Sierra Space, a leading commercial aerospace and defense technology company building a platform in space to benefit life on Earth ® , today announced new initiatives to advance the research and development of biopharmaceutical solutions in low Earth orbit during the inaugural mission of the Dream Chaser spaceplane to the International Space Station (ISS). Plans include conducting experiments to identify novel ways to deliver cancer therapies to patients on Earth, in collaboration with Merck, known as MSD outside the United States and Canada.
The collaboration highlights why Dream Chaser is designed for a smooth return to Earth with the ability to land on commercial runways at less than 1.5g, a capability that allows for safe return of experiments without rough splashdowns in the ocean or hard landings in the desert. Dream Chaser’s ability to land on runways also provides rapid access to offload critical cargo from the spaceplane, a key advantage when handling sensitive biopharmaceutical materials.
“We know there are great benefits to conducting science experiments in low Earth orbit, but we also need to safely return the results of these experiments to Earth,” said Paul Reichert, principal investigator at Merck. “Dream Chaser’s ability to safely return payloads from the ISS laboratory via the same runway as a commercial aircraft will significantly increase the survivability of these delicate materials and hopefully accelerate the advancement of critical treatments.”
One of the research initiatives being undertaken in collaboration with Merck is the investigation of experimental formulations of monoclonal antibody therapies for cancer. This research is focused on exploiting the effects of microgravity to develop high-concentration amorphous suspensions, paving the way for improved methods of therapeutic drug delivery. For example, new formulations could allow injections to be administered subcutaneously rather than via intravenous transfusion. Other potential benefits include the creation of therapies with greater stability, potentially allowing for storage without the need for refrigeration. This is the first announcement of a commercial contract partner for Sierra Space’s upcoming Dream Chaser mission, highlighting the spaceplane’s payload “rideshare” capabilities. The cargo will also include NASA supplies for astronauts currently aboard the space station.
Sierra Space recently completed and achieved the Joint Test 10B milestone in collaboration with NASA on Dream Chaser, giving it the ability to power, cool and exchange data with powered payloads in the pressurized cabin. This included testing cold storage payloads carrying scientific material.
Sierra Space is a leading commercial space company at the forefront of innovation and the commercialization of space in the Orbital Age® , building an end-to-end business and technology platform in space to benefit life on Earth. With over 30 years and 500 missions of space heritage, the company is reinventing both space transportation with Dream Hunter® , the world’s only commercial spacecraft, and the future of space destinations with the company’s inflatable and expandable space station technology. Using commercial business models, the company also provides orbital services to commercial, DoD, and national security organizations, and is expanding manufacturing capacity to meet the needs of constellation programs. Additionally, Sierra Space builds a broad range of systems and subsystems in the areas of solar energy, mechanical and motion control, environmental control, life support, propulsion, and thermal control, and offers numerous space-as-a-service solutions for the new space economy.
Source: Sierra Space
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