(POSTER) Effect of Extreme Dynamic Pressure on Extremophiles

An important consideration for space missions is the likelihood of contamination, either of terrestrial organisms to a planetary body which may sustain life (forward contamination), or of potential extraterrestrial lifeforms that are brought back through sample return (backward contamination). To identify the limits of life to understand this likelihood of contamination in the space environment, analogous conditions must be tested on adequate model microorganisms in the laboratory setting. We aim to characterize the survivability of Deinococcus radiodurans, an extremophile with relevance to the astrobiology community, to impact conditions and understand its effects on the biological system using the pressure-shear plate impact experiment. Additional biological analyses was conducted to characterize cellular response, membrane integrity and DNA double strand breaks to understand the effects of extreme dynamic stress on biological components of the cell. These experiments will provide fundamental data relevant to astrobiology and planetary protection.