Folding@Home

Studying diseases implies understanding the underlying mechanisms which dictate their inception, development and subsequent evolution. One such mechanism, the protein folding (or actually, misfolding) can offer valuable insights into the occurrence of diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s or Huntington’s. The joined researchers from multiple universities have developed a tool that can make the average user an active participant in the first line of defense for such diseases. Folding@Home will basically allow your PC to use its computational power and run background processes for performing protein simulations which in turn, yield valuable data for the fight against such diseases.

The application features a simple setup process and all that users need to do in order to begin “work” is to define a client name and preferably select a corresponding team. Fortunately, the developers were kind enough to provide a detailed tutorial on their website.

Having defined a client, users will then be able to start running the folding simulations and an accompanying progress bar will serve as a status notifier.

A dedicated web-console which is deployed together with the app will allow one to select a preferred research field, namely a disease. One can also choose a user name, in order to be able to enter a point-earning plan.

Last but not least, a range of indicators will notify users of the available time for completing particular tasks, work unit details or even opportunities to join newer tasks, such as the ones currently unfolding against the novel Coronavirus.

Take your chance on altruism and allow part of your PC’s computing power to be used for the greater good of fighting diseases. This app will allow you to indirectly help researchers that are constantly fighting to find cures for common diseases, by providing you with a customizable computational client.