|
SEPTEMBER 24, 2025
Teaching Machines to Fight Infectious Diseases
By Marie Rosenthal, MS
Artificial intelligence may be the hot, new, sexy term, but the subset of AI that has the most potential for improving the discovery of new antimicrobials, outbreak surveillance, diagnostic testing and other facets of managing infectious diseases is machine learning—teaching computers how to learn from and interpret large data sets.
AI is “the ability of computers to perform tasks that normally require humans,” explained Jonathan Stokes, PhD, a microbiologist and an assistant professor of biochemistry and biomedical sciences at McMaster University, in Hamilton, Ontario.
With machine learning (ML), the computer system “learns” from experience so it can undertake tasks without explicit instructions. Dr. Stokes, who is using ML to discover potential new antibiotics, said these software programs can improve surveillance and spot outbreaks earlier, help a microbiologist identify an unusual parasite, or help in the fight against antimicrobial resistance (AMR).
“Artificial intelligence broadly refers to methods that achieve human-level performance,” added César de la Fuente, PhD, the presidential associate professor at the University of Pennsylvania, in Philadelphia, where he directs the Machine Biology Group. An early pioneer in the field, Dr. de la Fuente has been using ML to identify preclinical antibiotic candidates for more than a decade. “We use machine learning models to accelerate antibiotic discovery—AI is the umbrella term; machine learning describes the specific data-driven methods.”
Continue reading... https://www.idse.net/Policy-Public-Health/Article/08-25/AI-Machine-Learning-Infectious-Diseases/78185
CONTACT
Marie Rosenthal
MRosenthal@McMahonmed.com
"Reproduced with permission - Infectious Disease Special Edition (IDSE)"
Infectious Disease Special Edition (IDSE)
Back to ...
Positively Positive - Living with HIV/AIDS:
HIV/AIDS News
For more HIV and AIDS News visit...
Positively Positive - Living with HIV/AIDS: HIV/AIDS News Archive
|
