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Aniskina TS, Sudarikov KA, Levinskikh MA, Gulevich AA, Baranova EN. Bread Wheat in Space Flight: Is There a Difference in Kernel Quality? PLANTS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2023; 13:73. [PMID: 38202381 PMCID: PMC10780891 DOI: 10.3390/plants13010073] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2023] [Revised: 12/16/2023] [Accepted: 12/20/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2024]
Abstract
Planning long-term space flights necessarily includes issues of providing food for the crew. One of the areas of research is the development of technologies for independent production of food by the crew. Extensive research on lettuce has confirmed that the "space production" of lettuce is not inferior to that on Earth, even in the absence of gravity, but the same deep understanding of the quality of grain crops has not yet been achieved. Therefore, the goal of our work is to establish whether the conditions for growing wheat in outer space without gravity affect the weight and basic parameters of the grain, and whether this leads to increased asymmetry of the kernel and distortion of the starch composition. The objects of the study were wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) kernels of the Super Dwarf cultivar. Of which, 100 kernels matured in outer space conditions in the Lada growth chamber on the International Space Station (ISS), and 85 kernels of the control wheat grown in a similar growth chamber under terrestrial conditions. It has been established that kernels from ISS have significant differences to a smaller extent in weight, area, length, and width of the kernel. However, the kernels under both conditions were predominantly large (the average weight of a kernel in space is 0.0362 g, and in terrestrial conditions-0.0376 g). The hypothesis that the level of fluctuating asymmetry will increase in outer space was not confirmed; significant differences between the options were not proven. In general, the kernels are fairly even (coefficients of variation for the main parameters of the kernel are within 6-12%) and with a low or very low level of asymmetry. The length of starch granules of type A in filled and puny kernels is significantly greater in kernels from ISS than in the control, and in terms of the width of starch granules B and roundness indices, both experimental variants are the same. It can be assumed that the baking qualities of earthly kernels will be slightly higher, since the ratio of type B starch granules to type A is 5-8% higher than on the ISS. Also, the width of the aleurone layer cells in mature kernels was significantly inferior to the result obtained on Earth. The work proposes a new method for establishing the asymmetry of kernels without a traumatic effect (in early works, it was supposed to study asymmetry in transverse sections of the kernels). Perhaps this will make it possible to further develop a computer scanning program that will determine the level of asymmetry of the wheat fruit.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tatiana S. Aniskina
- N.V. Tsitsin Main Botanical Garden of Russian Academy of Sciences, 127276 Moscow, Russia
| | - Kirill A. Sudarikov
- Russian State Agrarian University—Moscow K.A. Timiryazev Agricultural Academy (RSAU-MTAA), Timiryazevskaya 49, 127434 Moscow, Russia;
- Institute of Development Strategy, 101000 Moscow, Russia
| | | | - Alexander A. Gulevich
- All-Russia Research Institute of Agricultural Biotechnology, Timiryzevskaya 42, 127550 Moscow, Russia;
| | - Ekaterina N. Baranova
- N.V. Tsitsin Main Botanical Garden of Russian Academy of Sciences, 127276 Moscow, Russia
- Russian State Agrarian University—Moscow K.A. Timiryazev Agricultural Academy (RSAU-MTAA), Timiryazevskaya 49, 127434 Moscow, Russia;
- All-Russia Research Institute of Agricultural Biotechnology, Timiryzevskaya 42, 127550 Moscow, Russia;
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Corydon TJ, Schulz H, Richter P, Strauch SM, Böhmer M, Ricciardi DA, Wehland M, Krüger M, Erzinger GS, Lebert M, Infanger M, Wise PM, Grimm D. Current Knowledge about the Impact of Microgravity on Gene Regulation. Cells 2023; 12:cells12071043. [PMID: 37048115 PMCID: PMC10093652 DOI: 10.3390/cells12071043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2022] [Revised: 03/24/2023] [Accepted: 03/25/2023] [Indexed: 03/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Microgravity (µg) has a massive impact on the health of space explorers. Microgravity changes the proliferation, differentiation, and growth of cells. As crewed spaceflights into deep space are being planned along with the commercialization of space travelling, researchers have focused on gene regulation in cells and organisms exposed to real (r-) and simulated (s-) µg. In particular, cancer and metastasis research benefits from the findings obtained under µg conditions. Gene regulation is a key factor in a cell or an organism’s ability to sustain life and respond to environmental changes. It is a universal process to control the amount, location, and timing in which genes are expressed. In this review, we provide an overview of µg-induced changes in the numerous mechanisms involved in gene regulation, including regulatory proteins, microRNAs, and the chemical modification of DNA. In particular, we discuss the current knowledge about the impact of microgravity on gene regulation in different types of bacteria, protists, fungi, animals, humans, and cells with a focus on the brain, eye, endothelium, immune system, cartilage, muscle, bone, and various cancers as well as recent findings in plants. Importantly, the obtained data clearly imply that µg experiments can support translational medicine on Earth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas J. Corydon
