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Protein folding

The proteins that could be

In 1998, a protein structure that had not yet been experimentally observed was designed from scratch. 27 years later this work still demonstrates the power of a field that is undergoing an exciting renaissance thanks to advances in machine learning.

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Fig. 1: Coiled coils assemble around a hydrophobic core composed of hydrophobic amino acids.

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Acknowledgements

D.K. and V.N. are supported by the NASA Astrobiology Institute Grant 80NSSC18M0093 and the NASA Exobiology Grant 80NSSC24K1165.

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Correspondence to Vikas Nanda.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Klein, D., Nanda, V. The proteins that could be. Nat Rev Chem 9, 283–284 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41570-025-00710-w

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