Bacteria will print the first houses on Mars using local

Nonprofit organization Pioneer Labs has introduced a genetically modified strain of bacteria, sPL.001, capable of producing bioplastic from Martian resources.

The production process begins with the electrochemical generation of acetate from carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of the Red Planet. The bacteria are fed this acetate, while necessary nutrient salts are extracted from the Martian soil—regolith.

Creating a strain resistant to Martian conditions took significant time and resources. Scientists conducted the following stages of work:

• Testing 16 microorganisms in an environment simulating Martian conditions
• Selecting the most promising soil bacteria Cupriavidus necator and Pseudomonas putida
• Laboratory evolution of the strain, involving more than 10¹² cell divisions for adaptation to acetate and regolith

The result is a bacterium that produces three times more polyhydroxyalkanoates compared to the original strain. The resulting material is suitable for 3D printing structures.

These organisms are not designed to live on the planet's surface: they are contained in closed bioreactors and lack the ability to photosynthesize. Without an external source of acetate, bacterial growth stops.

According to the researchers' calculations, one such installation can provide building materials for a small sealed settlement within four years. Delivering the equipment would require only one rocket.

Details of the study were published as a preprint on bioRxiv. The work is currently in the laboratory simulation stage, but it demonstrates the feasibility of creating building materials without transporting them from Earth.