Julia Zeitlinger, a professor at the Stowers Institute, is leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to decode the complex genome of the fruit fly, Drosophila. With 180 million DNA letters, she studies transcription factors (TFs) that regulate gene expression, likening their binding sites to contextual words in a linguistic framework. This led to the development of ChIP-nexus, a technique that maps TF binding sites with high precision. In collaboration with AI researchers, Zeitlinger created BPNet, a neural network that predicts genome-wide links between DNA sequences and TF binding patterns. This innovative tool has expedited research, allowing scientists to identify global patterns in gene expression that were previously elusive. As a pioneer in integrating AI within biological research, Zeitlinger emphasizes the importance of balancing advancements with discernment to ensure quality. Moving forward, she aims to apply AI’s capabilities to the human genome, potentially unlocking insights into diseases like cancer and diabetes.
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