Researchers develop AI platform to speed up drug discovery

A research team at Korea University has developed a new technology that uses artificial intelligent (AI) to speed up drug discovery. The university said on Tuesday that Professor Kang Jae-u of Computer Science and his team found the lead compounds that show signs of stopping severe neurological diseases by using AI.

According to Prof. Kang and his team, the new “AI platform for drug development” (a tentative name) can drastically reduce the time taken to find lead compounds from one to two years to 10 weeks.

In order for a new drug to be designed, a protein that causes the disease should be identified out of tens of thousands proteins that exist in a cell. It also takes a long time to figure out what impact the newly designed drug has on larger cells. Successfully completing the process much quicker by using AI to analyzing cells’ responses, the researchers have signed a joint research agreement with Lmito Therapeutics Co., Ltd. and found 50 lead compounds that act on severe neurological diseases using this technology. The research team verified 11 of the 50 lead compounds, all of which proved effective.

“The AI platform, which combined various technologies recognized by international awards over the last four years, has proven to be effective,” Prof. Kang said. “This platform can be used to develop drugs not only for severe neurological diseases but also for other various diseases.”


blick@donga.com