File:Rotary Cell Culture System.jpg

English: The Rotary Cell Culture System™ grows accurate, three-dimensional cells which researchers use to test new medical treatments.

Johnson's unvarying force of discovery also led to the development of a bioreactor to study the impact of microgravity on cellular and tissue growth on Earth and in space. NASA granted biotech startup Synthecon,TM Inc., an exclusive license to develop a rotating bioreactor, called the Rotary Cell Culture SystemTM (RCCS), that allows researchers to grow more accurate, three-dimensional cells they can then use to test new medical treatments without risking harm to their patients.

Scientists and clinicians worldwide are using the RCCS bioreactors for a variety of applications, such as growing normal human tissue in vitro for testing of therapeutic drugs or for growing replacement tissue such as liver, skin, and bone marrow. The RCCS bioreactor provides the research community with an excellent in vitro environment for culturing cells such as human tumor, viruses, and cells that produce valuable bio-products including proteins, enzymes, and hormones.

Research centers currently using the RCCS bioreactor include the Cell & Gene Therapy Institute in San Antonio, Texas; the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland; the U.S. Food and Drug Administration; and the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases at Fort Detrick, Maryland.

More info at http://www.nasa.gov/missions/science/f_spacecells.html