Protean

How to develop medical countermeasures against chemical threats

Imagine a future battlefield where chemical weapons are rendered ineffective, not by bulky protective gear alone, but by prophylactic medicines that neutralize the threat at the molecular level.

The Protean program is working to achieve this vision by fundamentally changing how we develop medical countermeasures against chemical threats. Current approaches focus on treating the symptoms of exposure or attempting to intercept the chemical before it reaches its target. 

Protean, however, aims to stop the poisoning at its source by engineering resilience into the very proteins that are targeted by these chemicals. This groundbreaking approach involves mapping the rapid, dynamic movements of key proteins in the body and designing interventions that restore their normal function even in the presence of toxic agents.