Nowadays, artificial intelligence is famous for its generative capabilities that simplify content creation, automation, and other tasks, but a new study tasked the technology to design new proteins that can potentially counteract deadly snake bites. These proteins are capable of fighting against the deadly venom produced and transmitted by snakes when they bite, and their lab experiments saw resounding success.
While there are already antidotes present to act against these bites when they enter the bloodstream, there are still specific proteins for the many types of venoms, and this complicates the production of these cures.
AI-Designed Proteins May Counter Deadly Snake Venom
Researchers have published a significant study that utilized artificial intelligence in helping them design new proteins that could help in countering deadly snake venom that enters bodies through bites. Timothy Jenkins of the Technical University of Denmark had an idea to present a new way to develop antidotes against snake venoms, and this involved David Baker from the University of Washington School of Medicine's previous work.
Baker authored a study published in 2022 that focused on AI-designed proteins that can stick to molecules like superglue, with Jenkins finding the paper and becoming the basis for their latest study.
Their collaboration led to the introducing of the use of AI in designing the proteins that could be used against specific snake venoms, particularly as antidote development has been using outdated technology for a long time now.
Will You Trust an AI-Developed Antidote For Bites?
According to ScienceNews, Jenkins and Baker's work found a fast and cost-effective way of manufacturing new proteins that can be used to create antidotes, as opposed to harvesting venoms from snakes and then injecting them into large animals like horses to produce the antibodies for the cure.
The duo used a generative AI model called RFdiffusion to create custom proteins, and they later tested the proteins in a lab experiment where they injected mice with venom and used the AI-designed proteins as the cure, finding immense success.
Medicine, Cures Designed or Made by AI
The world's medical and scientific community has long integrated artificial intelligence in their search for the next disease or virus to cure, and machine learning technology has greatly helped the field in more ways than one. That being said, AI in medicine has evolved greatly thanks to the arrival of more advanced tech like generative AI, with an AI biotech company, Insilico Medicine, using the program to help them find a treatment for an incurable disease known as inflammatory bowel disease (IDB).
Of course, there had been massive doubts on how effective generative AI's input is on cures and medicines during this time, particularly as the technology is infamous for its hallucination tendencies that are yet to be solved. That being said, some efforts constantly study possible treatments that are presented by AI, with Stanford University and McMaster University collaborating on creating drugs against antibiotic-resistant bacteria using artificial intelligence.
On another note, many believe that artificial intelligence possibly holds the key to creating cures for diseases that longbaffled the medical community, including cancer, heart diseases, and more. Diseases and viruses are one thing, but AI yet again demonstrates its capabilities with the new proteins it developed to fight against several snake venoms, offering a promising application for new antidotes in the future.
