Joint Conference at UNAIR’s WUACD Explores the Impact of AI on Healthcare and Sustainable Development
The World University Association of Community Development (WUACD) at Universitas Airlangga joined efforts with the World Association for Sustainable Development (WASD) to convene an International Joint Conference on October 28, 2024. The event, held in Majapahit Hall at the ASEEC Building on the Dharmawangsa-B Campus, focused on the theme “Implementation of Artificial Intelligence in Digital Health to Support Sustainable Development.”
Keynote Address by Dr. Carina Citra Dewi Joe
A keynote address was delivered by Dr. Carina Citra Dewi Joe, a faculty member at Universitas Airlangga, who presented via Zoom on the transformative potential of artificial intelligence (AI) in the healthcare sector. Her presentation, titled “AI-Driven Innovations in Biotechnology: Transforming Healthcare,” highlighted the contributions of AI technologies such as AlphaProteo and AlphaFold to advancements in bio-AI research.
Dr. Joe emphasized the broad implications of AI technologies, indicating that “AI’s applications extend well beyond biology. It holds substantial potential to shape the future of healthcare.”
AlphaFold’s Contributions
The presentation featured a significant focus on AlphaFold, an AI technology developed by DeepMind. Dr. Joe detailed AlphaFold’s contributions to structural biology, noting its distinction as the top performer in the 13th Critical Assessment of Protein Structure Prediction (CASP13) competition in 2018. The subsequent release of AlphaFold’s second version in 2020 marked a milestone with its ability to predict protein structures with near-atomic precision. The latest version, AlphaFold 3, incorporates a diffusion model designed to improve the prediction and refinement of various biomolecular structures, including DNA, RNA, and ligands, thereby facilitating drug discovery processes. Dr. Joe expressed optimism regarding the advancements represented by AlphaFold 3.
Introduction of AlphaProteo
Additionally, Dr. Joe introduced AlphaProteo, another AI-driven model from Google DeepMind, which focuses on enhancing protein engineering and accelerating drug discovery. She explained that AlphaProteo extends the capabilities established by AlphaFold, targeting improvements in protein binder design and the ability to address complex biological problems.
“AlphaProteo utilizes deep learning techniques to predict protein-protein interactions and aims to refine binding accuracy for difficult targets by integrating extensive biological data,” Dr. Joe stated, highlighting its potential to promote collaboration between academia and industry in confronting emerging biological challenges.
Conclusion
The conference underscored AI’s pivotal role in shaping the future of healthcare and biotechnology, while also emphasizing the ongoing advancements in these innovative research domains.
Author: Febriana Putri Nur Aziizah
Editor: Edwin Fatahuddin
(Original report from Universitas Airlangga News)
