Quantum-Accelerated Recombinant Protein Drug Embedding Frameworks (QARPDEF)

Innovate UK, under the Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI), has awarded financial support to Vorsus, an SME based in Oxford, which operates at the forefront of quantum computing, specialising in quantum-enabled application development. Vorsus has a team experienced physicists, computational scientists, engineers and business leaders who are harnessing the power of quantum mechanics to solve complex problems, unlocking unprecedented possibilities in optimisation, quantum simulations, and Quantum Machine Learning.

The funding from Innovate UK is for a study and research into using the emerging power of quantum computing to enhance public health by creating new medicines to diseases with no known cure. It also aims to reduce government healthcare expenses by optimising the production efficiency of existing treatments.

Recombinant protein drugs (RPDs) are medications created using genetic engineering techniques, offering advantages over small molecule drugs due to their high precision and targeted nature. These drugs are particularly difficult to discover and develop but are already transforming the treatment of some chronic medical conditions, such as diabetes and some cancers. Vorsus aims to develop a highly impactful quantum-enabled RPD discovery pipeline toolkit which will operate on second-generation quantum computing hardware.

Based on the outcome of the feasibility study, further funds may be allocated to Vorsus to develop the first version of the toolkit for licensing to research-based pharmaceutical companies.