Blog: Free, Open Virtual Laboratory for Infectious Diseases

Free, Open Virtual Laboratory for Infectious Diseases
ICT Results (06/04/10)

A European research team has developed a virtual laboratory designed to help doctors match drugs to patients and make treatments more effective. The ViroLab Virtual Laboratory uses machine learning, data mining, grid computing, modeling, and simulation technologies to convert the content of millions of scientific journal articles, databases, and patients' medical histories into knowledge that can be used for treatment. "ViroLab finds new pathways for treatment by integrating different kinds of data, from genetic information and molecular interactions within the body, measured in nanoseconds, up to sociological interactions on the epidemiological level spanning years of disease progression," says University of Amsterdam professor Peter Sloot. The system continuously crawls grid-connected databases of virological, immunological, clinical, genetic, and experimental data and extracts information from scientific journal articles. The ViroLab Virtual Laboratory also could be used to create personalized drug rankings to aid in the treatment of people suffering from diseases.

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