Growth and development of plants flown on the STS-3 Space Shuttle mission

Pre-germinated pine seedlings and germinating oat and mung bean seeds were flown on the STS-3 Space Shuttle mission. Overall, the seedlings grew and developed well in space. Some oat and mung bean roots, however, grew upward. Lignin content was slightly lower in flight tissues and protein content was higher.     

Thin film bioreactors in space.

Studies from the Skylab, SL-3 and D-1 missions have demonstrated that biological organisms grown in microgravity have changes in basic cellular functions such as DNA, mRNA and protein synthesis, cytoskeleton synthesis, glucose utilization and cellular differentiation. Since microgravity could affect prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells at a subcellular and molecular level, space offers us an opportunity to learn more about basic biological systems with one important variable removed. The thin film bioreactor will facilitate the handling of fluids in microgravity, under constant temperature and will allow multiple samples of cells to be grown with variable conditions. Studies on cell cultures grown in microgravity would enable us to identify and quantify changes in basic biological function in microgravity which are needed to develop new applications of orbital research and future biotechnology.