2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry

October 10, 2024

Three scientists have been awarded the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their groundbreaking work on proteins. Demis Hassabis and John M Jumper from Google DeepMind are recognized for using artificial intelligence (AI) to predict the 3D structures of nearly all known proteins. David Baker from the University of Washington is honored for designing completely new proteins that do not naturally exist.

The Role of Artificial Intelligence

For many years, predicting how a protein folds based on its amino acid sequence was a difficult challenge in biochemistry. Traditionally, scientists used methods like X-ray crystallography, which required a lot of time and effort. Hassabis and Jumper changed this by developing an AI model that could predict the 3D structure of proteins. This AI model was trained on known sequences and their structures, learning to spot patterns that helped it predict the structure of proteins that hadn’t been studied before.

The Impact of AlphaFold2

In 2020, Hassabis and Jumper’s AI model, AlphaFold2, achieved accuracy close to that of X-ray crystallography, making it a breakthrough in protein research. By October 2024, this tool had been adopted by over two million scientists worldwide, allowing them to understand proteins better and apply this knowledge to various fields, including medicine, agriculture, and environmental science.

David Baker’s Contributions

While Hassabis and Jumper focused on predicting existing protein structures, David Baker made advances in creating new proteins from scratch. His computational tools allowed scientists to design proteins with specific functions that don’t exist in nature. One famous example is a protein called Top7, which Baker and his team developed in 2003. These newly designed proteins have many potential uses, such as in nanotechnology, creating new medicines, and improving industrial processes to be more sustainable.

The advancements in understanding and designing proteins have enormous potential. They could lead to new treatments for diseases, help protect the environment, and create new materials for industries. Since proteins are so important in all living things, these discoveries will likely lead to many innovations in the years to come.

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