HYDERABAD: Researchers from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and University of Hyderabad (UoH) have jointly discovered a novel species of bacteria from the International Space Station (ISS) that could help in space agriculture to meet the long-term food needs of astronauts and space tourists to the moon or Mars.
The new bacterial species, Methylobacterium ajmalii, has been found to bust stress that plants undergo in zero gravity in space. Plants, which grow on their own on Earth, need the support of bacteria to provide essential nutrients to grow in space. The new bacteria contains genes that fix nitrogen, dissolve phosphate and assimilate potassium — three nutrients important for plants to grow both on earth and space.
The novel species has been named after eminent biodiversity scientist Dr Seyed Ajmal Khan.
The genes present in the bacteria are also helpful in growth promotion and fighting plant diseases, besides promoting protein and pigment metabolism.
According to the HCU-NASA scientists, the bacteria they have discovered would provide the much-needed fuel to plants to thrive in harsh space conditions.
Once successful in their bacterial mission, space tourists and astronauts need not depend on canned foods alone. They could then grow their own food in space stations. This space farming will help those on long missions to consume freshly grown fruits and vegetables, instead of depending on processed foods.
Along with Methylobacterium ajmalii, the researchers also discovered three more species of bacteria, including one identified as Methylorubrum rhodesianum. The other two were identified as belonging to Methylobacterium indicum. These bacterial species were isolated from different locations from the ISS during two successive missions.
The researchers said the bacteria contain “biotechnologically useful genetic determinants that may help growing plants in extreme places where resources are minimal”. Further experimental validations are being done to prove that it could, indeed, be a potential game-changer for space agriculture.
According to UoH statement here on Thursday, the research teams were led by Dr Kasturi Venkateswaran (Jet Propulsion Laboratory of NASA), CC Wang (World Quant Initiative for Quantitative Prediction), Prof Appa Rao Podile from the UoH and Dr Ramprasad (CSIR-pool scientist).