As space missions grow longer and more complex, the need for sustainable biomanufacturing systems becomes increasingly urgent. Biological production of materials, nutrients, and pharmaceuticals offers a self-sufficient approach to supporting human exploration and settlement beyond Earth.
However, wild-type microorganisms used in terrestrial biomanufacturing are poorly equipped to function under space-specific stressors such as galactic cosmic radiation, X-rays, and microgravity. These environmental extremes reduce microbial viability and productivity, while standard growth-based assays often fail to reveal the full extent of cellular damage, limiting the development of resilient biological platforms for off-Earth use.
This technology enhances microbial robustness through targeted genetic engineering of prokaryotic and eukaryotic hosts, including E. coli, Pseudomonas putida, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Pichia pastoris.
By overexpressing stress-response genes, the engineered microbes exhibit improved growth and metabolite production under simulated space conditions. These modifications increase tolerance to galactic cosmic radiation, X-ray exposure, and microgravity.
Additionally, integrated biomarkers provide accurate viability assessments beyond traditional growth metrics, and optimized lyophilization protocols enable long-term storage and reactivation. RNA-sequencing was used to uncover conserved stress-responsive pathways, allowing for a cross-species engineering strategy that enables standard bioproduction organisms to function in extreme environments.