Lecture
SAILS Lunch Time Seminar: Paco Barona Gomez
- Date
- Monday 7 April 2025
- Time
- Location
- Online only
AI-Driven Protein and Microbial Research at IBL
Model organisms have driven major scientific discoveries, yet the vast evolutionary diversity beyond these systems remains largely unexplored. Traditional molecular biology has often been constrained by the need to generate mutant lines to study molecular mechanisms.
At IBL, we aim to overcome this limitation by integrating AI-driven protein design with molecular and microbial research. Our current focus is on using generative diffusion models, such as RFdiffusion and AlphaProteo, to design small binding proteins (SBPs) that can precisely target proteins or small molecules of interest. These SBPs provide researchers with a modern tool to extract, visualize, and manipulate biomolecules in diverse organisms – without the need for genetically inserted protein tags or conventionally produced antibodies. This allows IBL to look into untapped molecular systems and organisms normally too difficult to study.
Simultaneously, we use deep-learning models in microbial research through transformer-based architectures for microbial morphotype classification. By integrating AI with microscopy and mass spectrometry, we have developed a novel workflow that automates and enhances microbial identification, particularly within complex Streptomyces populations. This innovation streamlines microbial screening by reducing subjectivity and systematically linking phenotype to genotype at scale.
In this talk, we will outline our AI-driven design pipelines and their application through collaborative projects that are the expanding role of artificial intelligence at IBL.
Join us!
The SAILS Lunch Time Seminar is an online event, but it is not publicly accessible in real-time. Please click the the link below to register to our mailinglist and receive participation links for our Lunch Time Seminars.
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