Speakers : Dr. Sudip Das
Postdoctoral Researcher,
Boston University, USA
Topic : "Physics-Informed Machine Learning for Enzyme Catalysis and Beyond."
Day and Date : Tuesday, February 17, 2026
Time : 2:30 PM
Venue : Room no. 350, Chemistry Department Second floor, Annex
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Hosted by Prof. Gopalan Rajaraman
Abstract Enzymes are nature’s catalysts, driving chemical reactions that are essential for life.
However, understanding how enzymes function at the molecular level remains challenging
because an enzyme can bind its substrate in many different ways and proceed through multiple
reaction pathways, many of which are difficult to capture experimentally. As a result, studying
enzymatic activity often requires detailed, system-specific knowledge that is either unavailable
or difficult to obtain. Even when such information is accessible, modeling these complex
processes remains a major challenge.
To address these fundamental limitations, I will present a physics-informed machine learning
(ML) framework that integrates ML with state-of-the-art statistical physics and
quantum-mechanics (QM)–based methods. This approach enables an automated exploration of
catalytic mechanisms (1), dynamically identifies key transition states (2), and provides
quantitative insight into the thermodynamics and kinetics of the entire catalytic process (1-4).
The resulting framework is fast, cost-effective, comprehensive, and transferable, making it a
promising platform for further development and applications beyond traditional enzyme
catalysis.
In this context, I will briefly discuss three promising future directions. The first involves the
development of fast and accurate QM potentials to study challenging catalytic reactions
involving significant charge transfer and highly polarized transition states, such as
metalloenzyme catalysis with allostery, heterogeneous catalysis, and enzymatic plastic
degradation. The second direction focuses on developing a dynamic covalent docking platform
using explainable AI for high-throughput screening of covalent drug candidates targeting chronic
and infectious diseases. The final application concerns modeling entropy-driven assembly
processes with broad relevance to the materials and pharmaceutical industries, including
polymer aggregation and biomolecular condensation