Unidentified Bacteria Species discovered in China’s Space Station

ScienceAlert

Swabs from China’s Tiangong space station reveal traces of a bacterium unseen on Earth, with characteristics that may help it function under stressful environmental conditions hundreds of kilometers above the planet’s surface.
The swabs were taken from a cabin on board the space station in May 2023 by the Shenzhou-15 crew as part of one of two surveys by the China Space Station Habitation Area Microbiome Programme.
Follow-up studies have traced the growth of microbes that inhabit the space station environment, revealing a microbiome that differs in both composition and function from the one found on the International Space Station.
Like species of Bacillus, N. circulans and its space-faring relatives pack their essential chemistry into hardy spores to survive times of great stress.
If we can’t prevent their existence or their ability to adapt, it is vital we can predict how microbes will adjust to living in space.

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Traces of a bacterium that is invisible on Earth but has traits that might enable it to survive in harsh environments hundreds of kilometers above the surface of the earth have been found in swabs taken from China’s Tiangong space station.

The Shenzhou Space Biotechnology Group and Beijing Institute of Spacecraft System Engineering researchers named their discovery after the station and say that studying Niallia tiangongensis and related species may be “essential” in preserving astronaut health and spacecraft functionality during extended missions.

In May 2023, the Shenzhou-15 crew collected the swabs from a cabin aboard the space station as part of one of two surveys undertaken by the China Space Station Habitation Area Microbiome Programme.

A microbiome that is different from the one on the International Space Station in terms of both composition and function has been discovered through follow-up studies that have tracked the development of microbes that live in the space station environment.

The new species seems to be a close relative of a known strain of the soil-dwelling, rod-shaped bacterium Niallia circulans, which was originally thought to be a pathogenic form of Bacillus but was recently reclassified to a new genus.

Like Bacillus species, N. To withstand extreme stress, Circulans and its space-faring relatives condense their vital chemistry into resilient spores. Not entirely sure if N. At least some of tiangongensis’s distinctive characteristics were present when it either developed on the station or arrived as spores.

The newly released analysis of its genes and functions reveals that the new species has a special ability to break down gelatin as a source of carbon and nitrogen. This ability is useful when it needs to build a protective layer of biofilm to hide under when things get a little rough.

However, it appears to no longer be able to use other energy-dense foods that its cousins contentedly consume.

This not only indicates that Niallia can be a diverse group of microorganisms, but it also shows how easily certain bacterial species can adapt to our orbiting environments.

And there’s not much we can do about it. Numerous microbe strains from 26 different species were found in the “clean rooms” NASA used to prepare the Mars Phoenix mission.

According to a recent study, the genes responsible for DNA repair and resistance to levels of substances that other microbes would consider toxic are what give these novel bacteria their remarkable ability to survive in conditions we would assume would make the environment sterile.

To deal with your enemy, it is obvious that knowing them is a big first step. The ability to forecast how microbes will adapt to living in space is crucial if we are unable to stop their existence or adaptation.

Although the health risks of Niallia tiangongensis to Tiangong’s astronauts have not yet been established, the possibility of health issues from this and other space microbes is a significant concern, especially considering that its cousin can induce sepsis in immunocompromised patients and that it has recently been found to be able to break down gelatin.

Knowing how the small passengers sharing our space might adapt to a life far from home is more crucial than ever as we prepare to launch missions to the Moon and beyond.

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