New generation of space labs could offer hope for motor neurone disease sufferers
How space could help find a cure for MND
- Scientists believe orbiting laboratories in space, utilising microgravity and cosmic radiation, could accelerate cellular ageing and lead to treatments for incurable conditions such as motor neurone disease (MND).
- Pharmaceutical companies are investing in these space labs, with some already conducting drug development research on the International Space Station and others building unmanned orbital factories.
- Professor Alysson Muotri will present research on how space-induced neural senescence can be used with brain organoids to model MND, overcoming the challenge of replicating natural ageing on Earth.
- Professor Muotri suggests that space research could significantly compress the time needed to understand MND, making a cure "very likely" by providing age-relevant human models for the disease.
- The accelerated cellular ageing caused by cosmic radiation in space allows researchers to observe decades of wear and tear in days, offering crucial insights into cell deterioration and potential treatment pathways for MND.