Quantum physics and high-performance computing have slashed research times for a consortium of researchers led by Qubit Pharmaceuticals. The discovery of chemical substances that may lead to new COVID-19 treatments was completed in only six months using cloud technology.
A global need for speed
The need for fast, accurate, and scalable medical research has never been more apparent. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic nearly two years ago, medical researchers have rushed to learn more about the virus, hoping to discover new pharmaceuticals to both prevent and treat the respiratory illness caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. While vaccinations against COVID-19 are jabbing arms at record rates, drug treatments remain limited for patients that do become infected, with only four treatments approved for use in the EU.
When will COVID-19 infections no longer be a serious threat to our health? A research company based in France have discovered two novel compounds – chemical substances that react in the presence of the COVID-19 virus – that may help reduce the severity and length of COVID-19 infections.
Using technology and services from AWS, Paris-based Qubit Pharmaceuticals—an international biopharma research company founded by researchers from the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), University of Texas, Sorbonne University, National Conservatory of Arts and Trades (CNAM), and Washington University—has made a significant step toward developing antiviral treatments for patients infected by COVID-19. Its recent discovery of SARS-CoV-2 main protease inhibitors is currently being assessed in the development of new COVID-19 drugs that stop the virus from replicating in patients, reducing the time and severity of infections.
Researchers discovered these compounds in only six months. Prior to using cloud computing resources, this undertaking would have required years of work and heavy upfront investments. Instead, quantum physics-driven molecular dynamics software accelerated by HPC in the cloud achieved what was previously impossible for smaller research teams who lacked the resources the major players in the biopharma research industry have access to.
An opportunity to go … really big…
Read the full blog to learn more about creating a digital map of COVID-19 virus for discovery of new treatment compounds.
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