AI-Designed Antimicrobial Peptide Cocktails Tested via Cell-Free Protein Synthesis Sean Murphy · MAS.885 Spring 2026
Abstract Antimicrobial resistance is on track to cause more than 10 million deaths per year by 2050, and the discovery pipeline for new small-molecule antibiotics has slowed sharply over the past two decades. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are an attractive alternative class because they kill bacteria primarily by membrane disruption, a mechanism that is intrinsically harder for pathogens to evolve resistance against.