Functional weightlessness during clinorotation of cell suspensions.
A clinostat is a device often used in gravitational biology studies. Selecting an appropriate speed of rotation, however, is a frequently debated topic, particularly for suspended cells. In an attempt to define the necessary criteria for determining an acceptable revolution speed, the primary forces governing particle behavior during clinorotation--gravity, diffusion and centrifugation--were mathematically assessed. In support of the theoretical exercise, bacterial growth experiments indicated that results obtained using a clinostat followed trends resembling previous space flight results. It is suspected that this is due, in part at least, to similarly altered external transport processes in each environment.
Klaus
D M
DM
University of Colorado, Boulder 80309-0429, USA.
Todd
P
P
Schatz
A
A
D018407:Bacterial Physiological Phenomena; D055592:Biophysical Phenomena; D001703:Biophysics; D004058:Diffusion; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000254:growth & development*; D006112:Gravitation; D010316:Particle Size; D012399:Rotation; D018474:Weightlessness Simulation