bags forming four layers per sealed canister. Some of these seeds were used in Oklahoma and Florida for studies of germination, emergence, and fruit yield. Among all measured variables in three experiments, there was only one significant main effect of canister 2 versus canister 7 (for mean time to germination) and only one main effect of layer (for seedling shoot dry weight). There also were only two inconsistent canister x layer interactions in the germination tests. The contrast of Earth-based control seed versus space-exposed seed was significant four times: in Oklahoma in 1991 the mean time to germination of space-exposed seeds and the days to 50% of final germination were 0.7 days less than for Earth-based seeds, and in Florida in 1992 seedling percent emergence and shoot dry weight were increased by space exposure. Fruit yield and marketability were unaffected in plants grown from space-exposed seeds. These results support student findings from the SEEDS project, and provide evidence that tomato seeds can survive in space for several years without adverse effects on germination, emergence, and fruit yield.

Cosmic Radiation↗

Biophysics in space.

Biophysics is an interdisciplinary field of study where various disciplines work together, with results of much interest to many scientists and students of the life sciences. Since physics is not always accessible to and understandable to biologists and life sometimes too simplified, this presentation focusses on models to help understand the biological effects of space factors, with emphasis on free radicals.

Aerospace Medicine↗

Plants and somatic embryos in space: what have we learned?

Space provides a unique environment that can affect the interplay between cell cycle controls and environment and can thus modify the processes of cell division, development and growth. It is proposed that the chromosomal and nuclear abnormalities frequently encountered in cells of various plants exposed to space are due to a combination of factors including the biological status of the systems and the way in which they are grown, exposed to, and ultimately, the way in which they experience multiple stresses. The extent to which space-specific changes become manifest is dependent on the extent of pre-existing stresses in the system. This has become evident in a variety of plant species grown in space but has been particularly amenable to study using in vitro systems, especially in developing embryoids. The following observations allow us to harmonize disparate results from a variety of space experiments:- (a) the more completely developed a system, the less likely it is to show cell stress during growth; the less morphologically complex, the greater the vulnerability; (b) the size/"packaging" of the genome (karyotype) are significant experimental variables; plants with larger genomes (e.g. polyploids) seem to be more space-stress tolerant; (c) a single space-associated stress is inadequate to produce a significant adverse response unless the stress is severe, or a biological parameter necessary to 'amplify' it exists. On this view, an appropriate "stress match" with other non-equilibrium determinants, much like a 'tug of war', can result in genomic variations in space. All this emphasizes that fastidiously-controlled growing environments must be devised if one is to resolve the matter of direct versus indirect effects of space. Better understanding of the novel physico-chemical equilibrium phenomena associated with space will allow those interested in space cell and developmental biology to pick and choose procedures best suited to their exploitation for specific objectives.

Cell Physiological Phenomena↗

The effects of microgravity on the character of progeny of Drosophila melanogaster.

To study how the microgravitational environment influences the character of the progeny of Drosophila melanogaster, the S1 insects produced during the 8-days of space flight were self-bred for four generations. Higher variational rate was found in S2. After removing the variant flies, the variational rate of the remaining Drosophila progeny decreased generation by generation. There was no notable sex-linked recessive lethal mutation of parent flies and no gene mutation found in their test-cross examination. It indicates that the germ-cell of parent adult flies were not much influenced by microgravity, but the embryo of filial generation bred in space were greatly influenced by microgravity. Therefore, the mutagenesis during the embryogenic development should be taken into account in the bio-breeding under the space microgravitational environment.

Animals↗

[Effect of space environment on germination and vegetation growth in Carthamus tinctorius L].

OBJECTIVE: To substantiate the effects of space condition on medicinal plants. METHOD: The seeds of medicinal plant Carthamus tinctorius were carried on board a retrievable satellite during 3-18 July, 1994. After returing to earth, the seedling rate, state of growth and development were observed. RESULT: The seeding rates, plant heights and branch quantities of weightless seeds and the seeds which were penetrated once and less than once by the heavy ion rays were higher than those of the seeds which were kept on earth, but these indexes of the seeds which were penetrated 2-3 times by the heavy ion rays were higher than those of the ground controlled seeds. CONCLUSION: Weightlessness and little penetration promote the growth and development of Carthamus tinctorius, but much penetration functions the other way round.

Carthamus tinctorius↗

[Mutation induced by space conditions in Escherichia coli strains].

To study the mutagenesis of microorganism under space conditions, three Escherichia coli strains CSH108, A2 and A3, were flown on board the Chinese recoverable satellite (JB1 - B9611020) in Oct . 1996. Three ways of sample boarding were designed . After recovery, survival and frequency of lacI- mutation and Arg+ reversion were determined in the flight strains. The results showed that: E. coli strains could survive after the flight conditions. The lacI- mutation frequency of A3 strain in the biocabin was sixty - seven times that of the ground control, the Arg+ reversion frequency of CSH108 in the lead chamber, was ten times that of the ground control; and among the revertants the mutation frequency of non-sense suppressor increased remarkably. The results indicate that the space conditions may greatly enhance the mutation frequency of certain genes in the microorganism and may provide an effective method for microorganism breeding.

Arginine↗