Plant Growth at Kennedy Space Center and Aboard the ISS
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Auburn University FY20 X-Hab Final Report: Volume Optimization For Food Product During Deep Space Exploration
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Plant cells build nanofibrillar walls that are central to plant growth, morphogenesis and mechanics. Starting from simple sugars, three groups of polysaccharides, namely, cellulose, hemicelluloses and pectins, with very different physical properties are assembled by the cell to make a strong yet extensible wall. Here, this Review describes the physics of wall growth and its regulation by cellular processes such as cellulose production by cellulose synthase, modulation of wall pH by plasma membrane H + -ATPase, wall loosening by expansin and signalling by plant hormones such as auxin and brassinosteroid. In addition, this Review discusses the nuanced roles, properties and interactions of cellulose, matrix polysaccharides and cell wall proteins and describes how wall stress and wall loosening cooperatively result in cell wall growth.
Abstract Historical use of lead arsenate as a pesticide in former orchards of eastern Washington State (USA) has resulted in legacy lead (Pb) and arsenic (As) soil contamination. However, the impacts on plant growth in soils with residual Pb and As contamination have not yet been quantified. To this end, a comparative study of plant growth impacts was performed for native bluegrass ( Poa secunda ), invasive cheatgrass ( Bromus tectorum ), and buttercrunch lettuce ( Lactuca sativa ). Using standard plant growth protocols, germination frequency and biomass growth were measured over a wide range of Pb and arsenate concentrations, with maximum concentrations of 3400 and 790 mg kg −1 for Pb and As, respectively. Results indicated that only the biomass growth for all species decreased in soils with the highest concentrations of Pb and As in the soil, with no impacts on soils with lower residual Pb and arsenate concentrations. No impact on percentage of germination was observed at any soil concentration. These results can be used to determine site‐specific soil screening levels for use in ecological risk assessments for Pb and arsenate in soils. Environ Toxicol Chem 2022;41:1459–1465. © 2022 Battelle Memorial Institute. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of SETAC.
Growth chamber experiments were conducted to study the physiological and growth response of peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) to 50% and 85% relative humidity (RH). The objective was to determine the effects of RH on pod and seed yield, harvest index, and flowering of peanut grown by the nutrient film technique (NFT). 'Georgia Red' peanut plants (14 days old) were planted into growth channels (0.15 x 0.15 x 1.2 m). Plants were spaced 25 cm apart with 15 cm between channels. A modified half-Hoagland solution with an additional 2 mM Ca was used. Solution pH was maintained between 6.4 and 6.7, and electrical conductivity (EC) ranged between 1100 and 1200 microS cm-1. Temperature regimes of 28/22 degrees C were maintained during the light/dark periods (12 hours each) with photosynthetic photon flux (PPF) at canopy level of 500 micromoles-m-2s-1. Foliage and pod fresh and dry weights, total seed yield, harvest index (HI), and seed maturity were greater at high than at low RH. Plants grown at 85% RH had greater total and individual leaflet area and stomatal conductance, flowered 3 days earlier and had a greater number of flowers reaching anthesis. Gynophores grew more rapidly at 85% than at 50% RH.
Topic covered include :Plants on Mars: On the Next Mission and in the Long Term Future; Bubbles in the Rocks: Natural and Artificial Caves and Cavities as Like Support Structures; Challenges for Bioregenerative Life Support on Mars; Cost Effectiveness Issues; Low Pressure Systems for Plant Growth; Plant Responses to Rarified Atmospheres; Can CO2 be Used as a Pressurizing Gas for Mars Greenhouses?; Inflatable Habitats Technology Development; Development of an Inflatable Greenhouse for a Modular Crop Production System; Mars Inflatable Greenhouse Workshop; Design Needs for Mars Deployable Greenhouse; Preliminary Estimates of the Possibilities for Developing a Deployable Greenhouse for a Planetary Surface Mars; Low Pressure Greenhouse Concepts for Mars; Mars Greenhouse Study: Natural vs. Artificial Lighting; and Wire Culture for an Inflatable Mars Greenhouse and Other Future Inflatable Space Growth Chambers.
Sources of waste, general requirements for plant growth, plant culturing systems, output requirements to match candidate plants, and integration of subsystems are addressed.
