AI-designed COVID-19 drug nominated for preclinical trials

Updated An oral medication designed by scientists with the help of AI algorithms could one day treat patients with COVID-19 and other types of diseases caused by coronaviruses. Insilico Medicine, a biotech startup based in New York, announced on Tuesday it had nominated a drug candidate for preclinical trials – the stage before you start testing it on humans. Today's mRNA vaccines boost the body's immunity to COVID-19 by aiding the generation of antibodies capable of blocking the virus's spike protein, stopping the bio-nasty from infecting cells. The small molecule developed by Insilico, however, is used to treat people already infected, and works by preventing the coronavirus from replicating. The preclinical candidate has a specialized structure to target the 3C-like (3CL) protease, an enzyme involved in the viral reproduction of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, Feng Ren, Insilico's chief scientific officer, explained.