The design of proteins and peptides involves very difficult search problems, both when exploring the vast space of possible conformationals, and when seeking optimal sequences in the similarly vast space of possible sequences.  In this talk, I will present my recent work, using advances in both machine learning and quantum computing, to push the boundaries in computational peptide design.

PROTACs (proteolysis targeting chimeras) are bifunctional molecules that induce protein ubiquitylation by an E3 ligase complex and subsequent degradation by the proteasome. We now introduce PHOTACs, which can be activated with the temporal and spatial precision that light provides, as modular method for the optical control of protein levels.