Produce medicines reducing costs and development time with the lever of the most innovative technology: that is the objective of AItenea Biotech, a start-up that was born within the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) and that applies artificial intelligence (IA) to the drug development process.
In essence, their goal is none other than to shape a data cloud that mathematically relates the chemical structure of the budding drug to its biological activity . The process fosters the possibility of structural modifications that enhance the efficacy of future therapeutic compounds.
“We create mathematical models that try to imitate the neural networks of our brain,” explains CSIC scientist Nuria Campillo, founder of AItenea Biotech along with other entrepreneurs in the field of technology, as well as experts in artificial intelligence and predictive data models.
The researchers contribute the abundant information of the chemical structures existing in the market to the cloud –the big data–, and the aforementioned synthetic neural networks analyze the property that is intended to be studied, such as, for example, the toxicity of the formulas under development. The way the model works, through memory, has evolved from conventional mathematical methods, relating different variables, to machine learning and deep learning. The names of these two technologies refer to the ability of the system to learn by itself.
In addition, big data and AI make up a field of research that brings substantial economic benefits . “Current studies indicate savings of between 40% and 50% in time and 26,000 million euros per year in preclinical phases”, highlights Campillo. The figures are even more promising in clinical trials, which represent a cut of between 50% and 60% in time and 28 billion euros in annual costs.
But the advantages go beyond the mere economic chapter. “Currently, it can take twelve to fifteen years to bring a drug to the pharmacy,” says Campillo, who also points out that “50,000 experimental animals are necessary per year” for the development of pharmacological compounds. Cutting-edge technologies can open the way to a new production model that would turn around existing figures and costs.
“There are still many people who are skeptical about artificial intelligence, but it is important for society to trust this new path. It is a leap that must be taken ”, indicates the founder of AItenea Biotech.
By Daniela González.
