Claude Develops Protein Binders to Combat Deadly Scorpion Stings

Anthropic’s Claude has autonomously designed protein binders aimed at scorpion neurotoxins, which are responsible for over 3,250 fatalities annually. These small protein molecules are engineered to attach to specific target molecules.

Claude generated 318,484 designs for protein binders targeting five toxins from four scorpion species. After an initial prompt, Claude operated independently for 24 hours, while the research team provided additional guidance.

From the initial designs, Claude selected 180 candidates, and the team contributed 31 more. Of the 211 designs tested in the lab, 17 met the criteria for effective binders. The two most effective binders exhibited extremely tight binding to Cn2, a toxin from the Mexican scorpion.

Lab tests indicate that these binders dock at or near the same site as an antibody known to neutralize Cn2 in mice. However, their effectiveness as an antivenom has yet to be evaluated.

Experts Susana Vázquez Torres and Timothy P. Jenkins described the work as a promising first step, with results confirmed by two independent laboratories. Claude operated within Claude Science, Anthropic’s AI environment dedicated to research.

In a previous study, Claude had already designed mini-binders against 14 of 15 target proteins, achieving hit rates of 22 to 35 percent, compared to the typical 10 to 15 percent.

Source: The Decoder