In-Space Stem Cell Production could Improve Cancer Treatments
An in-space stem cell production demonstration will be conducted by Sierra Space in collaboration with BioServe Space Technologies (at the University of Colorado Boulder) and other partners aboard the ISS.
"Microgravity, the next foundational tech, will lead to the most amazing Industrial Revolution in history.”
Tom Vice, Sierra Space
The experiment to grow hematopoietic stem cells in microgravity to better help patients on Earth undergoing treatment for blood cancer is also being designed by researchers from the Mayo Clinic (Jacksonville, Fla.) and ClinImmune (University of Colorado Medical Campus). It launched to the ISS aboard the NG-19 resupply mission on Tuesday.
Chemotherapy is a common treatment that targets cancer cells, but can also destroy healthy cells in the process, which could lead to life-threatening complications. To avoid this, doctors can take hematopoietic stem cells from a healthy donor’s bone marrow or blood and transplant them into a matched recipient. Hematopoietic stem cells can also be obtained from donated umbilical cord blood, which are closer in nature to embryonic stem cells and offer a lower risk of complication.
However, stem cell transplants require large numbers of cells to be effective, and it is challenging to grow cord blood stem cells to produce enough for effective treatment. When grown on Earth, hematopoietic stem cells normally change into dedicated blood cell lines, which is not optimal for patient recovery.
In-Space Stem Cell Production Could Produce Medical Breakthroughs
“Approximately every 9 minutes, a family loses a loved one to leukemia, lymphoma or myeloma. If we can mass-produce hematopoietic stem cells by using the unique microgravity environment of space, I think about the transformational impact we will have on patients and their families,” said Sierra Space CEO Tom Vice. “This experiment, to see if we can grow hematopoietic stem cells in space in larger quantities, is a precursor to what Sierra Space one day envisages – orbiting microgravity factories that enable the next breakthroughs in human health care that will have a profound impact on the quality and longevity of millions of people here on Earth. Microgravity, the next foundational tech, will lead to the most amazing Industrial Revolution in history.”
For the in-space stem cell production experiment, Sierra Space, BioServe and the study team will send stem cell samples from multiple umbilical cord blood donors to look for beneficial differences during the cell growth experiment. The stem cell samples will be frozen at different time points while in orbit and sent back to Earth for analysis.
This pathfinder study is part of a larger project led by BioServe to develop a stem cell expansion bioreactor for use in low-Earth orbit (LEO) for eventual cellular therapeutic manufacturing in-space. Future flight investigations are being planned with the project partners to demonstrate the potential for in-space production.
(Source: Sierra Space news release. Images provided and from file)