Location
Utah Valley University Sorensen Center
Start Date
5-9-2016 9:27 AM
End Date
5-9-2016 9:39 AM
Description
Mars is a planet. Freezing temperatures, harsh solar, and a lack of water have left the surface of the planet sterile with no hope for even the hardiest of life forms to emerge. However, if Mars was warmer and had an atmosphere; could life emerge? In this project, we study how a martian regolith analog affects the growth of the cyanobacteria Anabaena variabilis. Our results indicate that in appropriate quantities, the martian material may aid growth by providing extra minerals in the growth media, however at higher concentrations these minerals become chemotoxic. We also test whether the martian regolith simulant aids growth by providing small particle ‘scaffolds’ to which the organism may adhere to form microbial communities. We demonstrate that in the presence of inert, fine glass beads, expression of genes related to biological processes of the cell are actually down regulated rather than kept at wild-type levels.
Growth of Cyanobacteria Anabaena variabilis on JSC-1A, a Martian Regolith Simulant
Utah Valley University Sorensen Center
Mars is a planet. Freezing temperatures, harsh solar, and a lack of water have left the surface of the planet sterile with no hope for even the hardiest of life forms to emerge. However, if Mars was warmer and had an atmosphere; could life emerge? In this project, we study how a martian regolith analog affects the growth of the cyanobacteria Anabaena variabilis. Our results indicate that in appropriate quantities, the martian material may aid growth by providing extra minerals in the growth media, however at higher concentrations these minerals become chemotoxic. We also test whether the martian regolith simulant aids growth by providing small particle ‘scaffolds’ to which the organism may adhere to form microbial communities. We demonstrate that in the presence of inert, fine glass beads, expression of genes related to biological processes of the cell are actually down regulated rather than kept at wild-type levels.