Why it matters: Pharmaceutical researchers in the UK are using the AI tool AlphaFold to develop new psychedelic drugs. This research shows that AlphaFold is as useful as experimentally produced protein structures, providing further evidence of its utility in drug design.
What they are saying: Jens Carlsson, a computational chemist at the University of Uppsala, called AlphaFold an “absolute revolution” and believes that having a reliable protein structure prediction tool would be revolutionary for the drug development industry. However, Brian Shoichet, a pharmaceutical chemist at the University of California, San Francisco, expressed skepticism and pointed out that previous studies have shown that predictions made by AlphaFold were not as useful as experimental protein structures when identifying potential drugs.
The big picture: AlphaFold is a significant advancement in biological research, as it allows pharmaceutical companies to use protein structures to identify and improve promising new drugs. While some researchers believe that AlphaFold could revolutionize drug discovery, others are more cautious and believe that it is not a panacea and should be recognized alongside other methods.
What to watch: It will be interesting to see how the use of AlphaFold and similar AI tools progresses in drug development. Further research and peer review of the findings in this study will be important for validating the use of AlphaFold in developing new drugs.
My take: AlphaFold has the potential to greatly impact drug development by providing researchers with valuable protein structure predictions. However, the skepticism expressed by some researchers highlights the need for further studies and validation. Finding the right balance between utilizing AI tools and traditional experimental methods will be key in realizing the full potential of AlphaFold in drug discovery.
