Redwire boosts space-based pharma tech with new crystallizer and gold nanoparticle test
by Clarence Oxford
Los Angeles CA (SPX) Apr 23, 2025
Redwire Corporation (NYSE: RDW), a prominent force in space infrastructure innovation, has expanded its pharmaceutical research efforts in orbit with the deployment of new crystallization technology and a groundbreaking cancer-detection experiment aboard the International Space Station (ISS).
Building on the success of its PIL-BOX platform, Redwire has introduced a high-volume Industrial Crystallizer designed to process samples up to 200 times larger than those previously accommodated. This advancement supports the company’s vision of scaling in-space drug development into commercially viable production. The goal is to convert microgravity-based insights into manufacturable materials that serve terrestrial medical and industrial markets.
A key component of the expansion is the “Golden Balls” experiment, which aims to create gold nanospheres in microgravity for the first time. These nanoparticles have potential uses in medical diagnostics and targeted cancer therapies. Redwire expects space-grown nanospheres to exhibit enhanced size uniformity and surface integrity, attributes that could improve their effectiveness in biomedical applications.
“Gold nanospheres could lead to early testing and diagnosis of cancer and other diseases, targeted drug delivery, and enhanced radiation and photothermal therapy, offering a promising approach to cancer management,” said John Vellinger, Redwire’s President of In-Space Industries.
The new Industrial Crystallizer and the Golden Balls experiment were launched aboard SpaceX’s 32nd commercial resupply mission to the ISS on April 21st.
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