Merri Sanchez, Expedition 2 Increment Manager, John Uri, Increment Scientist, and Lybrease Woodard, Lead Payload Operations Director, give an overview of the upcoming activities and objectives of the Expedition 2's (E2's) mission in this prelaunch press conference. Ms. Sanchez describes the crew rotation of Expedition 1 to E2, the timeline E2 will follow during their stay on the International Space Station (ISS), and the various flights going to the ISS and what each will bring to ISS. Mr. Uri gives details on the on-board experiments that will take place on the ISS in the fields of microgravity research, commercial, earth, life, and space sciences (such as radiation characterization, H-reflex, colloids formation and interaction, protein crystal growth, plant growth, fermentation in microgravity, etc.). He also gives details on the scientific facilities to be used (laboratory racks and equipment such as the human torso facsimile or 'phantom torso'). Ms. Woodard gives an overview of Marshall Flight Center's role in the mission. Computerized simulations show the installation of the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) onto the ISS and the installation of the airlock using SSRMS. Live footage shows the interior of the ISS, including crew living quarters, the Progress Module, and the Destiny Laboratory. The three then answer questions from the press.
Expansive growth of plant cells is controlled principally by processes that loosen the wall and enable it to expand irreversibly. The central role of wall relaxation for cell expansion is reviewed. The most common methods for assessing the extension properties of plant cell walls ( wall extensibility') are described, categorized and assessed critically. What emerges are three fundamentally different approaches which test growing cells for their ability (a) to enlarge at different values of turgor, (b) to induce wall relaxation, and (c) to deform elastically or plastically in response to an applied tensile force. Analogous methods with isolated walls are similarly reviewed. The results of these different assays are related to the nature of plant cell growth and pertinent biophysical theory. I argue that the extensibilities' measured by these assays are fundamentally different from one another and that some are more pertinent to growth than others.
Management of aquatic weeds in complex watersheds and river systems present many challenges to assessment, planning and implementation of management practices for aquatic invasive plants. The Delta Region Areawide Aquatic Weed Project (DRAAWP), a USDA (U. S. Dept. of Agriculture)-sponsored area-wide project, is working to enhance planning, decision-making and operational efficiency of invasive plant management in the California Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Satellite and airborne remote sensing are used to map area of plant coverage and estimate biomass density to aid operations and assess management impacts on plant communities. Modeling at local and watershed scales using the SWAT (Soil Water Assessment Tool) modeling tool provides insight into land-use effects on water quality. Environmental variability in the Delta occurs across a range of time scales from long-term climate and seasonal trends to short-term water flow mediated variations. Controlled environment growth studies have been conducted to quantify the growth response of invasive aquatic plants to water quality and other environmental factors. Response time for invasive species response are examined at time scales of weeks, day, and hours using a combination of study duration and growth assessment techniques to assess water quality, temperature (air and water), and light effects. These provide response parameters for plant growth models in response to environmental variation and interact with management and economic models associated with aquatic weed management. Plant growth models are to be informed by remote sensing and applied spatially across the Delta to balance location and type of aquatic plant, growth response to altered environments and phenology. Initial utilization of remote sensing tools developed for mapping of aquatic invasive plants improved operational efficiency in management practices. These assessment methods provide a comprehensive and quantitative view of aquatic invasive plant communities in the California Delta.
Plants grown on porous media at elevated CO2 levels generally have low concentrations of tissue N and often appear to require increased levels of external N to maximize growth response. This study determines if soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr. Ransom'] grown hydroponically at elevated CO2 requires increases in external NO3- concentrations beyond levels that are optimal at ambient CO2 to maintain tissue N concentrations and maximize the growth response. This study also investigates temporal influences of elevated CO2 on growth responses by soybean. Plants were grown vegetatively for 34 d in hydroponic culture at atmospheric CO2 concentrations of 400, 650, and 900 microliters L-1 and during the final 18 d at NO3- concentrations of 0.5, 1.0, 5.0 and 10.0 mM in the culture solution. At 650 and 900 microliters L-1 CO2, plants had maximum increases of 31 and 45% in dry weight during the experimental period. Plant growth at 900 microliters L-1 CO2 was stimulated earlier than at 650 microliters L-1. During the final 18 d of the experiment, the relative growth rates (RGR) of plants grown at elevated CO2 declined. Elevated CO2 caused increases in total N and total NO3(-)-N content and leaf area but not leaf number. Enhancing CO2 levels also caused a decrease in root:shoot ratios. Stomatal resistance increased by 2.1- and 2.8-fold for plants at the 650 and 900 microliters L-1 CO2, respectively. Nitrate level in the culture solutions had no effect on growth or on C:N ratios of tissues, nor did increases in CO2 levels cause a decrease in N concentration of plant tissues. Hence, increases in NO3- concentration of the hydroponic solution were not necessary to maintain the N status of the plants or to maximize the growth response to elevated CO2.
Seed germination and seedling growth dependence on oxygen, noting microaerobic capabilities among vascular plants, water effect, etc