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Zero-shot design of drug-binding proteins via neural iterative selection−expansion

Benjamin Fry Kaia Slaw Nicholas F. Polizzi
Jun 2026 · Nature · Vol 656, pp. 237 - 249 · 7 citations · ⚡ 1 influential · 55 references
Medicine

TL;DR

This work used its strategy, termed neural iterative selection–expansion (NISE), to design proteins that, using different folds, specifically bind to two chemically distinct small-molecule drugs, exatecan and apixaban, with success rates of 100%, respectively.

Abstract

The design of proteins that bind to small molecules has been challenging because it requires simultaneous optimization of the protein sequence, protein structure and ligand conformation1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6–7. Current deep-learning algorithms have struggled to navigate this landscape, precluding the zero-shot design of binders. Here we show that by combining two neural networks in an iterative design algorithm, small-molecule binding proteins can be created from scratch with high accuracy. We trained a graph neural network—ligand-aware sequence engineering message-passing neural network (LASErMPNN)—to design compatible protein sequences for an input protein backbone and docked ligand. We paired LASErMPNN with a structure predictor that models a three-dimensional protein–ligand complex for an input protein sequence and ligand identity. The closed-loop iteration of these reciprocal networks optimized sequence–structure–ligand compatibility, and outperformed a comparable design loop using a physics-based energy function. We used our strategy, termed neural iterative selection–expansion (NISE), to design proteins that, using different folds, specifically bind to two chemically distinct small-molecule drugs, exatecan and apixaban, with success rates of 100% and 83%, respectively. The tightest NISE binders had nanomolar-to-picomolar affinities, surpassing those of the next-leading method by 70-fold for exatecan and nearly 10,000-fold for apixaban. LASErMPNN then suggested two amino-acid substitutions that improved the affinity of the tightest exatecan binder by 100-fold without any experimental input. The optimized binder protected the labile lactone ring of exatecan from hydrolysis for days. Our work describes a general recipe for using neural networks to automate the design of small-molecule binding proteins for applications in drug delivery, sensing and catalysis. By pairing two neural networks in an iterative optimization algorithm, small-molecule binding proteins can be designed from scratch with high accuracy, affinity and success rates, showing promise for applications in drug delivery and sequestration.

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