Prion proteins: from disease culprits to antibiotic source
New antibiotic candidates for drug-resistant bacteria may reside inside prions—misfolded proteins in the brain best known for causing rare and fatal neurodegenerative conditions. A study published June 19 in Nature Microbiology used artificial intelligence to screen prion protein structures and identified previously unknown compounds with antimicrobial activity.
AI opens new frontiers in drug discovery
The research, led by César de la Fuente's lab at the University of Pennsylvania, represents the latest in a series of AI-driven efforts to find antibiotics in unlikely places. The same lab has previously used AI models to identify antibiotic candidates in the DNA of extinct organisms and in animal venom. This study expands the search to prion proteins, challenging conventional assumptions about where antimicrobial compounds can be found.
Addressing the antibiotic resistance crisis
The discovery comes as antibiotic-resistant infections cause more than 1.2 million deaths globally each year, according to recent estimates. Traditional discovery methods have struggled to keep pace with evolving bacterial resistance. AI-based screening of unconventional protein sources offers a path to accelerate the identification of new drug candidates, though clinical applications remain years away.