How Artificial Intelligence Found the Words To Kill Cancer Cells

Cancer is a disease characterized by the abnormal growth and division of cells in the body. Tumors can affect any part of the body and can be benign (non-cancerous) or malignant (cancerous), spreading to other parts of the body through the bloodstream or lymph system. Scientists at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and IBM Research have created a virtual library of thousands of "command sentences" for cells using machine learning. These "sentences" are based on combinations of "words" that direct engineered immune cells to find and continuously eliminate cancer cells. This research, which was recently published in the journal Science, is the first time that advanced computational techniques have been applied to a field that has traditionally progressed through trial-and-error experimentation and the use of pre-existing molecules rather than synthetic ones to engineer cells.