Conference Registration, Morning Coffee and Tea

ICE Cubes Space Access for Life Sciences and Flow Chemistry R&D
Hilde Stenuit, ICE Cubes Space Access Business Developer, ICE CUBES Space Applications Services

The International Commercial Experiments Cubes Service – in short – ICE Cubes provides access to microgravity for life sciences and flow chemistry R&D. The service offers specific assets and is building new capabilities relevant for such R&D. The presentation will give an overview of the capabilities, success stories we have flown before in those areas and which new platforms in areas as organoids, 3D bioprinting, organ-on-chip are being developed.

Mid-Morning Coffee, Tea and Networking

You Can Bioprint in Space Now: Redwire’s 3D Bioprinter is Ready Aboard the ISS
Molly Mulligan, Director, Business Development, Redwire

Have you ever wondered what happens when we remove gravity from our biological processes? In low Earth orbit (LEO), 400 kilometers above our heads, is the International Space Station (ISS), an orbiting research facility that provides a proving ground for innovation and next generation technology. The ISS is open for bioprinting utilizing the unique environment of microgravity. Biological systems studied in microgravity are dominated by surface tension and diffusion rather than sedimentation and convection. In the microgravity environment on the station: cells form 3D structure without the use of a scaffolding or matrix; we can print larger 3D tissue constructs without the tissue collapsing under its own weight before strengthening; we can study the mechanisms involved in biofabrication; and much more. Learning how forces other than gravity affect the process of biofabrication can help us learn new things about our processes on Earth and allows us to find ways to minimize those forces to create new and innovative products on Earth. Redwire Corporation enables bioprinting and biofabrication in microgravity, where there are unique solutions to many problems in the laboratory and lots of room for innovation. The company has the only extrusion-based 3D bioprinter on the ISS, called the Biofabrication Facility (BFF). Redwire seeks to understand what the latest technology breakthroughs are terrestrially, so that microgravity can be used to create even more innovation in the fields of bioprinting and biofabrication. As always, the ISS is open for research from around the world, and Redwire is eager to collaborate.

Networking Luncheon in the Exhibit Hall -- Network with the Exhibitors and Engage with Colleagues

The Orbital Age
Marc Giulianotti, Sr. Manager, In Space Biomanufacturing, Sierra Space

Humanity’s Next Chapter
Jana Stoudemire, Director, In-Space Manufacturing, Axiom Space

Production of Superior Quality Human Organoids in Space
Liliana Layer, Chief Scientific Officer, Prometheus Life Technologies

The interest in human organoids for drug testing, regenerative medicine and R&D is growing, but at the same time their production on Earth is challenging and results are often inhomogeneous and not satisfactory. Here we present a new technology to harness microgravity for the facilitation of organoid formation and differentiation yielding highly reproducible and standardized results.

Afternoon Coffee and Tea Break and Networking

Space (Heart) Ship: A Heart-on-Chip Model to Study Cardiovascular Dysfunction in Space
Kevin Tabury, Researcher, Belgian Nuclear Research Centre, Belgium

After two decades of human presence in orbit around Earth on the International Space Station (ISS), human settlement on the Moon and Mars is currently the next challenge to address in deep space exploration. Exiting the protection of our magnetosphere also lead to increase health risks from prolonged exposure to microgravity and space radiation that could seriously jeopardize space missions. Cardiovascular dysfunction and in particular accelerated cardiac aging is one of the concerns. Aging of the heart causes atherosclerosis, fibrosis, and reduced heart muscles contractility leading ultimately to heart failure. Despite our technological advances, the current molecular and cellular understanding of cardiovascular diseases because of aging is limited and mainly based on animal models. With an estimated radiation exposure of 0.5-1Sv for a manned mission to Mars, such increased cardiovascular risk becomes extremely relevant. In Space, the risks of cardiovascular diseases are also enhanced by microgravity. Thus, a deeper understanding of the biological mechanisms leading to cardiac aging is one of the key challenges in developing countermeasures. In this context, investigating the interplay between particle radiation and microgravity on cardiac aging in heart-on-chips becomes crucial. During this presentation, we will introduce our newest project and current advances in the development of a heart-on-chip model to study cardiovascular dysfunction in space.

