::: spoiler Article text Jeff Foust

4–5 minutes

WASHINGTON — Commercial space station company Vast announced June 24 the addition of several companies and organizations to its network of partners for microgravity research and manufacturing.

Vast said it signed memoranda of understanding with the Sanford Stem Cell Institute at the University of California San Diego, Auxilium Biotechnologies, LambdaVision and BioOrbit. The agreements cover potential future use of Vast’s space stations by those organizations for microgravity research and related projects.

The agreements are intended to continue work those organizations have done on the International Space Station, principally in biomedical research and applications, after the ISS is retired at the end of the decade.

“The International Space Station has enabled more than two decades of scientific research in microgravity,” said Meghan Everett, Vast’s principal scientist and former deputy chief scientist for the ISS, in a statement.

“Vast’s Haven stations will build on that legacy and help accelerate commercial scientific discovery. By bringing together the foremost leaders in their respective fields, our network combines complementary expertise under a shared vision: advancing discoveries that benefit both life on Earth and humanity’s future in space,” she said.

Among Vast’s new partners is LambdaVision, which has flown nine missions to the ISS to test production of artificial retinas in space. The company, which raised $7 million last year, is working toward preclinical trials of those retinas for patients with advanced retinitis pigmentosa.

“Commercial space stations represent an important next step in the evolution of space-based manufacturing,” Nicole Wagner, co-founder and chief executive of LambdaVision, said in a statement. “Our partnership with Vast supports LambdaVision’s long-term vision of creating a sustainable and scalable biomanufacturing platform that can benefit not only patients with retinal degenerative diseases but also future applications across biotechnology and advanced materials.”

LambdaVision does not plan to rely exclusively on Vast for future research. The company said in February it booked space on Starlab Space’s planned Starlab commercial space station.

Another partner is Auxilium BioTechnologies, which last year successfully produced implantable medical devices using a 3D bioprinter on the ISS.

“By combining Auxilium’s expertise in microgravity bioprinting with Vast’s commercial space infrastructure, we’re creating new opportunities to develop and manufacture complex biological systems in ways not possible on Earth,” said Isac Lazarovits, vice president of engineering at Auxilium, in a statement.

BioOrbit is developing systems for large-scale production of protein drugs in microgravity, having flown its BOX system on the ISS.

“Haven stations are designed to give us the repeat access and dedicated infrastructure we need to scale from demonstration through production and ultimately bring a shift in health care here on Earth,” Katie King, co-founder and chief executive of BioOrbit, said in a statement.

The Sanford Stem Cell Institute has done research on how the space environment, including microgravity and exposure to radiation, can accelerate the aging process of cells, enabling rapid modeling of the effects of cancer and diseases.

“We’re thrilled by the possibility to continue our vital aerospace medicine research in space — with major implications for the health of Earth-bound humans — on Haven stations,” said Catriona Jamieson, director of the institute.

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