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Comment
. 2020 Aug 7;12(8):e12817.
doi: 10.15252/emmm.202012817. Epub 2020 Jul 7.

Can artificial intelligence identify effective COVID-19 therapies?

Michael B Schultz  1 , Daniel Vera  1 , David A Sinclair  1
Affiliations
Comment

Can artificial intelligence identify effective COVID-19 therapies?

Michael B Schultz et al. EMBO Mol Med. .

Abstract

In this issue of EMBO Molecular Medicine, Stebbing et al (2020b) validate an artificial intelligence-assisted prediction that a drug used to treat rheumatoid arthritis could be a potent weapon against COVID-19. Using liver organoids infected with SARS-CoV-2, they confirm dual antiviral and anti-inflammatory activities and show that its administration in four COVID-19 patients is correlated with disease improvement, paving the way for more rigorous placebo-controlled trials.

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Conflict of interest statement

DAS is a cofounder, shareholder and consultant to EdenRoc companies, Life Biosciences companies, Galilei, Alterity, InsideTracker. Metrobiotech, an EdenRoc company, is developing NAD boosting molecules for age‐related diseases and COVID‐19. Other activities are listed at https://genetics.med.harvard.edu/sinclair-test/people/sinclair-other.php.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Baricitinib's journey as a candidate therapeutic for severe COVID‐19
An artificial intelligence platform called BenevolentAI identified baricitinib, a Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, as a potential COVID‐19 therapy. The platform predicted it might also inhibit Numb‐associated kinases (NAKs), which are important for viral entry into a cell. In their new work, Stebbing and colleagues validate these properties in in vitro models and provide evidence from four patients that baricitinib may be beneficial in COVID‐19 patients, prompting several placebo‐controlled clinical trials that are now underway.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment on

  • Mechanism of baricitinib supports artificial intelligence-predicted testing in COVID-19 patients.
    Stebbing J, Krishnan V, de Bono S, Ottaviani S, Casalini G, Richardson PJ, Monteil V, Lauschke VM, Mirazimi A, Youhanna S, Tan YJ, Baldanti F, Sarasini A, Terres JAR, Nickoloff BJ, Higgs RE, Rocha G, Byers NL, Schlichting DE, Nirula A, Cardoso A, Corbellino M; Sacco Baricitinib Study Group. Stebbing J, et al. EMBO Mol Med. 2020 Aug 7;12(8):e12697. doi: 10.15252/emmm.202012697. Epub 2020 Jun 24. EMBO Mol Med. 2020. PMID: 32473600 Free PMC article.

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