Finding the molecular switches behind new infectious diseases

Most emerging infectious diseases result from pathogens jumping from animals to humans, such as with Ebola, HIV, flu, and Covid-19. A researcher at the University of Cambridge is using an AI tool called Co-Scientist to identify the molecular switches that trigger severe diseases like sepsis when pathogens cross between species. The tool analyzes published literature and generates ranked hypotheses, some novel, that help prioritize which specific targets are worth testing in the lab. By working iteratively with the AI tool to refine hypotheses down to specific amino acids, the researcher's team expects to complete work that would normally take two to three years in approximately six months.