AI-designed sugar and DNA-like cancer drugs and imaging agents
Computational rational design of carbohydrate and nucleic acid drug scaffolds with multiscale dynamics and AI
Using computer simulations and AI to create new sugar-based cancer treatments and DNA-like imaging agents for people with cancer.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Wayne State University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Detroit, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11187230 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Researchers will build large, high-quality simulation datasets and use machine learning to predict how complex carbohydrate drugs and synthetic fluorescent nucleic acids behave. They will combine detailed physics-based simulations with AI models to improve predictions of molecular binding and light-emitting properties that standard methods miss. The focus is on flexible polysaccharide drug scaffolds and synthetic fluorescent nucleobases, which are hard to model with current tools. Successful predictions will produce candidate molecules for lab testing and, later, possible clinical studies.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Patients with cancer who are willing to donate samples or consider enrollment in future trials of carbohydrate-derived therapies or nucleic-acid imaging agents would be the most relevant participants.
Not a fit: People without cancer or those needing immediate clinical treatment are unlikely to get direct benefit from this computational research in the near term.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Could speed up the discovery of better-targeted cancer drugs and clearer imaging agents, helping bring new treatments to patients sooner.
How similar studies have performed: Computer-aided design has succeeded for small-molecule drugs, but applying these techniques to flexible carbohydrates and synthetic nucleobases is largely new and less proven.
Where this research is happening
Detroit, United States
- Wayne State University — Detroit, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Walker, Alice Rachel — Wayne State University
- Study coordinator: Walker, Alice Rachel
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.