We are pleased to announce the publication of our latest paper: Escape from PharmaZ: a Game to Boost Pharmacophore Learning through Immersive Augmented Reality. This paper addresses a fundamental challenge in pharmaceutical education - how to teach the complex concept of pharmacophore in an engaging and effective way. UnityMol is used for this purpose. Pharmacophores represent the essential 3D features that drug molecules need to interact with their biological targets and are therefore critical to understanding how drugs work. However, students often struggle with this concept because it is abstract and complex three-dimensional molecular arrangements are difficult to visualize. Our solution? Escape from PharmaZ - an innovative hybrid serious game that combines a cooperative board game with a special augmented reality smartphone app. Students can physically manipulate the game pieces while using AR technology to visualize and interact with 3D molecular structures in real time. The results of our pilot study with 24 volunteers are promising and show a significant improvement in pharmacophore understanding, especially among chemistry novices. The combination of tactile gameplay and immersive AR visualization helps students understand both the spatial relationships and combinatorial nature of pharmacophore features.
Watch the accompanying video to see the game in action!
- I. Marfisi-Schottman, H. Santuz, C. Bisson, M. Baaden, N. Férey, et al.: Escape from PharmaZ: a Game to Boost Pharmacophore Learning through Immersive Augmented Reality. Games and Learning Alliance 13th International Conference, GALA 2024, Nov 2024, Berlin, Germany. pp.317-327.
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