This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: AI-predicted protein complex structures for more than 2,800 viruses are now openly available in the AlphaFold Database. To better understand and protect against emerging pathogens, the dataset prioritizes proteomes from viral families known to infect humans.
This work was made possible by an international collaboration among EMBL's European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI), Google DeepMind, NVIDIA, Seoul National University, the University of Glasgow, the Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics (SIB), the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU) in South Korea. The release also includes complexes computed independently of the collaboration by colleagues at Lund University in Sweden. Viruses rely on a complex network of specialized proteins that, among other things, allow them to interact with human cells.
Visualizing the 3D structure of these proteins can reveal the regions on a virus's surface that are key targets for diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines. Such information could help scientists respond more quickly in a future pandemic. "Making these data open is critical for understanding viral diagnostics and developing treatments and vaccines," said Jo McEntyre, interim director of EMBL-EBI.
"They can support faster and more effective responses to future pandemics. They also cover lesser-studied viruses and lower the barriers for scientists in low-resource settings, who are confronting outbreaks firsthand." The COVID-19 pandemic exposed how unprepared the world was to prevent and respond to emerging viral threats. An analysis by the Center for Global Development estimates a nearly 50% chance of the world facing a pandemic as severe as COVID-19 by 2050.
Despite this looming threat, many global health experts believe it is possible to reduce the impact of future pandemics by suppressing outbreaks faster and more effectively. One initiative—aptly called the 100 Days Mission—aims to deploy safe and effective treatments and vaccines within the first 100 days of identifying a new viral pandemic threat. Achieving such an ambitious goal would require, among other things, access to structural information about viruses long before they pose a global threat.
By making predicted viral protein complexes openly available in the AlphaFold Database, this release could help scientists understand what these proteins look like and which regions may interact with human cells. This information could, in turn, support the development of vaccines and other countermeasures if an outbreak were to occur. The dataset release coincides with the United Nations General Assembly High-level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response, taking place Sept. 25 at the U.N. headquarters in New York.
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