- Department of Biomedicine, Aarhus University, Hoegh Guldbergs Gade 10, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark
- Department of Ophthalmology, Aarhus University Hospital, Palle Juul-Jensens Blvd. 99, 8200 Aarhus, Denmark
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +45-28-992-179
| | - Herbert Schulz
- Department of Microgravity and Translational Regenerative Medicine, Medical Faculty, University Hospital Magdeburg, Otto von Guericke University, Universitätsplatz 2, 39106 Magdeburg, Germany
- Clinic for Plastic, Aesthetic and Hand Surgery, Medical Faculty, University Hospital Magdeburg, Otto von Guericke University, Leipziger Straße 44, 39120 Magdeburg, Germany
- Research Group ‘Magdeburger Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Forschung unter Raumfahrt-und Schwerelosigkeitsbedingungen’ (MARS), Otto von Guericke University, Universitätsplatz 2, 39106 Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Peter Richter
- Gravitational Biology Group, Department of Biology, Friedrich-Alexander University, 91058 Erlangen, Germany
| | - Sebastian M. Strauch
- Postgraduate Program in Health and Environment, University of Joinville Region, Joinville 89219-710, SC, Brazil
| | - Maik Böhmer
- Institute for Molecular Biosciences, Johann Wolfgang Goethe Universität, 60438 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Dario A. Ricciardi
- Institute for Molecular Biosciences, Johann Wolfgang Goethe Universität, 60438 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Markus Wehland
- Department of Microgravity and Translational Regenerative Medicine, Medical Faculty, University Hospital Magdeburg, Otto von Guericke University, Universitätsplatz 2, 39106 Magdeburg, Germany
- Clinic for Plastic, Aesthetic and Hand Surgery, Medical Faculty, University Hospital Magdeburg, Otto von Guericke University, Leipziger Straße 44, 39120 Magdeburg, Germany
- Research Group ‘Magdeburger Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Forschung unter Raumfahrt-und Schwerelosigkeitsbedingungen’ (MARS), Otto von Guericke University, Universitätsplatz 2, 39106 Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Marcus Krüger
- Department of Microgravity and Translational Regenerative Medicine, Medical Faculty, University Hospital Magdeburg, Otto von Guericke University, Universitätsplatz 2, 39106 Magdeburg, Germany
- Research Group ‘Magdeburger Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Forschung unter Raumfahrt-und Schwerelosigkeitsbedingungen’ (MARS), Otto von Guericke University, Universitätsplatz 2, 39106 Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Gilmar S. Erzinger
- Postgraduate Program in Health and Environment, University of Joinville Region, Joinville 89219-710, SC, Brazil
| | - Michael Lebert
- Gravitational Biology Group, Department of Biology, Friedrich-Alexander University, 91058 Erlangen, Germany
| | - Manfred Infanger
- Department of Microgravity and Translational Regenerative Medicine, Medical Faculty, University Hospital Magdeburg, Otto von Guericke University, Universitätsplatz 2, 39106 Magdeburg, Germany
- Clinic for Plastic, Aesthetic and Hand Surgery, Medical Faculty, University Hospital Magdeburg, Otto von Guericke University, Leipziger Straße 44, 39120 Magdeburg, Germany
- Research Group ‘Magdeburger Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Forschung unter Raumfahrt-und Schwerelosigkeitsbedingungen’ (MARS), Otto von Guericke University, Universitätsplatz 2, 39106 Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Petra M. Wise
- Department of Microgravity and Translational Regenerative Medicine, Medical Faculty, University Hospital Magdeburg, Otto von Guericke University, Universitätsplatz 2, 39106 Magdeburg, Germany
- Research Group ‘Magdeburger Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Forschung unter Raumfahrt-und Schwerelosigkeitsbedingungen’ (MARS), Otto von Guericke University, Universitätsplatz 2, 39106 Magdeburg, Germany
- The Saban Research Institute, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, University of Southern California, 4650 Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90027, USA
| | - Daniela Grimm
- Department of Biomedicine, Aarhus University, Hoegh Guldbergs Gade 10, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark
- Department of Microgravity and Translational Regenerative Medicine, Medical Faculty, University Hospital Magdeburg, Otto von Guericke University, Universitätsplatz 2, 39106 Magdeburg, Germany
- Clinic for Plastic, Aesthetic and Hand Surgery, Medical Faculty, University Hospital Magdeburg, Otto von Guericke University, Leipziger Straße 44, 39120 Magdeburg, Germany
- Research Group ‘Magdeburger Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Forschung unter Raumfahrt-und Schwerelosigkeitsbedingungen’ (MARS), Otto von Guericke University, Universitätsplatz 2, 39106 Magdeburg, Germany
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Paul AL, Haveman N, Califar B, Ferl RJ. Epigenomic Regulators Elongator Complex Subunit 2 and Methyltransferase 1 Differentially Condition the Spaceflight Response in Arabidopsis. