The covid-19 pandemic has affected the world in many ways. Almost every major city has been impacted dearly by the virus. The first case of the virus was recorded in December 2019 but medical scientists are still no closer to finding a cure or vaccine. According to Gadgets. co, virtual reality gadgets might be what scientists need to develop effective drugs against Covid-19.
Could VR be the Answer?
Scientists from Bristol have already started testing a new technique that will allow them to work faster in their development of anti-covid drugs. One of the most promising research so far revealed that targeting the SARS-CoV-2 enzyme in patients with Covid-19 is most likely going to cure them.
The new technology was invented by researchers at the University of Bristol and their first publication on the subject was in the Journal of Chemical Information and Modeling. It is going to lead to a breakthrough in identifying new drugs in the fight against the Coronavirus pandemic.
They will be able to develop enzyme inhibitors that will stop the main protease from working and subsequently stop the virus from regenerating. One of the lead researchers, Professor Adrian Mulholland, said that that interactive VR is the key. In his words;
“We’ve shown that interactive virtual reality can model how viral proteins and inhibitors bind to the enzyme. Researchers can use this tool to help understand how the enzyme works, and also to see how potential drugs fit into the enzyme. This should help design and test new potential drug leads. We are sharing these models with the whole community.”
To this end, they have created a virtual interactive framework for molecular dynamics simulations. The technology is an open-source software and can be used with any VR headset. The software will also make information sharing faster and more effective among researchers.