Defensin SD2 anticancer peptide
A short protein fragment studied in the lab for its ability to fight cancer cells; experimental, not yet an approved drug.
A researcher, an agent, or an algorithm wrote down the sequence and picked a target to hit.
An AI model like OpenFold3 or AlphaFold built a 3D structure and scored how well it fits the binding site.
A second contributor repeated the computation on their own hardware and the scores matched.
Literature-extracted sequence peptide — synthesized for bioassay as documented in linked reference(s)
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Activity measured in linked reference(s) — IC50/MIC/cytotoxicity data
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Research directions for this peptide, selected from the current sources — hypotheses you can explore and model. None of it is proven yet; tap any one to see the full thinking.
Does SD2 attack cancer cells by grabbing onto a specific fat molecule on their surface rather than punching random holes in the membrane?
If true, this would explain why SD2 might spare healthy cells and point toward which cancer types it could treat most effectively, helping researchers focus development efforts.
Could SD2 also be effective against the fungal infections that commonly threaten cancer patients?
Cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy are highly vulnerable to fungal infections, and antifungal options are limited. A single peptide that fights both cancer and fungi could simplify treatment and protect vulnerable patients.
Could a short tail-end piece of SD2 do most of the anticancer work while the front part mainly aids stability?
If a smaller piece keeps most of the activity, chemists could make it more cheaply and it might reach tumors more easily, which would speed up development. This is a hypothesis based on how related plant defensins behave, not yet shown for SD2 itself.
Would substituting the three arginines for a mix of arginine and tryptophan make SD2 attack cancer cell membranes more effectively?
A more potent version could potentially work at lower doses, meaning less drug per patient and possibly fewer side effects. This is a design idea to test, not a confirmed improvement.
Is the main target of SD2 a lipid on the cancer cell surface rather than a specific protein?
If SD2 works largely on membrane lipids, researchers can prioritize membrane-composition studies over protein-receptor searches. Caution: the structure-prediction score cited (no modeled protein interface) does not by itself prove there is no protein target, and some plant defensins do use protein or lipid receptors, so this remains a question to test.
▸full evidence table1 metrics
| metric | value | tool |
|---|---|---|
| ranking score | 0.7622402310371399 | boltz-2 |
▸3-letter notation
▸recipeboltz-2 2.2.1
| parameter | value |
|---|---|
| model | boltz-2 2.2.1 |
| weights | — |
| hardware | vast_v100_32gb |
| mlx version | — |
| python | — |
| random seed | 1 |
| msa strategy | none_monomer |
| runtime | — |
| predicted by | — |
| predicted at | 2026-05-23 |
▸citationbibtex
@peptide{pep05215,
sequence = {NEMGGPLVVEARTCESQSHKFKGTCLSDTNCANVCHSERFSGGKCRGFRRRCFCTTHC},
target = {anticancer},
author = {peptidemodel},
year = {2026},
status = {bioassayed}
}