AI Vs. Germs: A new antibiotic discovery
- Sep 10, 2023
- 2 min read
Updated: Oct 3, 2023
Intro
The rise of antibiotic resistance is a major global health threat. Many of the antibiotics that we rely on to treat infections are becoming less effective, and new antibiotics are not being developed fast enough to keep up.
However, there is some good news on the horizon. In 2020, a team of researchers at MIT and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard discovered a new class of antibiotics called Halicins.
Halicins are effective against a wide range of bacteria, including some that are resistant to other antibiotics.
The discovery
Halicins work by disrupting the flow of protons across the cell membrane of bacteria.
This disrupts the bacteria's ability to produce energy, eventually leading to cell death.
Halicins are also relatively safe for humans, with few side effects.
The discovery of Halicins is a major breakthrough, made possible by the use of AI, in the fight against antibiotic resistance.
Halicins have the potential to treat infections that are currently untreatable, and they could help to save lives.
AI involvement
Repurposing Hub, a machine learning platform developed by the researchers, was trained on a massive dataset of known drugs and their effects on bacteria.
It is the first time that an AI engine has been used to discover a new class of antibiotics.
The engine was able to identify Halicin as a potential new antibiotic, and it was subsequently validated by experimental studies.
The development of Halicin is a promising sign for the future of antibiotic research, and it demonstrates the potential of AI to accelerate the discovery of new drugs.
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