Foldit is an atypical videogame, since it is born from an idea of a scientist to counteract viral infections. Its task is to propose puzzles to the players that must solve, to find a protein that serves to mitigate the effects of a virus. Foldit, as such, is not a game that anyone can play, despite being free, since it requires certain medical knowledge and more than "fun" it focuses on education and simulation of ideas that could end up being useful. These successful ideas (those that complete the puzzle), are just tested in a real laboratory, to see if they are indeed a solution.
Launched in 2008 as a project of the University of Washington, Foldit has received an update with a new puzzle, the theme of fashion and the concern of many, the coronavirus. Known as COVID-19 It is one of the puzzles now present. Its creators explain what they are looking for through the game:
«Coronaviruses show a" peak "protein on their surface, which binds strongly to a receptor protein that is found on the surface of human cells»explains the puzzle report. «Once the coronavirus peak binds to the human receptor, the virus can infect the human cell and replicate. In recent weeks, researchers have determined the structure of the coronavirus peak protein 2019 and how it binds to human receptors. If we can design a protein that binds to this coronavirus peak protein, it could be used to block interaction with human cells and stop infection! »
«We want to give Foldit players the opportunity to design proteins that can bind to peak protein and prevent infection »Foldit scientist Brian Koepnick explained in a video about the update, while pointing out that it might be a while before we see a solution that works. «We want to emphasize that, Like all the research we do, laboratory tests take time to see if these molecules are safe and effective against coronaviruses ».
So far, the highest solutions accumulate 16,780 points and belong to a group called Go Science and a user called toshiue. Due to the announcement made on Twitter and the impact generated, game servers have suffered recent falls, although the developers are working on keeping it stable.
Today we're calling on YOU to help design antiviral proteins against #coronavirus:https://t.co/ecqJmpXaj8
The most promising solutions will be manufactured & tested at the Institute for Protein Design (@UWproteindesign) in Seattle. #CitizenScience #COVID # COVID2019 #citsci pic.twitter.com/TsknpmwCyN
– Foldit (@Foldit) February 28, 2020
If you are interested in participating and see that you can contribute something, you can access the game website through this link and thus download it to your computer. Obviously do not expect a game that moves through customers like Steam or Epic Games Store, since it is something more homemade and not entertainment oriented. Who knows if from Foldit there is a solution to eradication or at least prevention of coronavirus.
About COVID-19 we recommend that follow information on official channels, such as the Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization. On those issues, they are the experts.
