{
  "id": 14997046,
  "title": "AI designs working molecular scissors that recognize and cut selected protein targets",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/16/ai-designs-working-molecular-scissors-that-recognize-and-cut-selected",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-10-16T16:40:06.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Phys.org",
    "slug": "phys-org",
    "url": "https://phys.org/news/2026-10-ai-molecular-scissors-protein.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Scientists have employed artificial intelligence to create entirely new proteases, natural enzymes that break down proteins into smaller components. Proteases already have diverse applications in medicine and industry, but designing them from scratch using AI represents a major advancement. Researchers at the University of Washington devised two types of AI-guided proteases: one with a cysteine amino acid and the other containing a zinc atom. To design these enzymes, they first utilized an AI system called RFD2-MI to determine their 3D shape and core structure, then another program called ProteinMPNN to choose specific amino acids required for the enzymes' targets. This process was repeated multiple times for both protease types. The AI-generated designs were then subjected to laboratory tests using bacteria to produce long protein chains linking the enzymes to their intended target sequences, along with glowing markers. Out of 69 cysteine protease candidates, 13 successfully cleaved their targets, while 36% of the 135 zinc protease candidates did so. Further refinement of the top zinc protease designs increased their cutting speed by 30 times. The engineered proteases have shown potential therapeutic benefits, such as cutting full-length TDP-43, a protein implicated in ALS and certain forms of dementia, and fragments of amyloid-beta linked to Alzheimer's disease and serum amyloid A associated with organ damage. Although these AI-designed proteases have not yet been tested in humans, the study's authors believe they could revolutionize medicine, biotechnology, and industrial chemistry by enabling the creation of selective proteases for specific target regions on proteins.",
  "summary": "Proteases are naturally occurring enzymes that break down proteins into peptides and even single amino acids. They are useful in medicine and industrial processes, where they clean tissue, digest waste and help in the manufacture of everyday products. Now scientists have used artificial intelligence to design new versions from scratch.",
  "key_points": [
    "Scientists use AI to create new proteases with specific target recognition.",
    "Cysteine and zinc-based AI-designed proteases show promising results in lab tests.",
    "Engineered proteases could revolutionize medicine and biotechnology applications."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}