Frontiers in Microbiology (Apr 2021)
Microbially-Enhanced Vanadium Mining and Bioremediation Under Micro- and Mars Gravity on the International Space Station
- Charles S. Cockell,
- Rosa Santomartino,
- Kai Finster,
- Annemiek C. Waajen,
- Natasha Nicholson,
- Claire-Marie Loudon,
- Lorna J. Eades,
- Ralf Moeller,
- Petra Rettberg,
- Felix M. Fuchs,
- Felix M. Fuchs,
- Rob Van Houdt,
- Natalie Leys,
- Ilse Coninx,
- Jason Hatton,
- Luca Parmitano,
- Jutta Krause,
- Andrea Koehler,
- Nicol Caplin,
- Lobke Zuijderduijn,
- Alessandro Mariani,
- Stefano Pellari,
- Fabrizio Carubia,
- Giacomo Luciani,
- Michele Balsamo,
- Valfredo Zolesi,
- Jon Ochoa,
- Jon Ochoa,
- Pia Sen,
- James A. J. Watt,
- Jeannine Doswald-Winkler,
- Magdalena Herová,
- Bernd Rattenbacher,
- Jennifer Wadsworth,
- R. Craig Everroad,
- René Demets
Affiliations
- Charles S. Cockell
- UK Centre for Astrobiology, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- Rosa Santomartino
- UK Centre for Astrobiology, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- Kai Finster
- Department of Biology – Microbiology, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- Annemiek C. Waajen
- UK Centre for Astrobiology, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- Natasha Nicholson
- UK Centre for Astrobiology, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- Claire-Marie Loudon
- UK Centre for Astrobiology, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- Lorna J. Eades
- School of Chemistry, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- Ralf Moeller
- Radiation Biology Department, German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Aerospace Medicine, Köln, Germany
- Petra Rettberg
- Radiation Biology Department, German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Aerospace Medicine, Köln, Germany
- Felix M. Fuchs
- Radiation Biology Department, German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Aerospace Medicine, Köln, Germany
- Felix M. Fuchs
- Institute of Electrical Engineering and Plasma Technology, Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Sciences, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
- Rob Van Houdt
- Microbiology Unit, Belgian Nuclear Research Centre, SCK CEN, Mol, Belgium
- Natalie Leys
- Microbiology Unit, Belgian Nuclear Research Centre, SCK CEN, Mol, Belgium
- Ilse Coninx
- Microbiology Unit, Belgian Nuclear Research Centre, SCK CEN, Mol, Belgium
- Jason Hatton
- ESTEC, Noordwijk, Netherlands
- Luca Parmitano
- ESTEC, Noordwijk, Netherlands
- Jutta Krause
- ESTEC, Noordwijk, Netherlands
- Andrea Koehler
- ESTEC, Noordwijk, Netherlands
- Nicol Caplin
- ESTEC, Noordwijk, Netherlands
- Lobke Zuijderduijn
- ESTEC, Noordwijk, Netherlands
- Alessandro Mariani
- Kayser Italia S.r.l., Livorno, Italy
- Stefano Pellari
- Kayser Italia S.r.l., Livorno, Italy
- Fabrizio Carubia
- Kayser Italia S.r.l., Livorno, Italy
- Giacomo Luciani
- Kayser Italia S.r.l., Livorno, Italy
- Michele Balsamo
- Kayser Italia S.r.l., Livorno, Italy
- Valfredo Zolesi
- Kayser Italia S.r.l., Livorno, Italy
- Jon Ochoa
- ESTEC, Noordwijk, Netherlands
- Jon Ochoa
- Space Application Services NV/SA, Noordwijk, Netherlands
- Pia Sen
- 0Earth and Environmental Sciences Department, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ, United States
- James A. J. Watt
- 1School of Geosciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- Jeannine Doswald-Winkler
- 2BIOTESC, Hochschule Luzern Technik & Architektur, Lucerne School of Engineering and Architecture, Hergiswil, Switzerland
- Magdalena Herová
- 2BIOTESC, Hochschule Luzern Technik & Architektur, Lucerne School of Engineering and Architecture, Hergiswil, Switzerland
- Bernd Rattenbacher
- 2BIOTESC, Hochschule Luzern Technik & Architektur, Lucerne School of Engineering and Architecture, Hergiswil, Switzerland
- Jennifer Wadsworth
- 3Exobiology Branch, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, United States
- R. Craig Everroad
- 3Exobiology Branch, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, United States
- René Demets
- ESTEC, Noordwijk, Netherlands
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2021.641387
- Journal volume & issue
-
Vol. 12
Abstract
As humans explore and settle in space, they will need to mine elements to support industries such as manufacturing and construction. In preparation for the establishment of permanent human settlements across the Solar System, we conducted the ESA BioRock experiment on board the International Space Station to investigate whether biological mining could be accomplished under extraterrestrial gravity conditions. We tested the hypothesis that the gravity (g) level influenced the efficacy with which biomining could be achieved from basalt, an abundant material on the Moon and Mars, by quantifying bioleaching by three different microorganisms under microgravity, simulated Mars and Earth gravitational conditions. One element of interest in mining is vanadium (V), which is added to steel to fabricate high strength, corrosion-resistant structural materials for buildings, transportation, tools and other applications. The results showed that Sphingomonas desiccabilis and Bacillus subtilis enhanced the leaching of vanadium under the three gravity conditions compared to sterile controls by 184.92 to 283.22%, respectively. Gravity did not have a significant effect on mean leaching, thus showing the potential for biomining on Solar System objects with diverse gravitational conditions. Our results demonstrate the potential to use microorganisms to conduct elemental mining and other bioindustrial processes in space locations with non-1 × g gravity. These same principles apply to extraterrestrial bioremediation and elemental recycling beyond Earth.
Keywords
