Small satellite technologies, particularly CubeSats, are enabling breakthrough research in space. Over the past 15 years, NASA Ames Research Center has developed and flown half a dozen biological CubeSats in low Earth orbit (LEO) to conduct space biology and astrobiology research investigating the effects of the space environment on microbiological organisms. These studies of the impacts of radiation and reduced gravity on cellular processes include dose-dependent interactions with antimicrobial drugs, measurements of gene expression and signaling, and assessment of radiation damage. BioSentinel, the newest addition to this series, will be the first deep space biological CubeSat, its heliocentric orbit extending far beyond the radiation-shielded environment of low Earth orbit. BioSentinel's 4U biosensing payload, the first living biology space experiment ever conducted beyond the Earth-Moon system, will use a microbial bioassay to assess repair of radiation-induced DNA damage in eukaryotic cells over a duration of 6–12 months. Part of a special collection of articles focused on BioSentinel and its science mission, this article describes the design, development, and testing of the biosensing payload's microfluidics and optical systems, highlighting improvements relative to previous CubeSat life-support and bioanalytical measurement technologies.

中文翻译：

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BioSentinel：监测深空微生物生长和活动的生物流体纳米卫星

小型卫星技术，尤其是立方体卫星，正在推动太空领域的突破性研究。在过去的 15 年里，美国宇航局艾姆斯研究中心开发并在近地轨道 (LEO) 发射了六颗生物立方体卫星，以开展空间生物学和天体生物学研究，调查空间环境对微生物的影响。这些关于辐射和重力降低对细胞过程的影响的研究包括与抗菌药物的剂量依赖性相互作用、基因表达和信号传导的测量以及辐射损伤的评估。BioSentinel 是该系列的最新成员，将是第一颗深空生物立方体卫星，其日心轨道延伸范围远远超出近地轨道的辐射屏蔽环境。BioSentinel 的 4U 生物传感有效载荷，这是地球-月球系统以外进行的第一个活体生物学空间实验，将使用微生物生物测定来评估在 6-12 个月的时间内真核细胞中辐射诱导的 DNA 损伤的修复情况。作为专注于 BioSentinel 及其科学使命的特别文章集的一部分，本文描述了生物传感有效载荷的微流体和光学系统的设计、开发和测试，重点介绍了相对于以前的 CubeSat 生命支持和生物分析测量技术的改进。