Artificial intelligence has developed a drug for neuroses
For the first time in the history of medicine, artificial intelligence technologies were used to create a pharmaceutical product. This idea was carried out by the British project Exscientia in collaboration with the Japanese pharmaceutical company Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma, which owns the rights to the new drug. The development is in its final stages and will soon begin testing on volunteers. The drug, created with the help of artificial intelligence, is designed to treat one of the types of neurosis - obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The disease is a mental disorder associated with unpleasant experiences, the manifestation of obsessive thoughts, irrational fears, causeless increased anxiety. The mechanism behind this disorder is not fully understood, although recent studies have shown that a lack of serotonin (the hormone of happiness) may be the cause of OCD, as a result of which the interaction between different parts of the brain is disrupted. Thanks to AI algorithms, pharmacists were able to save time for all the necessary experiments. As a result, artificial intelligence analyzed a large number of combinations of chemical compounds, choosing the optimal ones and discarding unpromising options. The result of the work of machine intelligence is the creation of the substance DSP-1181, which is expected to be more effective in treating the symptoms of OCD.
The authors of the project say that the use of artificial intelligence has significantly reduced all stages of drug development - from preparation to the creation of a finished substance, it took less than one year. At the same time, the development of medicines using traditional methods usually takes 4.5-5 years. Among the advantages of using machine algorithms in the creation of pharmaceutical products, the developers say the lack of subjectivity of AI, which in the future can be used to create other drugs. The British company, together with Japanese partners, announced the imminent start of the first test cycle of the DSP-1181, which will start in March. The drug will be tested in volunteers in Japan, marking the first time a drug that has been developed with artificial intelligence technology will be tested in humans. As part of the first stage, scientists will determine the safety of the drug and its effect on the body. A Japanese pharmaceutical company will oversee the entire testing process. Before the start of the trial, representatives of the startup Exscientia plan to work out some moral questions, for example, will future patients be comfortable taking machine-made pills and what should be the basic rules for the development of drugs using AI. The Topic of Article: Artificial intelligence has developed a drug for neuroses. |
