Swiss skin cells fly into space for “The state has failed” experiment – GPK on home abuse cases in Geneva

With skin cells from Switzerland and supplies for the astronauts on board, a “Dragon” freighter has lifted off to the International Space Station. The unmanned freighter of Elon Musk’s private space company SpaceX lifted off Thursday evening from the Cape Canaveral spaceport in the US state of Florida, according to live images from the US space agency Nasa. “Dragon” is expected on the ISS on Thursday.

The Zurich-based biotech startup Cutiss wants to use the mission to study the effects of space on skin cells and tissue cultures, the company announced on Wednesday. This is important to develop strategies to protect astronauts during spaceflight.

In space, humans are exposed to microgravity and cosmic rays, which lead to changes in the structure and function of cells. Like other organs, skin changes its physical properties, such as thickness and moisture, as well as its biological properties, which can affect wound healing.

The ISS orbits the Earth at an average altitude of 408 kilometers. At the end of the mission, in about four weeks, the miniature lab on the Florida coast will return to Earth. The cells are then sent back to the company’s headquarters in Zurich, where the results of the experiments are analyzed in more detail.

The four-week mission will be carried out in collaboration with Spacepharma, a company specializing in space experiments and micro-laboratory technologies. (aeg/sda)