UAE scientists harness AI to discover potential blood cancer drug

In the United Arab Emirates, scientists have employed artificial intelligence to discover potential drugs for treating blood cancer. Insilico Medicine, a clinical-stage biotechnology company based in Masdar City, Abu Dhabi, has been at the forefront of this groundbreaking research. The AI-powered technology could significantly reduce the time and costs associated with drug development, which currently has a dismal success rate of only one in ten drugs progressing from human testing to approval.

Ahmad Alghaith, an organic chemist at Insilico Medicine, believes AI could increase the success rate, shorten development timelines, and lower costs. The company utilizes two AI platforms in its research. The PandaOmics AI platform assists in identifying disease-related target proteins, while Chemistry42 aids in designing molecules with the right shape to bind to the chosen protein.

The newly discovered substances are a class of molecules called PROTACs, which function differently than conventional drugs. Instead of merely binding to a target protein, PROTACs drag it to the cell's disposal system and destroy it entirely. This particular class of drugs targets Bruton's tyrosine kinase, a protein that aids the growth and spread of malignant cells in blood cancers such as leukaemias and lymphomas.

The discovery has been published in the Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, and Insilico Medicine describes the new PROTACs as "lead compounds," awaiting further testing to determine their potential for entering clinical trials.