Computers from the Daviess County and Owensboro public schools systems are being used to help identify drugs to treat COVID-19.
The desktop computers are part of the DataseamGrid — a network of computers housed in classrooms of 48 Kentucky school districts as part of a partnership designed to support research, education and workforce development.
Typically, the DataseamGrid conducts virtual screening to discover new cancer drugs, but it has been retooled to help combat the coronavirus.
“In these unprecedented times, we had a resource where we could potentially make an impact quickly and switch over from some of our cancer targets to (COVID-19) targets,” said John Trent, deputy director of basic and translational research at the University of Louisville Health – James Graham Brown Cancer Center. “We have been very successful in doing this in cancer for 15 years. We are using the same approach in targeting the coronavirus, just targeting a different protein.”
Though there are staff members with both Owensboro and Daviess County schools who are trained to support the technology, the system operates on its own in the background.
“We are just a small part of the ‘digital first responders’ in the fight against COVID-19,” said Jared Revlett, OPS public information officer. “OPS has roughly 80 computers that are a part of the statewide DataseamGrid running to help find answers to keep Kentuckians healthy and moving forward.”
DCPS Computer Operations Manager Steve Burton added, “Daviess County Public Schools is proud to partner with Dataseam in the important job of finding a treatment for the COVID-19 virus. We have more than 400 Mac computers dedicated 24/7 to this work.”
The first approach is to test about 2,000 drugs already on the market and another 9,000 investigational drugs and nutraceuticals that have been tested for toxicity to isolate those most likely to be effective against the virus.
So far, the process has identified about 30 drugs as potentially effective against the virus. Trent recommended these for biological testing by researchers in the U of L Center for Predictive Medicine for Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases (CPM) — one of only a few labs in the United States capable of testing the drugs against the virus.
If the CPM researchers find the drugs to be effective in the lab, they could be moved to the next phase of testing in animal models, testing that also may be conducted at CPM.
“Like a lot of industries, we have shifted our skills and infrastructure to address this issue,” said Brian Gupton, CEO of Dataseam. “We are always going to have cancer, but at least for the time being, we are glad the DataseamGrid is here for Dr. Trent to screen those drugs.”
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For the latest information and data on COVID-19 in Kentucky visit kycovid19.ky.gov or dial the Kentucky state hotline at 800-722-5725.
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