The Florida-based company says the new entity will focus on growing seed crystals in orbit that will be used on Earth to create new or reformulated pharmaceuticals.
It will be building on Redwire’s existing in-space programme known as PIL-BOX technology. And as part of its launch, SpaceMD announced a licensing agreement with ExesaLibero Pharma. This is a pharmaceutical company developing small molecule drugs to treat bone disease.
“Redwire is excited to announce the formation of SpaceMD,” said Peter Cannito, Chairman and CEO of Redwire. “This new entity represents the evolution of our PIL-BOX strategy, moving from experimentation to full commercialization with significant upstream revenue potential.”
“This agreement with ExesaLibero Pharma signals a revolutionary paradigm shift for commercial utilization of microgravity. Redwire and now SpaceMD are translating the benefits of microgravity research into product value for pharmaceutical companies with the goal of transforming the future of therapeutics and creating value for our stakeholders.”
Compounds
Twenty-eight PIL-BOX systems have already flown in space, highlights Redwire. These have successfully crystalized 17 compounds on the ISS including insulin and other critical molecules.
SpaceMD’s role will be to sell or license these seed crystals to other companies. For example, to those that can use them to create reformulated versions of existing drugs or entirely new therapeutics.
“We have seen firsthand how the microgravity environment can be a game-changer for drug development, and we look forward to expanding our work with SpaceMD through this exciting collaboration,” said John Barnett, President and Chief Scientific Officer at ExesaLibero.
“This collaboration will help us continue to advance our drug development and discovery process and lead to better outcomes for patients and future astronauts.”
PIL-BOX
In May, Redwire announced it was complementing its existing PIL-BOX platform (top), by launching a high-volume Industrial Crystallizer. It says it will be capable of processing samples of 200 times the volume of current levels.
It says the crystallizer technology could provide a roadmap for commercialising the fabrication of materials on the ISS, which is where the kit is heading.
To validate the hardware, Redwire says it will attempt to produce gold nanospheres in space for the first time. Gold nanoparticles show promise as a cancer therapeutic due to their unique properties.
Image: Redwire
See also: Redwire wins NASA approval for Mason, its Moon infrastructure tech
