Behind the Black
The medical company LambdaVision announced yesterday that has booked payload slots and commercial space on Starlab in order to manufacture “protein-based artificial retinas.”
LambdaVision leverages microgravity to improve the layer-by-layer production process of their artificial retina through alternating layers of the protein bacteriorhodopsin and a polymer, supported by a membrane of a synthetic fiber that has long been used by the medical community. Reduced gravity in an LEO environment improves homogeneity, stability, and performance of thin films like the protein-based artificial retina. By using proteins similar to the visual pigment rhodopsin naturally found in our eyes, LambdaVision’s protein-based artificial retina mimics the light-absorbing properties of human photoreceptors replacing the function of these damaged cells in the retinas of blind patients.
Starlab is the giant single module space station being built by a consortium led by Voyager Technologies that will be placed in orbit by a Superheavy/Starship launch.
While NASA allowed this kind of medical research on ISS, it never allowed the companies to manufacture any products on ISS for later sale on Earth. The new private space stations are decidedly opposed to that government restriction, and thus they are attracting customers like LambdaVision because they will allow it to make money on what it produces. The press release notes that while this first project is aimed at producing artificial retinas to restore vision in patients, the technology will be applicable to “sensitive biosensors, optical systems, tissue engineering, and drug delivery applications.”
More:
https://behindtheblack.com/behind-the-black/points-of-information/medical-company-making-artificial-retinas-buys-payload-slots-on-starlab/
