Airbus Defence and Space reported on Thursday that it had cooperated with scientists at the University of Zurich (UZH) Space Hub to develop a technology demonstration experiment which will produce human tissue in almost zero gravity conditions onboard the International Space Station (ISS). The experiment will be carried to the ISS on the next supply flight. This is the latest stage in a programme aimed at making three-dimensional human organ-like tissues, known as organoids, from human stem cells, under microgravity conditions on the ISS. Such organoids would be incredibly valuable in at least two very important applications. One, they could be used by pharmaceutical companies to carry out toxicological studies directly on human tissue, and so eliminating the need to carry out experiments on animals. And two, they could be used as ‘building blocks’ for replacement tissues, to repair damaged organs. Currently, the global demand for donated organs currently far exceeds the supply.
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