Preparations for the RayPairNyx experiment – Characterisation of Aspergillus carbonarius in simulated space conditions

Kurzfassung

Filamentous fungi, like Aspergillus, are one of the predominant species found in space stations like the former Mir space station and currently on the International Space Station (ISS). Contaminations with fungi have the potential to risk space missions, as they have the ability to cause biodegradation of space vehicles and infect immunocompromised astronauts. In the RayPairNyx experiment, the germination of radiation-stressed Aspergillus carbonarius, a common pathogen of crops and producer of mycotoxins, will be studied in real microgravity onboard the first flight of the Nyx capsule (The Exploration Company). This will not only enable deeper understanding of basic mechanisms at genetic and metabolic level of mould species, but also might increase safety in future space travel by assessing threats of foodborne pathogens in spaceflight environments. In preparations for the experiment, the eGFP-tagged strain AC49, which will be used for RayPairNyx, was compared to the wildtype strain DSM 872, regarding optimal growth conditions, synthesised pigments, and survival towards simulated space conditions (desiccation, microgravity, UV-C radiation, X-ray radiation). Both strains exhibited high resistance towards radiation and desiccation. Moreover, both strains displayed faster germination in simulated microgravity. The compatibility of the transformed strain for the RayPairNyx experiment was confirmed, and possible methods for omics-based post-flight analyses were studied.