Virtual reality allows faster and more efficient drug creation

Traditionally, drugs are created in laboratories. This is a lengthy process that requires special skills. During the experiment, programmers created a virtual environment in which users, even those without medical education, were able to create new medicines. The results exceeded all expectations, expanding the boundaries of medicine and the prospects for using virtual instruments.

Medicines are a set of molecules that, during treatment, bind certain proteins, leading to recovery. During the experiment, ordinary people learned to manipulate molecules in virtual reality. The main task was to attach the drug molecules to proteins as best as possible.

“In order to create a strong bond, drug molecules must fit snugly against the protein. Finding the right molecules is a major part of drug discovery. Understanding what makes them bond tightly helps create better drugs, ”the scientists say.

According to the researchers, in order to develop new treatments, it is important to understand how the drug’s molecules correspond to their biological goals. In three-dimensional virtual reality, this is much easier to do than in the laboratory. During the experiment, users were able to correctly predict how drugs bind to their protein targets. Additionally it is reported that only 5 minutes were allocated for this task.

The experiment proved the effectiveness of using virtual reality in the development of new drugs. How the results will affect the continuation of research and the creation of drugs is not reported.