Radiation Stability Evaluation of Protein-Based Nanopores for Mars and Europa Missions

Burton, Aaron S ; Sutton, Mark A ; Zaikova, Elena ; Sutton, Ryan E ; Brinckerhoff, William B ; Bevilacqua, Julie G ; Weng, Margaret M ; Mumma, Michael J ; Johnson, Sarah S

关键词: BIOMARKERS;    DEOXYRIBONUCLEIC ACID;    EUROPA;    IONIZING RADIATION;    LIFE DETECTORS;    MARS MISSIONS;    POROSITY;    RIBONUCLEIC ACIDS;    SEQUENCING;    STABILITY;   

RP-ID  :  JSC-E-DAA-TN66686

学科分类：天文学(综合)

美国|英语

来源: NASA Technical Reports Server

【 摘 要 】

Exploration of our Solar System has revealed a number of locations that are now habitable or could have supported life in the past. One approach to finding life involves detection of informational polymers like deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA) that are definitive biosignatures for life as we know it. Alternatively, structural variants of DNA and RNA, collectively termed xenonucleic acids (XNAs) have been shown in the laboratory to behave similarly. Nanopore-based sequencers differ from traditional sequencing technologies in that they do not explicitly require synthesis of DNA before or during analysis. Because of this, nanopore sequencers have been used for the direct sequencing of RNA, and could be used for the detection and analysis of other charged polymers. Here we describe results of exposing the MinION hardware, flow cells, and key reagents to ionizing radiation at doses relevant to Mars and Europa missions (10 to 3000 silicon-equivalent gray).