IIT-BHU develops breakthrough tool to track and predict drug-resistant viruses

Time of India

5 days ago

VARANASI: Scientists at the Indian Institute of Technology (
BHU
), Varanasi, developed a new framework that helps understand how viruses evolve to evade drugs and treatments. While the technology primarily focuses on the coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), it can also be applied to other pathogens and infectious diseases.
The study, led by Aditya Kumar Padhi, Assistant Professor at the School of Biochemical Engineering, was published in the renowned Biophysical Journal. This "integrated multiscale computational framework" combines several advanced computer-based methods.
These include protein design, machine learning, hybrid QM/MM, and multiscale simulations to study how viruses evolve. It helps identify mutations or changes in the viral proteins that may reduce the effectiveness of drugs.
This discovery comes at a time when COVID-19 cases are once again rising in India and across the globe due to the emergence of new viral variants.
As the virus continues to mutate rapidly, this framework can help anticipate how it might resist treatments in the future. While the current study focuses on resistance to sotrovimab, a monoclonal antibody used against SARS-CoV-2, the framework is also applicable to other diseases, including cancer and urinary tract infections.
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The team members of the Laboratory for Computational Biology & Biomolecular Design (LCBD) also significantly contributed to understanding resistance mechanisms against several other antiviral drugs and monoclonal antibodies against SARS-CoV-2.
Padhi said that there are plans to make this framework freely available to scientists and doctors worldwide to support the global fight against drug resistance. This will especially benefit regions with limited resources by giving them access to cutting-edge predictive tools.
The research also aligns with India's national health initiatives, such as the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) and the National Programme on Containment of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), both of which aim to strengthen the country's pandemic preparedness.
'We developed this framework to address complex healthcare problems like antimicrobial resistance using integrated computational methods.
Its modular design makes it suitable for a wide range of biomedical and healthcare challenges,' said Padhi.
Prof. Amit Patra, Director of
IIT
(BHU), said, 'Such advanced technologies reflect the scientific leadership of Indian institutions like IIT (BHU) Varanasi in research and innovation, particularly in tackling infectious diseases and major public health challenges. This also significantly contributes to the objectives of the key programme of the government of India.'