Using AI, scientists bring Neanderthal antibiotics back from extinction
Vox Future
Neanderthals are extinct. But their molecules are back and they just might save our lives.
By Sigal Samuel Aug 1, 2023, 7:00am EDT
…what if instead of bringing back a whole species, we bring back just one tiny part — like, say, a molecule?
That’s what scientists have just achieved at the University of Pennsylvania’s Machine Biology Group. They’ve resurrected molecules with antibiotic properties found in extinct organisms — specifically, our close relatives, the Neanderthals and Denisovans. (Neanderthals went extinct 40,000 years ago, while Denisovans might have survived until 15,000-30,000 years ago.) The breakthrough throws open the doors to a brave new world of “molecular de-extinction,” which holds promise for drug discovery.
The researchers started by gathering the sequenced genome data of Neanderthals and Denisovans, which is publicly available thanks to paleontologists who have painstakingly collected and analyzed ancient DNA from bones and artifacts.
Then they trained an AI model to make predictions about which molecules might make effective antibiotics for modern humans. After the algorithm identified the strongest candidates, the researchers created those molecules in the lab and tested them in infected mice. Some of the molecules effectively fought off bacterial infections, according to a new study published in the journal Cell Host & Microbe.
This is completely new. We came up with the term ‘molecular de-extinction’ and this is the first peer-reviewed paper that describes it,” César de la Fuente, who co-authored the study, told me. “So it’s quite exciting for us.” If the burgeoning field of molecular de-extinction turns out to yield clinically successful results in humans, it could be exciting for the world, too, because we urgently need good ways to create new antibiotics.
More here
https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/23811682/ai-neanderthal-antibiotics-extinction
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