LASM - Laboratory of Applied Space Microbiology
ABOUT OUR RESEARCH
We want to help make human expeditions beyond Earth sustainable.
Our focus is on the development of microbe-based technologies for long-term missions to Mars. One challenge there lies in providing essential consumables, which could be solved by producing these from Martian resources. Biology provides a solution: various organisms have the ability to produce drugs, food, oxygen, biomaterials and various chemicals, to mine metals and to process waste. But if biological systems must consume materials hauled from Earth, their running time without replenishment is limited. We therefore seek to understand how given microorganisms could serve as primary producers: how they could be fed from local materials and then support the growth of other organisms, opening the way to a wide range of biotechnologies.
Despite the name of our team, we do not restrict our work to microbiology. Reaching our goal requires accounting for the broader context; we therefore allow ourselves contributions to projects dealing with, for instance, engineering, materials science or planetary protection.
Green bacteria on a red planet
A large part of our work relies on cyanobacteria: fed with materials available in the Martian ground and atmosphere, they could provide feedstock for a range of bioprocesses which, in turn, could produce a wide range of consumables.
This video explains why we chose a specific species among them – Anabaena sp. PCC 7938 – as a model, and how they could be used to support Mars missions.
Our fields of research
- Cyanobacterium-based life-support systems for space exploration
- Adaptive laboratory evolution (ALE) of cyanobacteria under Mars cultivation-like conditions
- Cyanobacterium-regolith interactions for in-situ resource utilization
- Multi-omics analysis of cyanobacterial adaptation to extreme conditions
- Cyanobacterial physiology under non-terrestrial atmospheres (low pressure, artificial gas compositions)
- Photobioreactor design supporting microbe-mineral interactions
CONTACT
Sustainable bioproduction on Mars
A long-term human presence on Mars requires a continuous provision of consumables for the crews. To help address this need, we are working to lay the foundation for sustainable bioproduction processes in Martian settlements. Our approach combines microbes and plants to produce essential resources, from fertilizers to food to bioplastics to oxygen, as well as to recycle organic waste – all starting from materials available in Mars’s ground and atmosphere. Our system is versatile and modular; it could be used to connect further bioprocesses to local resources, thereby alleviating the need for consumables imported from Earth. This research is funded through the University of Bremen's Humans on Mars Initiative and is carried in collaboration with the groups of Prof. Dr. Sven Kerzenmacher (UFT, Uni. Bremen) and Dr. Daniel Schubert (DLR Bremen).
Adaptive laboratory evolution of cyanobacteria
We use adaptive laboratory evolution methods to increase the fitness of cyanobacteria to conditions relevant to their cultivation on Mars. We mainly focus on resistance to perchlorate, a toxic compound widespread in Martian regolith, as well as abilities to use regolith substrates. We then investigate, at the genomic, proteomic, metabolomic, and physiological levels the adaptaions that enable improved fitness under these conditions. These insights contribute to the development of microbial systems for in-situ resource utilization, oxygen production, and bioremediation in future space missions.
Cyanobacterium-regolith interactions
We aim at understanding how Anabaena sp. adapts to direct contact with Martian regolith, investigating its ability to attach, form biofilms, and derive nutrients from it. By employing geomicrobiology and multi-omics approaches, we explore their responses at both physiological and molecular levels, aiming to unlock their potential for life support and ISRU on Mars.
Cyanobacterium responses to unusual atmospheres
Using Atmos, a photobioreactor made in-house and in which atmospheric pressure and gaz composition can be controlled, we study how cyanobacteria respond to changes in given atmospheric parameters. This helps us predict their growth in conditions foreseen for their cultivation on Mars.
