China approves first AI-assisted 'Class 1' innovative drug: Report

China has approved its first artificial intelligence-assisted 'Class 1' innovative drug, marking a significant step in the use of AI in pharmaceutical development, according to the state-run Global Times.

China's National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) granted conditional marketing approval to Mprosevir, a treatment for mild to moderate COVID-19 infections in adults, the newspaper reported Wednesday.

The drug was jointly developed by Westlake University, Westlake Laboratory and Westlake Pharmaceuticals.

Westlake University is a research university based in Hangzhou, the capital of eastern China's Zhejiang province.

Development of Mprosevir took just three and a half years from the initial discovery of the drug candidate to completion of clinical trials, according to Global Times.

China classifies 'Class 1' medicines as innovative drugs that have not previously been marketed either domestically or abroad.

Mprosevir is also the world's first small-molecule innovative drug approved using DNA-encoded library, or DEL, technology, the report said.

Researchers combined AI with DEL technology to screen a library containing about 49 billion compounds. DEL screening initially identified more than 100 potential candidates before an AI model narrowed the pool to nine within days.

Six of those molecules showed strong activity in subsequent testing.

After toxicity, metabolism and other assessments, researchers selected a molecule known as WLU6937 as the lead candidate.

The team then spent about two years optimizing the molecule, with AI used throughout the process, from laboratory and animal studies to its advancement toward clinical trials.