New study in partnership with D.O.D. aimed at addressing biological threats
NISKAYUNA, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--GE Global Research, the technology development arm for the General Electric Company (NYSE:GE), announced today a two-year, $1.1 million collaboration with the Transformational Medical Technologies Initiative (TMTI) to develop a physiologically based "virtual human." This collaboration is supported by a contract awarded by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), a division of the U.S. Department of Defense.
The so-called Biotic Man project will involve the design of a computer model that could dramatically speed drug design in response to the threat of biological attacks on the battlefield or in domestic situations. The project will advance a software program originally developed by GE Global Research. This Physiologically Based Pharmacokinetic (PBPK) software tool uses computational models to measure a drug's response in the body long before clinical trials.
GE researchers will adapt the PBPK tool to computationally model the impact of bacterial, viral and other infectious agents on the human body. The modified tool will simulate the response of new antibiotic or antiviral drug therapies to a specific threat. In addition, the tool will be designed to accurately represent the physiological changes in a critically ill patient suffering from burns, trauma, or recent surgery to help evaluate the effectiveness of the drug therapy under the various conditions it might be administered.
"GE's Biotic Man project is all about speed. The goal is to enable faster development of drugs to respond to new biological threats," said John Graf, Principal Investigator on the project for GE Global Research. "This new software tool also could have broad impact across the pharmaceutical industry, helping to accelerate efforts to develop new drug remedies at substantially reduced costs."
"This new, enhanced software tool will enable researchers to test and develop new drug therapies in a virtual, safer environment with better quantitative information," Graf added.
The main obstacles to faster, more efficient drug development today are challenges with safety and the inability to predict drug failures earlier, before human testing or even in initial stage clinical trials. These limitations also can lead to dramatically higher testing costs. Gains in productivity and potential cost savings may be achieved from better decisions based on quantitative information, identification of lead compounds, and more effective trials.
GE's vision of "Early Health" is focused on enabling the earlier diagnosis of disease and providing more effective ways to diagnose, treat and manage patients. The development of new software tools for drug development also illustrates the growing convergence of diagnostics and therapeutics. Tools such as the Biotic Man can provide valuable insight and data to pharmaceutical companies about new disease states and how their drugs will respond to them.
About GE Global Research
GE Global Research is one of the world's most diversified industrial research labs, providing innovative technology for all of GE's businesses. Global Research has been the cornerstone of GE technology for more than 100 years, developing breakthrough innovations in areas such as medical imaging, energy generation technology, jet engines and lighting. GE Global Research is headquartered in Niskayuna, New York and has facilities in Bangalore, India, Shanghai, China and Munich, Germany. Visit GE Global Research at www.ge.com/research.
About GE
GE is a diversified global infrastructure, finance and media company that is built to meet essential world needs. From energy, water, transportation and health to access to money and information, GE serves customers in more than 100 countries and employs more than 300,000 people worldwide. For more information, visit the company's Web site at http://www.ge.com. GE is Imagination at Work.
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