Artificial intelligence accelerates discovery of next-generation disinfectants
Artificial intelligence accelerates discovery of next-generation disinfectants
Publish Date: 2026-05-05 22:54:00
Source Domain: www.news-medical.net
Chemists and computer scientists tapped AI to find new disinfectants to combat the growing threat of dangerous “superbugs.”
The Journal of Chemical Information and Modeling published their computational-experimental framework for developing quaternary ammonium compounds, or QACs, to kill bacteria.
The method yielded 11 new QACs that show activity against antimicrobial-resistant bacteria.
We believe this is the first example of using AI to generate molecules for disinfectants. As an experimental chemist, I find it remarkable to see a machine help design new chemicals.”
Bill Wuest, Emory professor of chemistry and senior author of the study
“We built an effective feedback loop between AI research, computational biochemistry and experimental chemistry,” says Liang Zhao, Emory associate professor of computer science. “While we proved that our concept works to generate QACs, we also think that a broad range of scientific areas could benefit from it.”
Additional senior authors, whose labs contributed equally to the research, are: Amarda Shehu, a computational biochemist at George Mason University in Virginia; and Kevin Minbiole, an experimental chemist at Villanova University in Pennsylvania.
An arms race with microbes
Check the label on any antimicrobial cleaning product – from homes to hospitals – and you will most likely find QACs listed among the ingredients. QACs are cheap, simple to make and generally effective. As a result, they have remained at the vanguard of sanitizing everything from kitchen counters to operating-room floors for more than a century.
But while QACs are relatively unchanged, bacteria keep evolving – sometimes in ways that allow them to survive the onslaught of these cleaning agents. It’s a bit like an arms race, at the microscopic scale. And, lately, some microbes have started winning, becoming dangerous “superbugs” resistant to QACs.
Wuest and Minbiole, leading experts on the problem of rising antimicrobial…
