 Spores of different strains of "Bacillus subtilis" and the "Escherichia coli" plasmid pUC19 were exposed to selected conditions of space (space vacuum and/or defined wavebands and intensities of solar ultraviolet radiation).After the approximately 11-month mission, their responses were studied in terms of survival, mutagenesis in the "his" ("B. subtilis") or "lac" locus (pUC19), induction of DNA strand breaks, efficiency of DNA repair systems, and the role of external protective agents.The data were compared with those of a simultaneously running ground control experiment