FIG: AI may mean that synthesis of the test compound less, saving time and experimental procedures the process of looking for new drugs
British start-up company Exscientia claims that the company has used artificial intelligence (AI) developed the first drug and clinical testing in humans. The drug used to treat obsessive-compulsive disorder , from concept to ready to test in less than a year. Human trials will begin in March, but you dare to take drugs designed to take advantage of AI software do?
AI advantage of a considerable number of drug design. In the drug development process, there are a lot of molecules that may be useful for all medical researchers in the world, the manual testing of these molecules is almost impossible. However, by using different types of AI, the computer system may find utility and mining different molecules, comparing them with a different parameter, and faster than humans screened most promising compound.
AI course, very strong, but some people doubt the technology is reliable or trustworthy, and questioned the AI should play what role in our health care and other fields. In drug research, many people expressed concern that the technology might be over-hyped, AI findings may not be groundbreaking, as we are willing to believe.
Exscientia CEO Andrew Hopkins (Andrew Hopkins) believes, AI means fewer synthetic compounds to test, experiment less in the process of looking for new drugs need to make. Hopkins said: "active learning (referred to as sub-categories of machine learning AI) algorithms to automatically prioritize the most informative position compound synthesized and tested in the experiments, the system can learn faster than humans."
Of course, AI purpose other than simply trying to synthesize new compounds. This technology can also be through scientific research and patient data mining, and to help find new utility of existing drugs, in addition to a wide range of other applications. Moreover, such use may not be limited to the development of drugs: the spread of AI researchers have used to track the new coronavirus, it is also being deployed to resolve the crisis in the United States of opioids.
Hopkins went on to explain that his company was the first to produce a platform AI drug, the drug will be tested in clinical trials. He said that the final production of compounds called DSP-1181, is expected other than existing medications obsessive-compulsive disorder lasts longer, the effect is stronger. Japan's Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma company has ownership of the drug will oversee its clinical development. The first phase of human trials will be carried out in Japan, which will test the reaction of its security and human medicine.
While such a development of new drugs looks great, but there are still some health questions. AI can help us find new molecules, but molecules that could eventually discovered and we have studied the molecular similarity. This is the Novartis is committed to drug discovery researchers from the chemist Derek Lowe (Derek Lowe) warning. In the pharmaceutical industry on his blog, Luo explained that, simply find a potential compound does not guarantee that scientists really understand the biochemical nature of their attempt to treat the disease, or that the drug really worked.
Luo said: "The problem is that the drug before clinical trials optimization is not an issue in my opinion, this project is, at best save a few months, their compound feed mill with a black box, as if each. upon entering human trials conducted as such drugs project. "
At the same time, the development of AI supplementary drug also raises the question that people should look at how these new methods. In the long run, AI design of human drug-drug developed separately What is the difference? Who should set the rules for the use of AI in drug research?
Like all AI applications, health authorities are trying to figure out how best to study and regulate these tools. Although the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) would not comment on this particular drug, but the FDA spokesman Jeremy Kahn (Jeremy Kahn), said the agency is committed to maintaining public health standards, while protecting innovation, its Drug Evaluation and Research Center is evaluating the regulatory considering AI tools that may arise.
Kahn explained that in an email: "All the role of AI in drug development is still to be confirmed, taking into account the tools and techniques of this umbrella term covering a range of stakeholders in different ways to understand AI importantly, support. the standard of proof required for drug approval remains the same, regardless of the technological advances involved. "at the same time, Exscientia spokesman said the drug must meet all the requirements of the first phase of the trial in Japan.
It is important to remember that if AI-based drug development is really effective, Exscientia and other pharmaceutical companies will earn a lot of cash. Technically number of major investments in biotech investors are falling this, also shows this. Large pharmaceutical companies to invest more and more in the field of AI funds, Exscientia investors include the German pharmaceutical company Evotec and Bristol-Myers Squibb, the company is working with several pharmaceutical giants to develop new drugs, including Bayer and GlaxoSmithKline ( GlaxoSmithKline).
Therefore, in the next few months, if selected, you may have the opportunity to personally try this AI design of drugs in Japan. Nevertheless, the latest progress made us ever more optimistic about the future than, AI design new drugs will soon become a reality. However, they really treat us better than man-made disease do drugs? In this regard, we can only wait and see!
Selected from: Vox Author: Rebecca Heilweil
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