Networking Reception with Dutch and Belgian Beers

Close of Day 1 of the Conference

Morning Coffee and Tea in the Exhibit Hall

Mid-Morning Coffee, Tea and Networking in the Exhibit Hall

ESA’s 3D Bioprinting in Space Initiative
Christiane Hahn, Exploration Scientist - Space Biology , European Space Agency (ESA), Netherlands

Bioprinting is enabling technology for space exploration missions such as medical applications, Bioreactors & closed loop life-support systems, food production, biomining, and bioconstruction. ESA is in the process of developing a 3D Biosystem for the International Space Station, including the development of a 3D bioprinter and 3D cell culture system, as well as in-situ capabilities for incubating, maturing, stimulating, and analysing 3D bioprinted cell constructs. The objectives of ESA's 3D Bioprinting and 3D cell culture system in space is the development of biomaterials for biology research and biomaterials for clinical cases in different space mission scenarions in order to provide innovative and impactful research for science and medicine.

Organ-on-Chip and Organoid Technologies - Towards a Rotating Disk-based Approach for In-Orbit Research
Simon Werner, Scientist, Natural and Medical Sciences Institute (NMI) at the University of Tübingen, Germany

Tissue studies and the use of organ on chip technologies in the microgravity environment of the ISS have been shown for many years now. The research conducted has not only proven that such systems can provide valuable data and insights for medical issues in space. Moreover, disease models based on the accelerated changes of the human body in microgravity, promise valuable insights for medical research, especially here on Earth. A parallelizable, high-throughput, space-qualified technology could pave the way for a translation of fundamental results into practical pharmaceutical research on Earth and in Earth orbit. The Micro-Organo-Lab and the NMI have been developing organ-on-chip systems for a wide variety of tissue models, such as Liver, Heart, Brain, Muscle, Retina or e.g., Trans-Blood-Brain-Barriers. Recently, a rotating organ-on-disc system capable of parallel tissue establishment and perfusion by centrifugal forces was demonstrated. Since the rotation-induced g-forces are adjustable, tissue studies can be performed in Earth orbit to investigate influences of microgravity or, for example, lunar, Martian, or Earth gravity simultaneously. Therefore, we are working on further developing this as a space-proven, scalable technology platform.

Advanced Semiconductor-based Bioanalytical Technologies in Space
Olivier Henry, Program Director – Life Science Technologies, IMEC, Belgium

Biomanufacturing processes involve complex process flow that require to be monitored at every step. Today this is mainly done by time-consuming tests, either on-site or in a specialized off-site lab. Translating these practices into space requires the deployment of compact, miniaturized bioanalytical tools. Working towards that goal, Imec is leveraging its expertise in silicon chip technology in the development of novel instrumentation for in situ monitoring of biological processes. In this talk, we will review the application of imec technologies in biomanufacturing on earth and in space.

Lock-and-Play Bioreactor Platforms for Advanced Microphysiological Systems
Daniel Carvalho, Research Fellow, MERLN Institute for Technology-Inspired Regenerative Medicine, Maastricht University, Netherlands

Over the past two decades, organ-on-a-chip (OoC) devices have enabled major breakthroughs as surrogates of human tissues for a wide range of biomedical applications, from precise medicine to predicative drug screening platforms. In recent years, the incorporation of complex, 3D tissue-specific organoids into OoC devices has been shown to be synergetic and desired to create more physiologically relevant 3D in vitro models. However, the addition of such organoids has increased the complexity of already existing complex microfluidic systems.  New and more versatile designs are urgently needed to facilitate chip operability, increase throughput and the success rate of complex, 3D cell cultures. Our lab has developed a new line of bioreactor platforms to facilitate the culture and screening of embryonic stem cell-derived thyroid follicles. The developed platforms integrate a reversible fastening concept entitled Lock-and-Play, which allows devices to be quickly opened and closed before, after and during operation, such that organoids can be directly accessed whenever needed. This presentation will provide an overview about these devices and future directions towards the development of next-generation OoC platforms that can find applications across the biomedical field, including for near-weightlessness and spaceflight studies. In doing so, initial studies on how the developed OoC platform can be easily modified to further include more advanced in vitro 3D models such as biofabricated ones, so that their adoption in the Biofabrication and 3D cell culture facilities that are being developed at ISS can be facilitated.

Do Cells in Simulated Microgravity Care about Their Cellular Microenvironment?
Mei ElGindi, Research Associate, New York University Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

The effects of simulated microgravity on cells of the immune system depend on the density of their cellular microenvironment.

Networking Luncheon in the Exhibit Hall -- Network with the Exhibitors and View Posters