# Novel COVID-19 inhibitors designed inside Virtual Reality

Scientists at Oak Ridge National Laboratory use Virtual Reality to create COVID-19 inhibitors, accelerating drug discovery to combat the pandemic.

## The Challenge

The COVID-19 pandemic challenged researchers to discover life-saving treatments at an unprecedented pace, requiring tools to intuitively gain insights from thousands of SARS-CoV-2 structures.

## The Solution

Virtual Reality enables scientists to walk into the protein and see things how the protein sees them, conduct collaborative meetings in VR, and discuss and analyze molecules together.

## Results

- Designed novel COVID-19 inhibitors in an immersive VR environment
- Collaborative molecular design sessions across remote teams
- Fine structural details grasped that were lost in 2D visualizations
- Accelerated the drug discovery pipeline during the pandemic

> “The three-dimensional experience empowers users to grasp fine details that can be easily lost in 2D visualizations. Scientists can virtually go "inside" molecular structures and "see what the protein sees."”

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