A new compound called enterololin suppresses a group of bacteria linked to Crohn’s disease flare-ups while leaving the rest of the microbiome largely intact. Researchers say it’s a step toward treatments designed to knock out only the bacteria causing trouble (Credits: Alex Shipps/MIT CSAIL, using assets from the researchers and Pexels).
CSAIL article
AI maps how a new antibiotic targets gut bacteria

For patients with inflammatory bowel disease, antibiotics can be a double-edged sword. The broad-spectrum drugs often prescribed for gut flare-ups can kill helpful microbes alongside harmful ones, sometimes worsening symptoms over time. When fighting gut inflammation, you don’t always want to bring a sledgehammer to a knife fight.

Fetal SMPL was trained on 20,000 MRI volumes to predict the location and size of a fetus and create sculpture-like 3D representations. The approach could enable doctors to precisely measure things like the size of a baby’s head and compare these metrics with healthy fetuses at the same age (Credits: Alex Shipps and Yingcheng Liu/MIT CSAIL).
CSAIL article
Machine-learning tool gives doctors a more detailed 3D picture of fetal health

For pregnant women, ultrasounds are an informative (and sometimes necessary) procedure. They typically produce two-dimensional black-and-white scans of fetuses that can reveal key insights, including biological sex, approximate size, and abnormalities like heart issues or cleft lip. If your doctor wants a closer look, they may use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), which uses magnetic fields to capture images that can be combined to create a 3D view of the fetus.

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Quadrature Tech Talk

The Quant-essential Qualities: Insider Insights for Thriving in Algorithmic Trading

Abstract: The world of quantitative trading is notoriously siloed, secretive, and intensely competitive. In this talk, Hanna and Dan will offer an insider's perspective on quant trading, sharing insights from our firm, and outline the key qualities you can cultivate to excel in the industry.

 

Daniel Goldbach, Quantitative Developer

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RBC Tech Talk

CSAIL Alliances & FinTechAI@CSAIL Board Member Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) Borealis AI Group will be at CSAIL on 9/22 in Kiva to deliver a technical talk from Dr. Greg Mori as well as connect with interested students for job opportunities. 

Talk Title: Foundation Model Challenges and Opportunities in Financial Services

Monday 9/22 in Kiva 32-G449 12-1pm EST.  Food will be served so please register for accurate food order!

A brain, a DNA strand, and binary code shine across a bluish, glowing background (Credit: Adobe Stock).
CSAIL article
Alzheimer’s erodes brain cells’ control of gene expression, undermining function, cognition

Most people recognize Alzheimer’s from its devastating symptoms such as memory loss, while new drugs target pathological aspects of disease manifestations, such as plaques of amyloid proteins. Now a sweeping new study in the Sept. 4 edition of Cell by MIT researchers shows the importance of understanding the disease as a battle over how well brain cells control the expression of their genes..  The study paints a high-resolution picture of a desperate struggle to maintain healthy gene expression and gene regulation where the consequences of failure or success are nothing less than the loss or preservation of cell function and cognition.

"VaxSeer" can predict dominant flu strains and identify the most protective vaccine candidates. The tool uses deep learning models trained on decades of viral sequences and lab test results to simulate how the flu virus might evolve and how the vaccines will respond (Image: Alex Gagne).
CSAIL article
MIT researchers develop AI tool to improve flu vaccine strain selection

Every year, global health experts are faced with a high-stakes decision: which flu strains should go into the next seasonal vaccine? The choice must be made months in advance, long before flu season even begins, and it can often feel like a race against the clock. If the selected strains match those that circulate, the vaccine will likely be highly effective. But if the prediction is off, protection can drop significantly, leading to (potentially preventable) illness and strain on healthcare systems.

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Latimer Futures Summit
Latimer Futures Summit

This event is hosted by Latimer Futures Summit. The event is at capacity and registration is now closed.

Welcome to the Latimer Futures Summit at MIT! Join us for a day filled with inspiring talks, interactive workshops, and networking opportunities with industry experts. Don't miss this chance to gain valuable insights into the future of technology, innovation, and entrepreneurship. Get ready to be inspired and connect with like-minded individuals shaping the future.

The first successful organ transplant was less than 75 years ago. Despite significant progress since then, many patients still fall through the gaps of what remains a complicated procedure (Credits: Alex Ouyang/MIT Jameel Clinic).
CSAIL article
MIT and Mass General Hospital researchers find disparities in organ allocation

In 1954, the world’s first successful organ transplant took place at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, in the form of a kidney donated from one twin to the other. At the time, a group of doctors and scientists had correctly theorized that the recipient’s antibodies were unlikely to reject an organ from an identical twin. One Nobel Prize and a few decades later, advancements in immune-suppressing drugs increased the viability of and demand for organ transplants. Today, over 1 million organ transplants have been performed in the United States, more than any other country in the world.

A small molecule binds to an OX2 protein. The new foundation model Boltz-2, developed by researchers at MIT and Recursion, achieves state-of-the-art performance in protein binding affinity prediction (Image: Courtesy of the researchers).
CSAIL article
MIT releases breakthrough protein-binding affinity model, expanding role of AI in drug discovery

Understanding how molecules interact is central to biology: from decoding how living organisms function to uncovering disease mechanisms and developing life-saving drugs. In recent years, models like AlphaFold changed our ability to predict the 3D structure of proteins, offering crucial insights into molecular shape and interaction. But while AlphaFold could show how molecules fit together, it couldn’t measure how strongly they bind — a key factor in understanding all aforementioned. That missing piece is where MIT’s new AI model, Boltz-2, comes in. 

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