Machine Learning Unifies the Modelling of Molecules and Materials

Traditional drug discovery required labour and time intensive lab work to synthesise and test a large library of drug candidates. In recent year Structure Activity Relationship Studies (SARS) have helped eliminate the practical lab work required by using molecular properties and data science to predict the reactivity and stability of potential drug candidates. This research takes SARS one step further incorporating machine-learning using a few training references. This could potentially reduce the time and cost associated with drug discovery. - 2017

Vitamin D Deficiency and Association With Body Mass Index and Lipid Levels in Hispanic American Adolescents

There is a clear link between Vitamin D deficiency and minority groups. Reasons for this are still unclear but it is clear thst there is a link between Vitamin D deficiency and increased levels of Low Density Lipid (LDL) - the bad type of cholesterol. Although there is no proof that Vitamin D supplementation decreases cholesterol levels directly, it is clear that the biological pathway that converts cholesterol into Vitamin D in our bodies is catalysed by sunlight. This seems to suggest that ethnic minorities or in fact anyone with high cholesterol should get more sun exposure - likely through outdoor exercise killing two birds with one stone. - 2017

Evaluating the impact of Brexit on the pharmaceutical industry

Science and innovation is one of the 12 negotiating priorities during Brexit. Two front-runners in this discussion are how will regulatory bodies of medicine be impacted or protected and what will happen to the workforce in the UK pharmaceutical industry. - 2017

New Twist Found in the Story of Life’s Start

Chirality is a property of two molecules that are mirror images of each other. The same then? No - because these left-handed and right-handed molecules are not superimposable on each other - but otherwise identical. A famous example is Thalidomide, a drug given to pregnant women in the 1960s to alleviate morning sickness. Only one chiral type (enantiomer) was active but the drug was sold as a 50/50 mix of both. Unfortunately, the S-enantiomer caused birth defects in subsequent children born. Needless to say, chirality is important. So has chirality existed since the dawn of time? And which came first - life on earth or chirality? If most of biology and chemistry only works with one enantiomer why does chirality exist at all? Some of these questions are still unanswered but there is research to suggest that life came before the introduction of chirality. - 2014