Researchers reported an advancement in the development of antivenoms, using artificial intelligence to design proteins that can neutralize deadly snake toxins. The findings, published in the journal Nature, detail how these engineered proteins protected mice from lethal doses of snake venom, marking a step forward in combating a global health issue.
The study was led by David Baker from the University of Washington Medicine Institute for Protein Design and Timothy Patrick Jenkins from the Technical University of Denmark. By employing deep learning tools, including a program called RF-Diffusion, the teams were able to create synthetic proteins that neutralize the three-finger toxins produced by elapid snakes, such as cobras, mambas, and adders. These proteins were designed entirely on computers using AI-based software, reducing the time traditionally required in the discovery phase.
Snake bites remain a major health problem worldwide. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), over 2 million people suffer snake bites each year, resulting in more than 100,000 deaths and leaving many with permanent disabilities, especially in regions with fragile healthcare systems. Agencia SINC reports that the majority of these cases occur in Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, Papua New Guinea, and Latin America, where weak health infrastructures exacerbate the public health risk.
Traditional antivenoms, derived from animal plasma, have limitations. They are costly, often have limited effectiveness, and can cause severe side effects. Moreover, these treatments must be administered in medical facilities by trained professionals, limiting their accessibility in remote or resource-poor areas. As noted by Observador, the process involves injecting diluted snake venom into large animals like horses and extracting the antibodies produced, a method that has remained largely unchanged for over a century.
The AI-designed proteins offer advantages over existing treatments. Being smaller compared to traditional antibodies, they allow for better tissue penetration and faster neutralization of toxins. This was demonstrated in experiments where mice injected with lethal doses of three-finger toxins achieved a survival rate of 80–100% after being treated with the engineered proteins. Nature highlights that these proteins could be mass-produced at low cost using bacteria in industrial fermentation tanks, potentially reducing production expenses.
"This is probably the coolest experimental result I've had in my career so far," said biochemist Susana Vázquez Torres, according to Nature.
"We didn't have to do several rounds of laboratory experiments to find antitoxins that worked well; the design software is so good that we only had to test a few molecules," said Baker, as reported by Panamá América. This efficiency not only accelerates the development of effective treatments but also reduces costs, making them more accessible.
Despite the results, the researchers acknowledge that there is still work to be done. The designed proteins currently do not protect against the complete venom, which is a complex mixture of different toxins for each snake species.
The study's implications extend beyond snakebite treatments. The computational design methodology used could substantially reduce the costs and resource requirements for developing therapies for other neglected tropical diseases and even more common illnesses. "By lowering costs and resource needs in the production of effective new medicines, we are taking significant steps towards a future where everyone can get the treatments they deserve," summarized Baker, according to Forskning.
"Snakebite poisoning is a fairly neglected tropical disease, so I am really excited about the idea that we might be able to help push the treatment forward," said Jenkins, according to Videnskab.