AI Is Used to Discover a Novel Antibiotic

Researchers announced the breakthrough discovery of a new type of antibiotic compound that is capable of killing many types of harmful bacteria, including deadly antibiotic-resistant strains, and published their findings in Cell on February 20. What makes this remarkable is that the researchers, from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Harvard, and McMaster University, used machine learning (a form of artificial intelligence) to discover the new antibiotic--an achievement that heralds the disruption of traditional research and drug development processes deployed by pharmaceutical industry behemoths. Antibiotic resistance is a global threat that is exacerbated by the overuse of antibiotics in livestock, the proliferation of antimicrobials in consumer products, and over-prescription in health care. Though estimating the future impact is challenging, one report predicted that by 2050, 10 million deaths per year could result from antimicrobial-resistant (AMR) infections. Combating the problem of antimicrobial resistance requires bringing novel compounds to market.