Core Insights - The academic report by Yan Ning at Shanghai Jiao Tong University discusses the relationship between AI and scientific research, emphasizing a new paradigm in biological discovery led by structural insights [1][19]. Research Focus - Yan Ning's initial goal in establishing her lab in 2007 was to produce results that could be included in textbooks, focusing on glucose transport proteins and sodium ion channels as primary research areas [2][5]. - The research on glucose transport proteins (GLUTs) has successfully reached publication in textbooks, with the next target being sodium ion channels, particularly the Nav1.7 subtype, which is linked to pain perception [5][10]. Technological Advancements - The advent of cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) has revolutionized the ability to analyze protein structures, achieving resolutions as high as 1 Å, which allows for detailed structural analysis previously only possible with X-ray crystallography [6][8]. - The development of AI tools, such as Alphafold, is being integrated into research, although current predictions from these tools are not yet sufficiently accurate for the desired conformations of proteins [8][20]. New Research Paradigms - The research approach is shifting from a problem-oriented methodology to an observation-driven paradigm, allowing for the discovery of new molecular structures, including unique sugar fibers that may have applications in carbon neutrality and material science [11][14]. - The introduction of a new algorithm named Ahaha aims to enhance the efficiency of determining the absolute chirality of sugar fibers in cryo-EM images, showcasing the integration of AI in structural biology [16][18]. AI Integration - AI is seen as a tool for empowerment in scientific research, facilitating the analysis of large datasets generated by cryo-EM and enabling the development of models for sugar structures [19][21]. - The collaboration between biology and AI is expected to lead to significant advancements in both fields, with potential implications for the future design of AI hardware inspired by biological structures [21].