Microflora investigation experiment.
Many microorganisms were isolated from condensed water, wiping and scratching of cabin wall and air sampler in Russian space station Mir by Russian astronauts Lazutkin et al. in February 1997 as part of NASDA "First MIR Utilization Space Experiment (JMIR)". For example, there were about 2 x 10(6) cells/ml in condensed water sample No. 1 isolated from the transfer-docking compartment of Crystal module. We tried the colony isolation, pure culturing and identification from these sampled microorganisms. After the bacteria separated from filamentous fungi and yeasts were observed using the phase contrast optical microscopy and gram stain method, twenty-one kinds of biochemical characters, e.g., oxidase test, activity of beta-galactosidase and fermentation of glucose etc., were investigated on the isolated bacteria. Then, we found Serratia liquefaciens and Yersinia enterocolitica and the chemoheterotroph Pseudomonadaceae, Stenotrophomonas maltophila. Furthermore, using ultraviolet (UV) lamp we tried the isolation of radioresistant bacteria, we found the radioresistant Sphingomonas paucimobilis (90.8% identification) by comparing with radioresistant Escherichia coli B/r strain. Considering Mir environment under cosmic radiation, this radioresistant S. paucimobilis might be the mutant from radiosensitive one. Following papers were published [see text].
Harada
K
K
Health Research Foundation, Kyoto, Japan. kazuki@os.gulf.or.jp
D001419:Bacteria / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D004783:Environmental Microbiology; D005658:Fungi / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification; D011836:Radiation Tolerance; D013026:Space Flight; D018531:Spacecraft; D014893:Weightlessness; D015003:Yeasts / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification