COLLAGENASE DIGESTION OF BONE FRAGMENTS IN MICROGRAVITY

The effect of a quiescent microgravity fluid environment on the activi ty of collagenase directed at demineralized bone fragments was investi gated over a period of 10 days. Enzyme treatment resulted in greater m ass loss in microgravity, with nearly three times the loss of mass dur ing Space Shuttle mission STS-62 compared to the stationary ground con trol. Clinorotation enhanced the loss of mass relative to a stationary control, but this increase was still significantly less than the incr ease with exposure to microgravity. This suggests the detrimental infl uence of turbulence on the enzyme function and the benefit of using mi crogravity to provide both low turbulence and uniformity of unequally dense materials within the reaction chamber. The results a reconsidere d for their general applicability to a variety of bioprocessing applic ations that may be enhanced in microgravity. (C) 1996 John Wiley & Son s, Inc.