AI may soon decode human genome, says expert
What's the story
Pushmeet Kohli, Vice President of Research at Google DeepMind, has said that artificial intelligence (AI) could be the key to cracking the human genome. In a recent interview with Moneycontrol, Kohli said that understanding this "recipe book of life" is the next big biological frontier for AI. The statement comes after his team's work on the AlphaFold model, which has been recognized for its groundbreaking ability to predict protein structures.
Genome significance
Importance of understanding human genome
Kohli stressed the importance of deciphering the human genome, saying it holds vital information about human development, disease susceptibility, and potential medical interventions. He said that while scientists have developed technologies to read DNA sequences over the years, fully understanding their implications is still a work in progress. "We are yet to really decipher it and understand the meaning of the genome," he said.
AI applications
Potential impact on healthcare and democratization of science
Kohli said that the long-term goal of this research is to understand how every possible change in the genetic code affects human health. This knowledge could be used not just for disease diagnosis, but also for developing more precise treatments. He also highlighted how AI's growing role in biology is democratizing science by making tools accessible to smaller research institutions and scientists in developing countries.
Research democratization
Revolutionizing research with AI
Kohli cited AlphaFold as an example of how AI is revolutionizing scientific research. He said that what used to take years and millions of dollars in lab work to determine the structure of a single protein can now be done in seconds through AI databases. "All of that millions of dollars and multiple years has been transformed into one click," he said, emphasizing how this acceleration shows how AI can expand scientific opportunity across borders.