Amidst the Ebola outbreak and subsequent research efforts, Atlanta-based Intellimedix is bringing a new approach to the table. Classical methods of drug development involve performing many experiments only to identify new molecules with a few desired effects. The approach that Intellimedix proposes utilizes computer technology to expedite the process; new algorithms may be able to determine targets within the cell and then identify compounds that act on those targets.
These newly developed algorithms could give scientists a vision of what is happening inside the Ebola-infected cell, possibly leading to new methods of finding experimental treatments. The research team behind Intellimedix has a technology capable of computationally screening compounds for potential inhibitory activity against the Ebola virus. The methodology can be used to suggest drugs that may directly act on the Ebola proteins or on the human proteins needed by the virus in order to reproduce.
This effort represents a cutting edge, state-of-the-art approach, in which the goal is to suggest possible novel treatments of this disease in an accelerated time frame. Addressing the problem from a different angle could be beneficial--this new computational methodology could possibly contribute to finding novel drugs effective at combating the virus.
The project will be undertaken in the laboratory of Dr. Jeffrey Skolnick at Georgia Tech, along with Atlanta-based Intellimedix, a company focused on the development of innovative approaches to accelerate the discovery and development of new treatments for known human diseases.
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