The elucidation of the life support mechanism under high vacuum condition: the application to space environment

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26506008
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: 宇宙生命学
• Research Institution: Hamamatsu University School of Medicine
• Principal Investigator: OHTA ISAO 浜松医科大学, 光尖端医学教育研究センター, 技術専門員 (20464133)
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: 走査電子顕微鏡 / NanoSuit / 高真空 / 生命維持 / バリアー機能

Outline of Final Research Achievements

In this research, with the aim of elucidating the life support mechanism in space, we have examined various living biological specimens protected with a polymerized thin film "NanoSuit". We used the high vacuum conditions (10-3-10-7 Pa) in the observation chamber of a field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) as the experimental space, and revealed that a simple surface modification by electron beams can equip some multicellular organisms with a strong tolerance against the high vacuum. Furthermore, to protect living single cells, we have developed a new solution “Surface Shield Enhancer (SSE)” that consists of glycerin and electrolytes as a component for NanoSuit. The SSE based NanoSuit affords a much stronger barrier to gas and/or liquid loss than the previous NanoSuit did and, since it allows more detailed images, it could significantly help to elucidate the ‘real’ organization of cells and their functions under the space environment.

Free Research Field

微細構造、顕微鏡技術、細胞微細形態学