BioAsteroid ISS Chondrite Biomining Consortium

Community ID CommunityMech:000305

Ecological State ENGINEERED

Environment BioAsteroid ISS microgravity biomining hardware
ENVO:01001405

The BioAsteroid experiment tested microbial biomining of asteroidal (L-chondrite) material under microgravity aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Two heterotrophic microorganisms — the bacterium Sphingomonas desiccabilis CP1D and the fungus Penicillium simplicissimum DSM 1078 — were flown both as single strains and as an artificial two-member consortium on crushed Northwest Africa (NWA) 869 L-chondrite meteorite fragments, in a 50% v/v R2A medium, inside BioMining Reactors housed in KUBIK incubators. The study measured leaching of 44 elements (including the platinum-group elements ruthenium, palladium and platinum, and other elements of industrial interest) from the meteorite and compared microbial versus abiotic (non-biological) leaching under microgravity and terrestrial gravity. Penicillium simplicissimum was the most effective bioleaching organism in microgravity, enhancing release of palladium, platinum and other elements relative to non-biological controls, while Sphingomonas desiccabilis formed a contiguous biofilm on the rock surface but performed similarly or worse than the abiotic control for most platinum-group elements. In the consortium, the fungus alone outperformed the mixture for palladium, suggesting an antagonistic effect of the bacterium. Metabolomic analysis showed distinct, microgravity-dependent changes in microbial metabolism, particularly for P. simplicissimum, with increased production of carboxylic acids and other molecules of potential biomining or pharmaceutical interest. The work demonstrates proof of principle for microbe-driven transformation of asteroidal material for in situ resource utilization in space.

Taxonomy

Taxon	Ontology ID	Functional Roles	Abundance
Sphingomonas desiccabilis CP1D	NCBITaxon:429134	PRIMARY_DEGRADER	N/A
PMID:41617698 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO) "a Gram-negative, non-motile and non-spore-forming bacterium, first isolated from soil crusts in the Colorado plateau" PMID:41617698 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO) "extract rare earth elements and vanadium from basalt rock under microgravity"
Penicillium simplicissimum DSM 1078	NCBITaxon:69488	PRIMARY_DEGRADER	N/A
PMID:41617698 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO) "DSM 1078 (DSMZ), an Ascomycota known for its capacity to perform bioleaching" PMID:41617698 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO) "Penicillium simplicissimum enhanced the release of palladium, platinum and other elements in microgravity"

Ecological Interactions

Taxon

Cross-feeding

Mutualism

Syntrophy

Competition

Commensalism

Niche partitioning

Colonization facilitation

Strain competition

Predation

Fungal bioleaching of platinum-group and critical elements from L-chondrite

CROSS_FEEDING

Source Taxon: Penicillium simplicissimum DSM 1078

Metabolites: palladium (CHEBI:33363), vanadium (CHEBI:27698), copper(2+) (CHEBI:29036), carboxylic acid (CHEBI:33575)

Evidence

PMID:41617698 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO)

"Penicillium simplicissimum enhanced the release of palladium, platinum and other elements in microgravity"
PMID:41617698 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO)

"enhanced bioleaching of phosphorus, vanadium and copper compared to the bacterium"
PMID:41617698 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO)

"increased production of carboxylic acids"

Bacterial and fungal biofilm colonization of the meteorite surface

COLONIZATION_FACILITATION

Source Taxon: Sphingomonas desiccabilis CP1D

Target Taxon: Penicillium simplicissimum DSM 1078

Biological Processes:

biofilm formation (GO:0042710)

Evidence

PMID:41617698 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO)

"formed a contiguous biofilm across many areas of the rock"
PMID:41617698 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO)

"the bacterium and the fungus interacting in a similar fashion in both gravity conditions"

Bacterial antagonism of fungal palladium leaching in the consortium

COMPETITION

Source Taxon: Sphingomonas desiccabilis CP1D

Target Taxon: Penicillium simplicissimum DSM 1078

Metabolites: palladium (CHEBI:33363)

Evidence

PMID:41617698 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO)

"the fungus alone outperformed the consortium, possibly due to the antagonistic effects of the bacterium"

External Resources

Name	Repository	Resource ID
Primary publication - BioAsteroid ISS microbial biomining (npj Microgravity 2026) Version-of-record publication reporting the BioAsteroid experiment: microbial biomining of 44 elements from L-chondrite asteroidal material aboard the ISS under microgravity (PMID:41617698).	OTHER	doi:10.1038/s41526-026-00567-3
PMID:41617698 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO) "tested the use of microorganisms (bacteria and fungi) to extract 44 elements from L-chondrite asteroidal material"
bioRxiv preprint - BioAsteroid experiment bioRxiv preprint of the same BioAsteroid experiment; the npj Microgravity version of record (doi:10.1038/s41526-026-00567-3) is preferred for evidence.	OTHER	doi:10.1101/2024.01.13.575412
NCBI Taxonomy - Sphingomonas desiccabilis NCBI Taxonomy record for Sphingomonas desiccabilis.	OTHER	NCBITaxon:429134
NCBI Taxonomy - Penicillium simplicissimum NCBI Taxonomy record for Penicillium simplicissimum.	OTHER	NCBITaxon:69488

Environmental Factors

Factor	Value	Unit
Microgravity (ISS spaceflight)	microgravity	N/A
PMID:41617698 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO) "installation into the microgravity (non-centrifuged) slots within the two KUBIK (ESA) incubators"
Meteorite substrate (L-chondrite, NWA 869)	Northwest Africa (NWA) 869 L3-6 chondrite regolith breccia	N/A
PMID:41617698 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO) "was the Northwest Africa (NWA) 869 meteorite, a L3-6 chondrite regolith breccia"
Incubation temperature and duration	~19.5-20 °C for 19 days	N/A
PMID:41617698 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO) "Samples grew for 19 days at 19.5"
Medium pH	7.2	pH
PMID:41617698 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO) "The medium used for this experiment was a solution of 50% v/v R2A medium"

Growth Media

BioAsteroid 50% v/v R2A biomining medium

pH 7.2

Temperature 20 °C

Atmosphere AEROBIC

Composition

Component	Concentration	Unit	CHEBI
glucose	0.25	g/L	CHEBI:17234
soluble starch	0.25	g/L	CHEBI:28017
sodium pyruvate	0.15	g/L	CHEBI:15361
yeast extract	0.25	g/L	N/A
peptone	0.25	g/L	N/A
casamino acids	0.25	g/L	N/A

Preparation notes: 50% v/v R2A medium, 5 mL per sample. Reported composition (g/L): yeast extract 0.25; peptone 0.25; casamino acids 0.25; glucose 0.25; soluble starch 0.25; Na-pyruvate 0.15; K2HPO4 0.15; MgSO4.7H2O 0.025; pH 7.2.

Evidence

PMID:41617698

"The medium used for this experiment was a solution of 50% v/v R2A medium"

PMID:41617698

"yeast extract 0.25; peptone 0.25; casamino acids 0.25; glucose 0.25, soluble starch 0.25, Na-pyruvate 0.15"