molecular modeling Archives - Medical Design Sourcing

Quantum promises a bright future for the pharma industry

[Production Perig/Adobe Stock]

Quantum computing technology continues to advance closer to an everyday reality. While the potential applications of quantum in certain sectors are more speculative, the pharmaceutical industry is poised to be transformed by quantum technology.This sector is likely to be the fastest to unlock the benefits of quantum computing, once the technology is fully realized. But how ready are companies in this sector for this revolution, and what changes can we expect?

The next generation of molecular modelling

The key to discovering new drugs involves testing and understanding the reactions between different materials and catalysts. Rather than relying solely on experiments in labs, scientists today also use computer aided drug design and molecular modellng to simulate these interactions and accelerate the discovery of new compounds.

However, even today’s most powerful supercomputers…

Nvidia-Genentech AI drug discovery alliance unites computing brawn with biological brains

NVIDIA BioNeMo AI molecular modeling software can uncover complex biochemical interactions through AI-driven molecular modeling techniques. [Image courtesy of NVIDIA]

Technically, graphics processing and AI hardware powerhouse Nvidia is also a drug discovery company. It may not discover drugs in-house, but it has developed BioNeMo, a comprehensive generative AI platform for drug discovery and Clara, a collection of healthcare frameworks, applications, and tools, including for biopharma. Nvidia partners include Amgen, AstraZeneca, GSK and Insilico Medicine.

Similarly, biotech pioneer and Roche subsidiary Genentech is also an AI company. It has experience in applying machine learning to an array of disease areas, and has extensive biological and molecular datasets and research capabilities. Its initiatives include alliance with firms such as Recursion Pharmaceuticals and Reverie Labs that focus on using AI for nov…

Quantum leaps in drug discovery? NobleAI joins forces with Microsoft while King’s College London aligns with Kvantify

[Production Perig/Adobe Stock]

The word “revolutionize” gets thrown around a lot in describing the potential of emerging technologies. But quantum computing could make good on the promise to disrupt healthcare applications ranging from drug discovery to medical imaging. Theoretically, a quantum computer with 300 quantum bits (qubits) could crunch more calculations in an instant than there are atoms in the visible universe. Because qubits can exist in multiple states at once, quantum computers can bring powerful parallel processing to fields where exploring a vast solution space is required, including drug discovery and material science.

It’s no wonder that the computing branch, which remains in its infancy, is attracting a growing amount of attention as it inches towards practical applicability. In May, Insilico Medicine said it was exploring the use of quantum computing and generative AI to help ide…

Verseon’s hybrid AI platform aims to unlock a universe of drug candidates

[Bhaskar/Adobe Stock]

The clinical-stage company Verseon (Fremont, California) is unique among companies exploring the use of AI in drug discovery given its focus on what it calls the “uncharted” chemical space. While Big Pharma companies typically test compounds from their collections for specific diseases, these collections often have constraints and overlapping compounds. Adityo Prakash, CEO of Verseon, estimates that researchers have developed about seven million chemically distinct compounds globally in the past century. But compared to that figure, the number of mappable compounds based on organic synthesis principles is a staggering 10^33.

Verseon is exploring uncharted chemical space

Adityo Prakash

Prakash emphasizes that while most AI companies involved in drug discovery focus on the narrower subset contained in current libraries, Verseon has …