Abu Dhabi: A team from Burjeel Holdings in Abu Dhabi is leading a diabetes research project called “Suite Ride” that will fly to the International Space Station aboard Elon Musk’s SpaceX Dragon on the Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) flight. This study will test how well blood sugar monitors and insulin work in microgravity.
The mission is scheduled to lift off in May 2025 from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It will carry four crew members—Commander Peggy Whitson, Pilot Shubhanshu Shukla, Mission Specialist Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski, and Tibor Kapu—who will spend up to 14 days on the ISS running experiments and sending data back to Earth in real time.
Burjeel’s delegation recently visited the Axiom Space Center in Houston to finalize technical setups for the study. On board, astronauts will use continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) and insulin pens under zero-gravity conditions. They will compare readings to those taken on Earth to see if devices stay accurate and insulin remains stable.
Beyond space medicine, the project aims to improve care for people with diabetes in remote or extreme places—like oil rigs, arctic camps, or rural homes—by proving that reliable glucose monitoring and insulin delivery can work far from hospitals. Data will help Burjeel develop better remote-care systems for patients back home.
Diabetes affects hundreds of millions worldwide and is projected to grow by nearly 50 percent by 2045. Astronaut Peggy Whitson notes that including people with chronic conditions on future missions could open space travel to many who were once excluded. By learning how the body handles blood sugar in space, scientists hope to unlock new treatments that benefit patients both on Earth and beyond.
