...my understanding!

With emergence of specialised software applications, drug discovery has become a highly cost-competitive area for Indian pharma companies. Nagesh Joshi examines the use of specialised software applications in drug discovery

CELIA M. HENRY, C&EN WASHINGTON
"We're in a very target-rich but lead-poor post-genomics era for drug discovery," notes Raymond Stevens, a profes-sor of molecular biology at Scripps Re- search Institute and cofounder of the San Diego-based biotech firm S

Pune, May 1 In an effort to support the growth
of Bioinformatics discipline in India, the Department of Information
Technology (DIT) has come up with a 'multiply grant scheme', which will
support the researchers as well as industry to tackle some of the key
problems in the field of Bio-informatics.

AK Chakravorthy, adviser and group coordinator, DIT
informed about the scheme on Tuesday. He was in the city to inaugurate
a symposium arranged by C-DAC on 'Genes to Drugs: In-silico
approaches'. Chakravorthy talked about the DIT's vision on
Bioinformatics growth in India. "There is a need to address the
problems of young researchers, who are not in position to create the
business model of their inventions. We want the industry people, for
that matter even the small and medium entrepreneurs, should come
forward and take up certain problems," he said.

"The industry people can tie up with the
researchers to create business models. In fact they can also decide
whether which research lab should take research they want to carry it.

The Department of Information Technology will
help them taking some of the responsibility of the project including
sharing expenditure," he added. Chakravorthy also mentioned that the
patent-worthy projects would also be supported by the Department of
Information Technology. Alok Bhattacharya, Dean of Life Sciences,
Jawaharlal Nehru University urged the Department of Information
Technology to take consortium approach regarding research in
Bio-informatics.

"Outsourcing part of research to companies will
not be a bad idea. It will actually minimise the repetitive work," he
said. Director general of C-DAC S. Ramkrishnan and director SC Purohit
were also present on the occasion.

says Noble laureate Sidney Altman news