IIIT Delhi partners with Sweden to use AI for developing new pneumonia treatments

Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology Delhi (IIIT-Delhi) has teamed up with researchers from Sweden for a project that will use artificial intelligence to develop new treatments for pneumonia.

The project has been selected under a joint programme supported by India’s department of biotechnology (DBT) and Sweden’s innovation agency vinnova. It will focus on using AI and computational biology to design peptide-based therapies to target pneumonia-causing pathogens.

The research has received funding of Rs 52.2 lakh from India and 2.8 million SEK from Sweden. The grant will also support exchange of researchers and collaboration between the two countries.

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The IIIT Delhi team will be led by N Arul Murugan, with GPS Raghava and Vibhor Kumar as co-investigators from the department of computational biology.

On the Swedish side, the project will be led by Vaibhav Srivastava from the KTH Royal Institute of Technology, along with Ujwal Nyogi from the Karolinska Institute.

IIIT Delhi: AI for drug development

The research will use machine learning models to study important properties of peptides, such as their ability to fight microbes, as well as their safety and possible side effects.

Researchers will also use generative AI to design new peptide molecules that could be used as treatments. These will later be tested in the lab, including studies using lung organoids, to check how well they work and whether they are safe.

IIIT Delhi collaboration aims to improve treatments

The team said the project aims to make the process of drug discovery faster and more affordable. It will also help improve understanding of how infections develop and how new treatments can be designed.

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Commenting on this collaboration opportunity to revolutionise the healthcare industry by leveraging advanced technology, Docent N. Arul Murugan said, “In the coming years, biomedical discovery will be heavily transformed by artificial intelligence’s contribution. This India-Swedish collaboration displays IIIT-Delhi’s commitment to utilising computational biology, AI, and Gen-AI to address critical health challenges on a global scale. The integration of advanced machine learning and experimental validation can accelerate the discovery of peptide therapeutics to combat pneumonia-causing pathogens.”

The collaboration is expected to contribute to better treatment options for pneumonia and other respiratory diseases, while also strengthening research ties between India and Sweden.