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Space Time
The Next Blockbuster Drug Might Be Made in Space
Microgravity could be an ideal environment for cancer drug research
Nearly a decade before the first space shuttle left Earth, NASA wanted to make drugs in space. In a 1970 internal document, the agency suggested that the microgravity environment of space could be conducive to manufacturing and testing the efficacy of different kinds of pharmaceuticals.
Gravity poses logistical challenges for scientists working in the lab. On Earth, heavier materials sink to the bottom of test tubes and often clump together. In microgravity, however, the proteins that are needed to create medicine overcome these challenges and can grow freely. When working with proteins and cells in space, the purity of experiments can increase.
When the United States’ shuttle program was first proposed, the plan was to launch as many as 50 flights a year. The cost of this ambitious idea needed to be justified. It was suggested by NASA that perhaps astronauts working on the shuttle could work on a cure for cancer. Or discover a treatment for Parkinson’s. The possibilities were endless.
In 1982, NASA partnered with McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing). McDonnell Douglas designed a machine to test a process called electrophoresis, which is…
