With the increase in space exploration, scientists are looking at the possibility of delivering medicine in space using shrimp shells.
According to a news article by the University of Adelaide on 6 March, the scientists are looking at the use of chitosan, a material found in shrimp shells to achieve this breakthrough.
The idea is to see if chitosan, which is already used to control how medicines are released in the body, will work just as well in zero gravity.
The research
Researchers from the University of Adelaide in Australia, in partnership with the German Aerospace Center (DLR), conducted the StarMed experiment by sending small vials of a drug mixture on a spaceflight.
At the same time, they kept identical vials on Earth to compare the results after the spaceflight. They used nanoemulsions, tiny oil droplets (about 0.0001 mm in size) mixed into a water-based solution that carry the drug melatonin, which helps prevent bone loss.
Bone loss is a challenge astronauts face on long space missions, so this makes melatonin just perfect for the test.
The scientists coated some of the oil droplets with chitosan which acts as a protective barrier to control how quickly melatonin is released. Without this coating, the drug would be released too fast.
Their nanoemulsions flew aboard a sounding rocket as part of DLR’s MAPHEUS 15 mission, launched in November 2024 from northern Sweden.
Dr. Jens Hauslage from DLR who was part of the research said:
“This type of rocket provides a cost-effective way to test how things behave in space. These experiments help us prepare for future human missions to the Moon and Mars by ensuring astronauts have the right medicine at the right time.”
The study is important because astronauts often take liquid medicines, which make up about 40% of the drugs used on the International Space Station (ISS), hence the need for a way to control drug release.
Hope on the horizon
Early results of the exploration suggest that astronauts can receive medicine safely and effectively in space.
The team’s first findings suggest that nanoemulsions without a chitosan coating became unstable in space, with the oil droplets growing larger and unevenly distributed.
On the other hand, nanoemulsions with chitosan remained unchanged, which is good news for drug delivery.
Professor Hessel who led the study said if confirmed, this means that chitosan-coated nanoemulsions can work well for medicine delivery in space.
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