Online gamers crack AIDS enzyme puzzle

[Raiden]

Story

Online gamers have achieved a feat beyond the realm of Second Life or Dungeons and Dragons: they have deciphered the structure of an enzyme of an AIDS-like virus that had thwarted scientists for a decade.

The exploit is published on Sunday in the journal Nature Structural & Molecular Biology, where -- exceptionally in scientific publishing -- both gamers and researchers are honoured as co-authors.

Their target was a monomeric protease enzyme, a cutting agent in the complex molecular tailoring of retroviruses, a family that includes HIV.

Figuring out the structure of proteins is vital for understanding the causes of many diseases and developing drugs to block them.

But a microscope gives only a flat image of what to the outsider looks like a plate of one-dimensional scrunched-up spaghetti. Pharmacologists, though, need a 3-D picture that "unfolds" the molecule and rotates it in order to reveal potential targets for drugs.

This is where Foldit comes in.

Developed in 2008 by the University of Washington, it is a fun-for-purpose video game in which gamers, divided into competing groups, compete to unfold chains of amino acids -- the building blocks of proteins -- using a set of online tools.

To the astonishment of the scientists, the gamers produced an accurate model of the enzyme in just three weeks.

Cracking the enzyme "provides new insights for the design of antiretroviral drugs," says the study, referring to the lifeline medication against the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

It is believed to be the first time that gamers have resolved a long-standing scientific problem.

"We wanted to see if human intuition could succeed where automated methods had failed," Firas Khatib of the university's biochemistry lab said in a press release.

"The ingenuity of game players is a formidable force that, if properly directed, can be used to solve a wide range of scientific problems."

One of Foldit's creators, Seth Cooper, explained why gamers had succeeded where computers had failed.

"People have spatial reasoning skills, something computers are not yet good at," he said.

"Games provide a framework for bringing together the strengths of computers and humans. The results in this week's paper show that gaming, science and computation can be combined to make advances that were not possible before."

Who says video game is bad? Now if only they can do it for cancer research as well.

 

[JJJ's Ulcer]

Online game addicts can't even keep their own offspring alive, but curing the AIDS virus?? No problem!!

 

[chaseter]

I could never get past the AIDS level...damn.

 

[Spidey-Bat]

Who better to cure AIDS than people who will never have sex?

 

[NHawk19]

Makes you wonder what would've happened if they entered this in first

up up down down left right left right b a select start

 

[Darthphere]

Was it that Max Payne level where you walk on blood to find the baby crying.

 

[Wolfwood]

I'm telling you, if Microsoft added some Achievements to curing cancer, we'd have this thing beat in no time.

 

[Spidey-Bat]

I'm telling you, if Microsoft added some Achievements to curing cancer, we'd have this thing beat in no time.

The research could be funded with subscription fees. Just look at World of Warcraft and Xbox Live.

 

[Ultra Lantern]

I could never get past the AIDS level...damn.

I passed all 9 levels of the game.-lol

 

[chaseter]

Magic Johnson?

 

[Hotwire]

The research could be funded with subscription fees. Just look at World of Warcraft and Xbox Live.

Not to mention, DLC!

 

[Hotwire]

I'm telling you, if Microsoft added some Achievements to curing cancer, we'd have this thing beat in no time.

This is a great idea!
We already know they'll work cheap, and lots of late nights with minimal sleep. Just so long as each diseases cured unlocks more DLC, they'll be at it forever. Why didn't we think of this sooner?

I guess Nintendo had something with Dr. Mario.

 

[Shemtov]

I'm telling you, if Microsoft added some Achievements to curing cancer, we'd have this thing beat in no time.

We already have a cure for cancer. By using AIDS.
We had a thread about it, but I can't find it.
And 'we alraedy have a cure for AIDS:
http://forums.superherohype.com/showthread.php?t=345101

 

[KevanG]

Who better to cure AIDS than people who will never have sex?

That's terrible

 

[Sundancer]

Was it that Max Payne level where you walk on blood to find the baby crying.

Yes.

And what a metaphor.

 

[Spider-Aziz]

I pull away my hate for online gaming now

 

[Casius--J]

Sounds like a movie plot lol

"To save our world, our governments must turn to those that live in a virtual one"

 

[Spider-Aziz]

Sounds like a movie plot lol

"To save our world, our governments must turn to those that live in a virtual one"

This is the kind of movies that feel too cheesy and fails in the eyes of critics

 

[Why Are You Crouching Spock?]

Pc gamers. no surprise.
If this was consoles it's would be Call Of Duty with aids replacing terrorists.

 

[Casius--J]

This is the kind of movies that feel too cheesy and fails in the eyes of critics

Exactly lol

 

[ComicChick]

This is the kind of movies that feel too cheesy and fails in the eyes of critics

so an FX made for tv movie then?

 

[Spider-Aziz]

so an FX made for tv movie then?

Maybe a cartoon

 

[Ultra Lantern]

Sounds like a movie plot lol

"To save our world, our governments must turn to those that live in a virtual one"

The movie would be called: Virtual Combat.
It would star Dean Cain.

 

[Casius--J]

^^ I love it, let's pitch this to Fox I'm sure they'll love it haha