DNA survives a ride into space: Study
An experiment to test the durability of DNA by seeing whether it could survive re-entry through the Earth's atmosphere in a rocket has proved that it can survive, researchers from Germany and Switzerland report in PLOS One.
After the excursion, the researchers were able to recover DNA from each application site, with more than 53 percent recovery from screw heads. Additionally, they found that more than a third of the DNA retained its biological function.
"This study provides experimental evidence that the DNA's genetic information is essentially capable of surviving the extreme conditions of space and the re-entry into Earth's dense atmosphere," says study head Oliver Ullrich from the University of Zurich's Institute of Anatomy.
Previous studies, Scientific American notes, have found that bacteria and fungi on the outside of rock samples attached to capsules and sent into space did not survive, though some studies suggested that bacteria in biofilms could endure life in space.
"Biosignatures are molecules that can prove the existence of past or present extraterrestrial life," explains Dr. Thiel. And so the two UZH researchers launched a small second mission at the European rocket station Esrange in Kiruna, north of the Arctic Circle.
The quickly conceived additional experiment was originally supposed to be a pretest to check the stability of biomarkers during spaceflight and re-entry into the atmosphere. Dr. Thiel did not expect the results it produced: "We were completely surprised to find so much intact and functionally active DNA." The study reveals that genetic information from the DNA can essentially withstand the most extreme conditions.
This new finding, New Scientist adds, has implications for both how spacecraft are sterilized to protect against contaminating alien worlds with Earth-based life and for the search for alien life.
