Dressaire and her lab group were researching adults’ reduced responsiveness to surfactant replacement therapy (SRT) in treating respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) and found that mucus may be affecting how, and how much of, a drug is being delivered to the respiratory system. To study this phenomenon, they decided to conduct their experiments in space, a zero-gravity environment that would allow them to isolate the effects of surface tension.

Read the full story here: https://engineering.ucsb.edu/sites/default/files/2_Emily_Dressaire.pdf