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2021; 12:691790. [PMID: 34589093 PMCID: PMC8475764 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2021.691790] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2021] [Accepted: 08/12/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Background: Plants subjected to the novel environment of spaceflight show transcriptomic changes that resemble aspects of several terrestrial abiotic stress responses. Under investigation here is whether epigenetic modulations, similar to those that occur in terrestrial stress responses, have a functional role in spaceflight physiological adaptation. The Advanced Plant Experiment-04 - Epigenetic Expression experiment examined the role of cytosine methylation in spaceflight adaptation. The experiment was conducted onboard the International Space Station, and evaluated the spaceflight-altered, genome-wide methylation profiles of two methylation-regulating gene mutants [methyltransferase 1 (met1-7) and elongator complex subunit 2 (elp2-5)] along with a wild-type Col-0 control. Results: The elp2-5 plants suffered in their physiological adaptation to spaceflight in that their roots failed to extend away from the seed and the overall development of the plants was greatly impaired in space. The met1-7 plants suffered less, with their morphology affected by spaceflight in a manner similar to that of the Col-0 controls. The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in spaceflight were dramatically different in the elp2-5 and met1-7 plants compared to Col-0, indicating that the disruptions in these mutants resulted in a reprogramming of their spaceflight responses, especially in elp2-5. Many of the genes comprising the spaceflight transcriptome of each genotype were differentially methylated in spaceflight. In Col-0 the majority of the DEGs were representative of the now familiar spaceflight response, which includes genes associated with cell wall remodeling, pathogen responses and ROS signaling. However, the spaceflight transcriptomes of met1-7 and elp2-5 each presented patterns of DEGs that are almost completely different than Col-0, and to each other. Further, the DEGs of the mutant genotypes suggest a more severe spaceflight stress response in the mutants, particularly in elp2-5. Conclusion: Arabidopsis physiological adaptation to spaceflight results in differential DNA methylation in an organ-specific manner. Disruption of Met1 methyltransferase function does not dramatically affect spaceflight growth or morphology, yet met1-7 reprograms the spaceflight transcriptomic response in a unique manner. Disruption of elp2-5 results in poor development in spaceflight grown plants, together with a diminished, dramatically reprogrammed transcriptomic response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna-Lisa Paul
- Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
- Horticultural Sciences Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
- Interdisciplinary Center for Biotechnology Research, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
| | - Natasha Haveman
- Horticultural Sciences Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
| | - Brandon Califar
- Horticultural Sciences Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
- Genetics Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
| | - Robert J. Ferl
- Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
- Horticultural Sciences Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
- Office of Research, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
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Manian V, Orozco-Sandoval J, Diaz-Martinez V. Detection of Genes in Arabidopsis thaliana L. Responding to DNA Damage from Radiation and Other Stressors in Spaceflight. Genes (Basel) 2021; 12:938. [PMID: 34205326 PMCID: PMC8234954 DOI: 10.3390/genes12060938] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2021] [Revised: 06/09/2021] [Accepted: 06/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Ionizing radiation present in extraterrestrial environment is an important factor that affects plants grown in spaceflight. Pearson correlation-based gene regulatory network inferencing from transcriptional responses of the plant Arabidopsis thaliana L. grown in real and simulated spaceflight conditions acquired by GeneLab, followed by topological and spectral analysis of the networks is performed. Gene regulatory subnetworks are extracted for DNA damage response processes. Analysis of radiation-induced ATR/ATM protein-protein interactions in Arabidopsis reveals interaction profile similarities under low radiation doses suggesting novel mechanisms of DNA damage response involving non-radiation-induced genes regulating other stress responses in spaceflight. The Jaccard similarity index shows that the genes AT2G31320, AT4G21070, AT2G46610, and AT3G27060 perform similar functions under low doses of radiation. The incremental association Markov blanket method reveals non-radiation-induced genes linking DNA damage response to root growth and plant development. Eighteen radiation-induced genes and sixteen non-radiation-induced gene players have been identified from the ATR/ATM protein interaction complexes involved in heat, salt, water, osmotic stress responses, and plant organogenesis. Network analysis and logistic regression ranking detected AT3G27060, AT1G07500, AT5G66140, and AT3G21280 as key gene players involved in DNA repair processes. High atomic weight, high energy, and gamma photon radiation result in higher intensity of DNA damage response in the plant resulting in elevated values for several network measures such as spectral gap and girth. Nineteen flavonoid and carotenoid pigment activations involved in pigment biosynthesis processes are identified in low radiation dose total light spaceflight environment but are not found to have significant regulations under very high radiation dose environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vidya Manian
- Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez, PR 00681-9000, USA; (J.O.-S.); (V.D.-M.)
- Bioengineering, University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez, PR 00681-9000, USA
| | - Jairo Orozco-Sandoval
- Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez, PR 00681-9000, USA; (J.O.-S.); (V.D.-M.)
| | - Victor Diaz-Martinez
- Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez, PR 00681-9000, USA; (J.O.-S.); (V.D.-M.)
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