Smallpox was eliminated from the world in 1977 by a World Health Organization campaign. Despite this, stocks of the variola virus are known to exist and its use as a weapon of bioterrorism remains a frightening possibility. With vaccination having ended in 1972, the world population is highly susceptible. The availability of drugs to counter the virus would be a major defense.

Join the Fight by Joining the Grid

You yourself can participate and assist in this important effort. By downloading and running the UD Agent, you add your CPU to the global grid. Every time your computer is idle, you contribute your computing resource to the grid, accelerating the screening process while dramatically reducing the cost of the project. The result: Rather than spending years to screen hundreds of thousands of molecules, it will be possible to screen hundreds of millions of molecules in just months.

There is a possible molecular target whose blockade would prevent the ravages of an infection. We intend to use grid computing to screen millions of potential anti-smallpox drugs against this target. This will involve the use of the United Devices Global Metaprocessor, which we have successfully used in the past towards cancer and anthrax research. The project can harness millions of computers belonging to people in over two hundred countries, all of whom will benefit from protection against smallpox.