Biosimulation

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Biosimulation is a common generic term in systems biology for the numerical simulation of biological systems. The aim of Biosimulationen is so represent a biological process in a model that it can predict the behavior of a system ( for example, the reaction of an organism to a particular substance ). Furthermore, a model can also be used to identifying gaps in knowledge or to plan new experiments.

The basis of a model experimentally obtained data, but also analytically derived knowledge of the process to be modeled. Due to the complexity of many biological systems, simplified models are often used.

Biosimulation in pharmacy

The Biosimulation comes especially in pharmacy in drug development is of particular importance. Since the average probability that a drug candidate is ultimately approved, is only 11 %, Biosimulationen help to identify non- successful candidates at an early stage of development. Furthermore, the Biosimulation can help to share information in data already collected more efficiently and for example it create based predictions. Models are still useful for planning experiments and studies and validate hypotheses.

Through the use of Biosimulationen costs saved and the number of necessary animal and human studies can be reduced, which is also in the sense of the so-called 3Rs and the EU directive 86/609/EEC. The former calls for the reduction ( engl. reduction) or replacement ( engl. replacement ) of animal testing and improvement (English refinement ) the methods used. The latter directive has used the protection of animals which experiments and other scientific purposes, to content. Thus, in the future, the replacement of in-vivo test procedure in silico assay ( Biosimulationen ) is possible.

In later stages of development Biosimulation is already successful. So the company Hoffmann- La Roche was unable to get approval for hepatitis C drug, " Pegasys " for a particular group of patients because of Biosimulationen.

Research projects

Given the importance of Biosimulation for drug development, there are a number of industrial and government-funded research projects, which have the simulation of the metabolism of an active substance to the goal:

  • BioSim project; funded by the EU 6th Framework Programme
  • NSR Physiome Project
  • Hepatosys, funded by the German BMBF
  • MaCS Magdeburg Centre for Systems Biology

Software tools (selection)

Some previously created software tools are given in the following list:

  • Metabolism PhysioLab of entelos
  • Pharsight computer assisted trial design
  • RHEDDOS of Rhenovia Pharma SAS
  • VirtualToxLab
  • Derek from Lhasa Limited
  • Simcyp Simulator
  • DS TOPKAT by Accelrys
in vivo Nature Reviews Drug Discovery
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