Context
Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2024 awarded to David Baker, Demis Hassabis and John Jumper for contribution to understanding protein structure.
About Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2024
- Awardees:
- David Baker (University of Washington, Seattle) for Computational Protein Design.
- Demis Hassabis and John Jumper (Google DeepMind) for Protein Structure Prediction.
- Jumper and Hassabis’s Contribution
- Proteins are composed of 20 amino acids arranged in strings, which fold into 3D structures.
- The 3D structure determines a protein’s function.However, predicting 3D protein structures based on amino acid sequences remained elusive until DeepMind’s AlphaFold .
- Jumper’s contributions improved AlphaFold, leading to a breakthrough in protein structure prediction in 2020.
- Baker’s Contribution
- Developed Rosetta, software for protein structure prediction.
- Instead of predicting protein structure from an amino acid sequence, they entered a desired structure to generate amino acid sequences, enabling the creation of new proteins.
- This led to the design of various lab-created proteins.
The field in which entirely new proteins are constructed is called de novo design. Top7 – the first protein that was entirely different to all known existing proteins.
- Significance of Their Work:The ability to visualize protein structures allows for better understanding of:
- How biological functions operate.
- The development of certain diseases.
- Causes of antibiotic resistance.
- How some microbes can decompose plastic.
About AlphaFold
- Type: AI-based protein structure prediction tool.
- Foundation: Based on a Deep Neural Network system.
- Working
- Input: Fed with protein sequences.
- Output: Produces predicted 3D protein structures.
About RoseTTAFold
- Developed by: Researchers at University of Washington, U.S.
- Capabilities
- Protein Predictions: Predicts both static protein structures and protein-protein interactions.
- Extended Functionality: Can predict structures and interactions for proteins, DNA, and RNA combinations.
Source: IE
Previous Year Question
What is the Cas9 protein that is often mentioned in the news?
[UPSC Civil Services Exam – 2019 Prelims]
(a) A molecular scissors used in targeted gene editing
(b) A biosensor used in the accurate detection of pathogens in patients
(c) A gene that makes plants pest-resistant
(d) A herbicidal substance synthesized in genetically modified crops
Answer: (a)
