A Galician is leading a study that uses artificial intelligence to discover almost a million new antibiotics in just a few hours.

” resistance to antibiotics and superbugs “They currently represent one of the greatest threats facing humanity.” This is the first thing researcher Cesar de la Fuente tells us. Therefore, advancement in this field is the main mission of the laboratory, which is headed by this 38-year-old man. from La Coruña settled in the USA.

“What we did analyze all microbial matter on Earthwhich comes from the soil, the oceans, the human intestines, that is, absolutely anywhere, using an algorithm,” explains De la Fuente. “We use all the information about microorganisms that has been genetically sequenced as a result of other previous studies to our advantage. and we explore using artificial intelligence,” continues the researcher leading this study, published in the journal Cell.

900,000 antibiotics in just a few hours

The results are absolutely stunning. Using artificial intelligence, the team was able to identify nearly 900,000 molecules with antibiotic potential in just a few hours.. If the number is impressive, the time is even greater. “Until now, it could take us years to identify one or two molecules,” says the professor from the University of Pennsylvania. Thus, discoveries accelerated like never before. “This is an unprecedented case in the history of science.“

Once these nearly 900,000 antibiotic molecules are discovered, the next step will be take them to the laboratory and get to work. But, obviously, given the volumes, this needs to be done gradually. “We selected 100 molecules that were the most representative, and these were the ones we synthesized in the laboratory,” explains the researcher. In the second phase, it is time to demonstrate its effectiveness against drug-resistant pathogens. Once again, the results are more than encouraging.

“Almost a million left to synthesize”

“79% of them were able to kill the bacteria“, explains one who is one of the most prominent researchers in his field and has just joined the Royal Galician Pharmaceutical Academy. Tests were also carried out with the most dangerous bacteria for our society.

And if the research so far is completely revolutionary, what lies ahead predicts many more advances. “There are almost a million left to synthesize,” explains the scientist. “Our lab can’t do this alone because it would be too expensive and take too long.” What does it mean? Well, scientists around the world now have a large number of antibiotics at their disposal, ready for study. Congratulations.

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