AI Creates First Synthetic Viruses to Defeat Drug-Resistant Bacteria

Artificial intelligence has just taken a giant leap forward that seemed reserved for science fiction. A team of scientists, whose work has been featured in the journal Nature, has managed to design and synthesize the world’s first viruses created entirely by AI. These microorganisms, known as bacteriophages or simply phages, are a formidable ally: they have been programmed to hunt down and destroy resistant strains of the Escherichia coli bacteria.

“This is the first time systems can write coherent sequences at the genomic scale,” said Brian Hie, a computational biologist at Stanford University and one of the study’s authors. While he clarified that “AI-generated life” is still a long way off, the breakthrough represents a turning point. The potential of this technology to design new therapies against bacterial infections is immense, offering new hope in the face of the growing crisis of antibiotic resistance.

A genome written by an algorithm

Creating a genome from scratch is a dauntingly complex task due to the intricate interactions between thousands of genes and their regulation and replication processes. To overcome this obstacle, the team turned to the Evo 1 and Evo 2 models, powerful tools capable of analyzing and generating DNA, RNA, and protein sequences.

As a starting point, they used the genome of phage ΦX174, a virus with a single DNA. They trained artificial intelligence models to generate millions of completely new viral genomes, but with a clear mission: to be lethal to E. coli strains, especially those that have developed resistance to conventional drugs.

After evaluating thousands of candidates, the team selected 302 sequences that seemed viable. The next step was to bring the digital code into the biological world: they synthesized the DNA from these artificial genomes and inserted it into bacteria to “cultivate” the new phages.

Success in the laboratory: more effective than nature

The experimental results were, in the words of the researchers themselves, “surprising and truly exciting.” Of the AI-designed phages, 16 proved capable of infecting and eliminating E. coli.

The most promising finding was that certain combinations of these artificial phages were able to destroy three different strains of E. coli that the natural virus ΦX174 could not defeat. This success demonstrates that the method not only works, but can overcome the limitations of existing viruses, opening the door to more potent, personalized phage therapies.

Biosecurity and the future of research: AI use raises questions

Naturally, the idea of ​​designing viruses with AI raises ethical and safety questions. Peter Koo, a computational biologist at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, clarifies that the ​​model alone cannot generate a functioning virus without intense human oversight, including precise filters and guidance.

The study ‘s authors are aware of the dual-use dilemma inherent in biology. Both phage ΦX174 and the E. coli strain used are nonpathogenic systems with a long history of safe use in research.

This pioneering breakthrough lays the foundation for a new era in biotechnology. The scientific community hopes that this approach will allow for the safe generation of new therapeutic viruses to treat a wide range of diseases, with bacterial resistance as the primary target. “This will definitely be a growing field,” concluded Kerstin Göpfrich, a biophysicist at the University of Heidelberg, expressing enthusiasm for the future this technology promises.

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(Featured image by Ron Lach via Unsplash)

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First published in GACETA MEDICA. A third-party contributor translated and adapted the article from the original. In case of discrepancy, the original will prevail.

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