Photosynthetic organisms are essential to the existence of most life on Earth, but they may play an integral part in the future of the space program and life in space as well. NASA’s Kennedy Space Center along with the University of Florida, Miami University in Ohio, and the Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation has been performing experiments to test the effects of microgravity on the success of plant growth. The studies specifically examine how microgravity affects plant cell walls, root growth patterns, and gene regulation within Arabidopsis thaliana.

You might wonder why plants in space would be so useful. Researcher John Kiss said that “plant biology will help NASA for future long-range space travel.” Plants can be used as a consistent source of oxygen and as a source of food and water. This would save much time and money in transporting these necessities on long-term projects. However, to use plants effectively in space, a thorough understanding of the effects of microgravity is essential.

The study found that the roots of plants grown in space were skewed in one direction, compared to plants exposed to normal gravity on Earth. It would seem that skewed growth is the default setting, and gravity on Earth masks this feature. Further, undifferentiated plant cells (i.e., cells had not taken on the identity of ‘root’ or ‘shoot’) were able to sense the microgravity environment, but responded differently than plant seedlings with differentiated cells.   Genes that encoded in cell-wall structural proteins were also affected by microgravity.

This fast-moving research will be essential to understanding how to better design plants that will work in space and on Earth, said one researcher.  But, perhaps there is also a psychological benefit to this research: future space explorers may be able to bring a small “piece of home with them” into space.

Discussion Question: What other ways can plants be used in space programs? What are some challenges that you think scientists may have faced in these studies?

News Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111129183013.htm
Journal Source: http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/abs/10.1089/ast.2011.0699

Image Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Astronaut-EVA.jpg