Study of proteins in space could yield new drug development

Innovative methods of drug discovery do not always take place in an academic laboratory. They may start there, but they can also happen in orbit aboard the International Space Station, as protein crystallization research from the University of Alabama at Birmingham is about to demonstrate once again.

"The human body contains many proteins known to be involved in a number of diseases," said Lawrence DeLucas, O.D., Ph.D., director of the Center for Biophysical Sciences and Engineering. "Understanding the atomic structure and function of a protein allows scientists to begin development on compounds that can interact with the protein and subsequently regulate its function."

In order to determine the structure of a protein, the researcher must experiment with solutions that allow the protein to form crystals. Research has shown that many proteins flown in space demonstrated the propensity to grow crystals with an increased size and quality compared to crystals grown in a lab on Earth.

Scientists with the CBSE have been interested in microgravity research for years. DeLucas, also a former NASA astronaut, performed his own protein crystallization experiments on board the STS-50 space shuttle flight (June 25-July 9, 1992).

DeLucas and his team are working to demonstrate the benefits of microgravity on protein crystallization. There are close to 100 proteins being utilized in the crystallization experiments scheduled for the launch of the SpaceX-3 rocket to the ISS on March 16.