Protein predictions: AI group says it has solved one of biology's 'grand challenges'

An artificial intelligence group says its program has successfully predicted the structure of nearly every protein known to science — effectively solving one

An artificial intelligence group says its program has successfully predicted the structure of nearly every protein known to science — effectively solving one of the "grand challenges" of biology and paving the way for new discoveries and technologies in fields as diverse as medicine, food security and climate science.

DeepMind, an AI firm owned by Google's parent company, Alphabet, announced Thursday that its AlphaFold program has expanded its open online database to include more than 200 million protein structures.

The vast catalog now encompasses the "entire protein universe," DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis said in a news briefing — from the sequenced genomes of almost every organism on the planet.

Proteins are long, complex chains of amino acids that make up the building blocks of life. Scientists have long sought to untangle how these chains are elegantly twisted and folded into 3D shapes because understanding their structure can yield valuable insights into their function. Knowing a protein's specific shape and how its various molecules interact can, for instance, help researchers narrow down potential targets for medical treatments.

AlphaFold's prediction for the structure of protein F20H23.2.DeepMindAlphaFold's upgraded database includes protein structures for plants, bacteria, animals and other organisms, according to DeepMind.

https://www.nbcnews.com/science/science-news/protein-folding-google-rcna40437

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