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2 Instrumentation
Pages 23-37

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From page 23... ... The present schedule calls for a specialized biotechnology facility to be one of the last units installed on the ISS in 2005, so until that date, the hardware for protein crystal growth and cell science research in space will be fitted into EXPRESS racks in whatever laboratory modules have been completed.i A more detailed outline of the schedule for research on the ISS is included in Appendix A Although equipment from the space shuttle will be used, temporarily, on the ISS, there are several key differences between the logistics of experiments on the shuttle and on the ISS. Read the entire page →
From page 24... ... PROTEIN CRYSTAL GROWTH Since the beginning of the NASA protein crystal growth program in 1985, a variety of equipment has been used to grow and observe crystals in the microgravity environment. Useful and innovative hardware development on systems for the ISS continues today. Read the entire page →
From page 25... ... Recommendation: The efforts of external hardware developers should be coordinated to ensure that instruments are compatible, to prevent duplication of efforts, to ensure that technical innovations are shared, and to facilitate input from the scientific community in defining the goals and capabilities of protein crystal growth equipment for the ISS. NASA must also be prepared to discontinue development projects that do not use cutting-edge technologies or that are out of tune with the most current scientific goals. Read the entire page →
From page 26... ... Finding: Automation, monitoring, real-time feedback, telemanagement, and sample recovery (via mounting and freezingJ will be vital for successful protein crystal growth experiments on the ISS. The XCF, through its use of robotics and a variety of experimental and observational capabilities, provides many of the tools researchers need to take full advantage of the microgravity environment. Read the entire page →
From page 27... ... The third is that scientists will not be willing to entrust precious samples having biologically important implications to equipment unless they are completely aware of both the risks and the potential benefits. The primary goal of the NASA protein crystal growth program should be to serve the research community, not commercial entities. Read the entire page →
From page 28... ... This unit is a modular cassette-style bioreactor that can accommodate multiple cell culture chambers (see Figure 2.2~. The CCU provides temperature and pH control and allows for continual feeding and waste medium harvest from perfused stationary cultures (Searby et al., 1998~. Read the entire page →
From page 29... ... "if>. variety of concerns about the effectiveness and appropriateness of this approach for research in the microgravity environment. Read the entire page →
From page 30... ... The EDU has housed rotating-wall vessel experiments on the space shuttle and on Mir. illustrations from the NASA Web site, and . Read the entire page →
From page 31... ... Recommendation: Given the current status of equipment in development, finitefiscal resources at NASA, and the limited amount of volume on the ISS, the task group recommends that future research on the ISS should Reemphasize the use of rotating-wall vessel bioreactors, which are already established, and continue to encourage the development of new technologies such as miniaturized culture systems and compact analytical devices. Another factor to be considered in selecting hardware for cell science research on the ISS is the equipment's ability to contribute to efforts to distinguish between the direct impacts of microgravity, where the low level of gravity alters cell behavior, and indirect effects, where space changes the local culture environment (e.g., variations in gas exchange or nutrient and mass transport rates) Read the entire page →
From page 32... ... A modular approach to hardware design must be used to allow for the innovations in technology and the scientific breakthroughs that are likely to occur in the five or more years before the installation of a specialized biotechnology facility on the ISS. Many of the hardware development process issues discussed in the section on protein crystal growth also apply to the development of hardware for cell science. Read the entire page →
From page 33... ... and phase-contrast microscopy would be beneficial, particularly for the analysis of the three-dimensional constructs produced in tissue engineering experiments. (Confocal microscopy might also be useful for protein crystal growth experiments.) Read the entire page →
From page 34... ... 34 FUTURE BIOTECHNOLOGY RESEARCH ON THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION Finding: The limited amount of crew time available for research-related work and the infrequency with which investigators will have access to their samples via shuttle trips mean that automation of routine tasks, groundbased control of experiments, on-orbit analytical capabilities, and real-time transmission of digital data are vital for conducting effective cell science research on the ISS. It is important to recognize that, while equipment is being designed now, the primary use of the cell science facilities on the ISS will begin 2 to 5 years into the future, and researchers will require access to the most up-todate analytical instrumentation for their space-based experiments. Read the entire page →
From page 35... ... Other factors include crew time required for the experiments, the amount and reliability of the power supply, adequate storage space and appropriate environments for samples and supplies, shuttle flight schedules to and from the ISS, the volume of materials to be transported, and, of course, the size of the budget provided for cell science hardware development and research support. Many of these factors are affected by competition from other activities for resources on the ISS, and some of the problems are not specific to cell science but affect programs throughout NASA. Read the entire page →
From page 36... ... OVERALL VOLUME ALLOTMENT FOR BIOTECHNOLOGY RESEARCH ON THE ISS Currently, plans call for biotechnology research funded by NRAs to occur within one rack on the ISS. This rack would be shared by protein crystal growth and cell science work. Read the entire page →
From page 37... ... It would be more efficient for the cell science work to be located near associated analytical equipment or storage facilities, while the importance of the monitoring, mounting, and freezing capabilities of the XCF means that the protein crystal growth experiments need to be closely coordinated with this facility. The task group also carefully considered the needs of the various research communities expected to use the biotechnology facilities on the ISS. Read the entire page →

From page 23...

... The present schedule calls for a specialized biotechnology facility to be one of the last units installed on the ISS in 2005, so until that date, the hardware for protein crystal growth and cell science research in space will be fitted into EXPRESS racks in whatever laboratory modules have been completed.i A more detailed outline of the schedule for research on the ISS is included in Appendix A Although equipment from the space shuttle will be used, temporarily, on the ISS, there are several key differences between the logistics of experiments on the shuttle and on the ISS.

2 Instrumentation Pages 23-37

2 Instrumentation
Pages 23-37