A batch of virus-like particles cultivated by the National Synchrontron Radiation Research Center is to be sent to the International Space Station for crystallization experiments next month, in collaboration with Japanese company Space BD, the center announced yesterday.
Space BD in May said that it had been appointed as the sole private partner by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) for its high-quality protein crystal growth experiment service, HelioX Cosmos founder and CEO Bill Chang (張懷謙) said.
A parcel of the center’s particles has been sent to Japan for a US rocket launch scheduled next month, Chang said, adding that he could not reveal the precise time and rocket supplier for the mission.
Photo courtesy of the National Synchrotron Radiation Research Center
The particles are to stay in the space station’s lab for nearly a month, he said.
The launch is primarily a supply mission for the space station, the center said.
The particles are expected to crystallize while in space, and would be kept at minus-196°C after being returned to Earth, it said.
After the particles return to the center, researchers plan to utilize high-intensity X-ray and protein crystallography technology at the Taiwan Photon Source to observe changes in the particles, it said.
The particles originated from viruses that can cause diseases in humans or animals, and have been reduced to being “virus-like” after removal of their pathogenic genes, said center deputy director Chen Chun-jung (陳俊榮), who leads a team on molecular biology research.
While conducting postdoctoral research at the University of Georgia from 1999 to 2000, Chen engaged in a similar project in which particles were sent to space through a NASA-supported project, he said.
“We expect the quality of the particles’ crystallization to elevate significantly in a gravity-free environment, in comparison with that in general laboratories on Earth,” Chen said.
With better crystallization, researchers can analyze the viruses’ atomic structures with better depth and improve understanding about their pathogenic mechanisms, he said.
Although Chen did not state which types of viruses are being sent to the space station, the center’s news release referred to viruses that cause COVID-19, swine fever, avian influenza, and sealife diseases as examples that can claim lives and cause economic damage.
Improving our understanding about the viruses would help the development of new treatments, the center said, hoping to make breakthroughs in precision medicine and pandemic-prevention technology.
The center, headquartered at the Hsinchu science park, is affiliated with the Ministry of Science and Technology. The project has been coordinated by HelioX Cosmos, a Taiwanese start-up that is the official representative for the Japanese company.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck off Tainan at 11:47am today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 32.3km northeast of Tainan City Hall at a depth of 7.3km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Tainan and Chiayi County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Chiayi City and County, and Yunlin County, while it was measured as 2 in Kaohsiung, Nantou County, Changhua County, Taitung County and offshore Penghu County, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
RSS