AI Can Now Model the Molecular Machines That Govern All Life

An example: when cells live out their usual lifespan, they go through a process called apoptosis--in Greek, the falling of the leaves--in which the cell gently falls apart without disturbing its neighbors by leaking toxic chemicals. The entire process is a cascade of protein-protein interactions. One protein grabs onto another protein to activate it. The now-activated protein is subsequently released to stir up the next protein in the chain, and so on, eventually causing the aging or diseased cell to sacrifice itself. Another example: in neurons during learning, synapses (the hubs that connect brain cells) call upon a myriad of proteins that form a complex together.