If you are wondering if AI is just a fad and doesnโt have a impactful real world use case then think again.
๐๐จ๐๐๐ฅ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ณ๐ in Chemistry was just awarded ๐๐จ๐จ๐ ๐ฅ๐ ๐๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ข๐ง๐โ๐ฌ ๐๐ก๐ข๐๐ ๐๐ฑ๐๐๐ฎ๐ญ๐ข๐ฏ๐ ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐จ-๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐๐๐ซ ๐๐ข๐ซ ๐๐๐ฆ๐ข๐ฌ ๐๐๐ฌ๐ฌ๐๐๐ข๐ฌ, ๐๐๐ฏ๐ข๐ ๐๐๐ค๐๐ซ and ๐๐จ๐ก๐ง ๐. ๐๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ฉ๐๐ซ for predicting protein structure and computational protein design.
How does that help and why should I be elated, you might wonder.
I did the same.
Hereโs the problem they solved and why itโs a big deal.
Imagine you have a long, tangled string of yarn. It’s all messy and twisted up. Now, if you could shake it out and carefully fold it into a specific shape, it would look very different and could even become something useful, like a toy or a decoration.
That’s kind of like what happens with proteins. They’re made up of long chains of tiny building blocks called amino acids. Just like the yarn, these chains can get all tangled up. But when they fold into a specific shape, they become a protein that can do a particular job in your body.
For example, some proteins help build and repair cells, while others fight off germs. The shape of a protein is really important for it to work correctly. If a protein folds the wrong way, it might not be able to do its job properly.
So, protein folding is like a puzzle. The amino acids are the pieces, and the shape of the protein is the solution to the puzzle. When the puzzle is solved, the protein can do its important job in your body!
Scientists knew the order of the amino acids in a protein, but they couldn’t figure out how the protein folded into its shape. This shape is really important because it determines what the protein does in our bodies.
๐๐ฅ๐ฉ๐ก๐๐ ๐จ๐ฅ๐, a super-smart machine learning application aka puzzle solver can look at the order of amino acids in a protein and predict how it will fold. This is a huge deal because it helps scientists understand how proteins work and how they might be involved in diseases.
How does this help us?
If we understand how a protein involved in a disease is folded, we might be able to design a medicine that stops it from folding the wrong way. This could help people get better from diseases.
This is a problem that has puzzled researchers and scientists for decades on end and Artificial Intelligence seems to have come up with a solution.
I came to know about Demis Hassabis from the book I read called ๐๐๐ง๐ข๐ฎ๐ฌ ๐๐๐ค๐๐ซ๐ฌ and the documentary ๐๐ฅ๐ฉ๐ก๐๐๐จ (Available free on YouTube). Having done both before the launch of ChatGPT, this recognition to Demis and team makes it special for AI/ML enthusiast like me.
Congratulations to Demis Hassabis and the team. Cheers๐ฅ
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