The list below shows the latest 25 publications of this research group. For the complete, searchable list of ZARM publications, please click more
2022
On the cost-efficiency of cyanobacterium-based, biological ISRU on Mars
European Planetary Science Congress, Page EPSC2022—57
2022
On the growth dynamics of the cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. PCC 7938 in Martian regolith
npj Microgravity, 8 (1) :43
2022
Publisher: Nature Publishing Group UK London
Selection of Anabaena sp. PCC 7938 as a cyanobacterium model for biological ISRU on Mars
Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 88 (15) :e00594—22
2022
Publisher: American Society for Microbiology 1752 N St., NW, Washington, DC
Setting the ground for sustainable bioproduction in a Martian settlement
44th COSPAR Scientific Assembly. Held 16-24 July, 44 :2840
2022
2021
A low-pressure, N2/CO2 atmosphere is suitable for Cyanobacterium-based life-support systems on Mars
Frontiers in microbiology, 12 :611798
2021
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Equipping an extraterrestrial laboratory: Overview of open research questions and recommended instrumentation for the Moon
Advances in Space Research, 68 (6) :2565—2599
2021
Publisher: Pergamon
Laboratory on the Moon: Equipping and testing of a habitat laboratory for the scientific exploration of the Moon by humans
43rd COSPAR Scientific Assembly. Held 28 January-4 February, 43 :160
2021
Microbiome dynamics during the HI-SEAS IV mission, and implications for future crewed missions beyond Earth
Microbiome, 9 :1—21
2021
Publisher: BioMed Central
To other planets with upgraded millennial kombucha in rhythms of sustainability and health support
Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences, 8 :701158
2021
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
2020
Bacterial growth at low pressure: A short review
Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences, 30 (7)
2020
Cyanobacterium-based technologies in space and on Earth
Biotechnological Applications of Extremophilic Microorganisms
Page 289—312
Publisher: De Gruyter
2020
289—312
Exposure to low Earth orbit of an extreme-tolerant cyanobacterium as a contribution to lunar astrobiology activities
International Journal of Astrobiology, 19 (1) :53—60
2020
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
2019
A desert cyanobacterium under simulated Mars-like conditions in low Earth orbit: implications for the habitability of Mars
Astrobiology, 19 (2) :158—169
2019
Publisher: Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers 140 Huguenot Street, 3rd Floor New~…
Dried biofilms of desert strains of Chroococcidiopsis survived prolonged exposure to space and Mars-like conditions in low Earth orbit
Astrobiology, 19 (8) :1008—1017
2019
Publisher: Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers 140 Huguenot Street, 3rd Floor New~…
Limits of life and the habitability of Mars: the ESA space experiment BIOMEX on the ISS
Astrobiology, 19 (2) :145—157
2019
Publisher: Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers 140 Huguenot Street, 3rd Floor New~…
2018
Considerations on instruments for astrobiological investigations in a Moon/Mars laboratory
2018
How a laboratory on the Moon should be equipped
2018
Resistance of cyanobacteria to space and Mars environments, in the frame of the EXPOSE-R2 space mission and beyond
University of Rome "Tor Vergata"
2018
2017
Avoidance of protein oxidation correlates with the desiccation and radiation resistance of hot and cold desert strains of the cyanobacterium Chroococcidiopsis
Extremophiles, 21 :981—991
2017
Publisher: Springer Japan
Boss cyano experiment on the expose-r2 space mission: enhanced survival of chroococcidiopsis biofilms to space and simulated mars conditions compared to planktonic counterparts
2017
Desert cyanobacteria: potential for space and Earth applications
Adaption of Microbial Life to Environmental Extremes: Novel Research Results and Application :133—146
2017
Publisher: Springer International Publishing
Endurance of desert-cyanobacteria biofilms to space and simulated Mars conditions during the EXPOSE-R2 space mission
2017
Evaluation of the resistance of Chroococcidiopsis spp. to sparsely and densely ionizing irradiation
Astrobiology, 17 (2) :118—125
2017
Publisher: Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. 140 Huguenot Street, 3rd Floor New Rochelle, NY 10801 USA
Surface Operations during a long-duration Mars simulation mission
68th International Astronautical Congress (IAC), Page IAC—17
2017
Unravelling the secret of the resistance of desert strains of Chroococcidiopsis to desiccation and radiation
2017