Space
Axiom-4 mission
▪ India’s human space programme began with the launch of astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla on the Axiom-4 mission to the International Space Station from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in
Florida.
▪ This is the first time an Indian has gone to orbital space since Rakesh Sharma in 1984.
▪ Rakesh Sharma was the first Indian to go to space when he did so in 1984 aboard the Soyuz
spacecraft of the erstwhile Soviet Union.
▪ If the Dragon crew capsule docks successfully with the ISS on June 26, Mr. Shukla will also
become the first Indian onboard the ISS.
▪ The 31 countries with representation in the Ax-4 mission include the U.S., India, Poland, Hungary, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Nigeria, the UAE, and nations across Europe.
▪ ISRO has included seven microgravity research experiments proposed by Indian investigators
from various national R&D laboratories and academic institutions.
▪ Group Captain Shukla will be performing them during his stay on the ISS.
▪ ISRO and NASA will be participating in five joint science investigations and two in-orbit STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) demonstrations.
Latest Discoveries in Health Science
RTS.S – The first malaria vaccine
▪ Bharat Biotech International will start supplying world’s first malaria vaccine RTS.S, developed by global biopharma major GSK, to vaccine alliance Gavi from 2026.
▪ RTS.S was the first malaria vaccine recommended by the World Health Organization in 2021.
▪ It is the First-ever malaria vaccine targeting Plasmodium falciparum, the deadliest malaria parasite.
▪ The recommendation was for the vaccine’s use in children living in sub-Saharan Africa and other regions with moderate to high malaria transmission according to the World Health Organization
(WHO).
▪ While RTS,S has not yet been rolled out in India as part of a national immunization programme, its potential inclusion is under review.
▪ India’s national malaria elimination goal: Eliminate malaria by 2030.
Haemophilia A
▪ A simple and affordable point-of-care test kit has been indigenously developed by the National Institute of Immunohaematology for early diagnosis of genetic bleeding disorders haemophilia A and Von Willebrand Disease.
▪ Haemophilia A is a genetic bleeding disorder caused by a deficiency or absence of clotting factor VIII.
▪ This leads to prolonged bleeding as the blood cannot clot properly.
▪ It is more common in males and is inherited in an X-linked recessive pattern
