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Proteinmpnn Agent Skill

> (1) Designing sequences for RFdiffusion backbones, (2) Redesigning existing protein sequences, (3) Fixing specific residues while designing others, (4) Optimizing sequences for expression or stability, (5) Multi-state or negative design. For backbone generation, use rfdiffusion or bindcraft. For ligand-aware design, use ligandmpnn. For solubility optimization, use solublempnn.

3k tokens
context cost
the whole folder, loaded on every use
2
files
instructions only
0
copies elsewhere
how many repositories repackaged it
132
stars on the repo
on the repository, not the skill itself

Install

one command, takes just this skill from the repository
npx skills add https://github.com/BioTender-max/awesome-bio-agent-skills --skill proteinmpnn

What comes with it

3 008 bytes besides the instruction
references/temperature-guide.md

The instruction itself

28 sections, as written by the author

ProteinMPNN Sequence Design

Prerequisites

| Requirement | Minimum | Recommended |

|-------------|---------|-------------|

| Python | 3.8+ | 3.10 |

| CUDA | 11.0+ | 11.7+ |

| GPU VRAM | 8GB | 16GB (T4) |

| RAM | 8GB | 16GB |

How to run

> First time? See Installation Guide to set up Modal and biomodals.

git clone https://github.com/dauparas/ProteinMPNN.git
cd ProteinMPNN

python protein_mpnn_run.py \
  --pdb_path backbone.pdb \
  --out_folder output/ \
  --num_seq_per_target 16 \
  --sampling_temp "0.1"

GPU: T4 (16GB) sufficient | Time: ~50-100 sequences/minute

Option 2: Modal (via LigandMPNN wrapper)

cd biomodals
modal run modal_ligandmpnn.py \
  --pdb-path backbone.pdb \
  --num-seq-per-target 16

Note: LigandMPNN includes ProteinMPNN functionality.

Config Schema

Core Parameters

| Parameter | Default | Range | Description |

|-----------|---------|-------|-------------|

| --pdb_path | required | path | Single PDB input |

| --pdb_path_chains | all | A,B | Chains to design (comma-sep) |

| --out_folder | required | path | Output directory |

| --num_seq_per_target | 1 | 1-1000 | Sequences per structure |

| --sampling_temp | "0.1" | "0.0001-1.0" | Temperature (string!) |

| --seed | 0 | int | Random seed |

| --batch_size | 1 | 1-32 | Batch size |

Temperature Guide

0.1  -> Low diversity, high recovery (production)
0.2  -> Moderate diversity (default)
0.3  -> Higher diversity (exploration)
0.5+ -> Very diverse, lower quality

IMPORTANT: Temperature must be passed as a string, not float.

Common mistakes

Temperature Parameter

Correct:

--sampling_temp "0.1"    # String with quotes

Wrong:

--sampling_temp 0.1      # Float without quotes - may cause errors
--sampling_temp 0.1,0.2  # Multiple temps need proper format

Fixed Positions JSONL

Correct:

{"A": [1, 2, 3, 10, 11], "B": [5, 6]}

Wrong:

{"A": "1,2,3,10,11"}     # String instead of list
{A: [1, 2, 3]}           # Missing quotes on key
{"A": [1,2,3,]}          # Trailing comma

Chain Selection

Correct:

--pdb_path_chains A,B    # No spaces

Wrong:

--pdb_path_chains A, B   # Space after comma
--pdb_path_chains "A,B"  # Quotes may cause issues

Amino Acid Biases

# Bias toward certain AAs (positive = favor)
--bias_AA_jsonl '{"A": {"A": 1.5, "W": -2.0}}'

# Omit specific AAs globally
--omit_AAs "CM"  # No cysteine or methionine

# Per-position omission
--omit_AA_jsonl '{"A": {"1": "C", "2": "CM"}}'

Multi-Chain Design

# Design chains A and B together
--pdb_path_chains A,B

# Tie chains (same sequence)
--tied_positions_jsonl tied.jsonl

Variants Comparison

| Variant | Use Case | Key Difference |

|---------|----------|----------------|

| ProteinMPNN | General | Original model |

| SolubleMPNN | Expression | Trained on soluble proteins |

| LigandMPNN | Small molecules | Ligand-aware context |

Output format

output/
├── seqs/
│   └── backbone.fa          # FASTA sequences
└── backbone_pdb/
    └── backbone_0001.pdb    # PDBs with designed sequence

FASTA Header Format

>backbone_0001, score=1.234, global_score=1.234, seq_recovery=0.85
MKTAYIAKQRQISFVKSHFSRQLE...

Common workflows

Binder Sequence Design

python protein_mpnn_run.py \
  --pdb_path binder_backbone.pdb \
  --out_folder output/ \
  --num_seq_per_target 16 \
  --sampling_temp "0.1" \
  --pdb_path_chains B  # Design binder chain only

Interface Redesign

# Fix core, design interface
python protein_mpnn_run.py \
  --pdb_path complex.pdb \
  --fixed_positions_jsonl core_positions.jsonl \
  --num_seq_per_target 32

Multi-State Design

# Design for multiple conformations
python protein_mpnn_run.py \
  --pdb_path_multi state1.pdb,state2.pdb \
  --num_seq_per_target 16

Sample output

Successful run

$ python protein_mpnn_run.py --pdb_path backbone.pdb --out_folder output/ --num_seq_per_target 8
Loading model weights...
Designing sequences for backbone.pdb
Generated 8 sequences in 2.3 seconds

output/seqs/backbone.fa:
>backbone_0001, score=1.234, global_score=1.189, seq_recovery=0.82
MKTAYIAKQRQISFVKSHFSRQLEERGLTKE...
>backbone_0002, score=1.198, global_score=1.156, seq_recovery=0.79
MKTAYIAKQRQISFVKSQFSRQLDERGLTKE...

What good output looks like:

  • Score: 1.0-2.0 (lower = more confident)
  • Seq recovery: 0.3-0.6 for de novo, 0.7-0.9 for redesign
  • Diverse sequences (not all identical) when temp > 0.1

Decision tree

Should I use ProteinMPNN?
│
├─ Have a backbone structure?
│  ├─ Yes → Continue below
│  └─ No → Use RFdiffusion first
│
├─ What's in the binding site?
│  ├─ Nothing / protein only → ProteinMPNN ✓
│  ├─ Small molecule / ligand → Use LigandMPNN
│  └─ Metal / cofactor → Use LigandMPNN
│
├─ Priority?
│  ├─ Solubility/expression → Consider SolubleMPNN
│  ├─ Speed → ProteinMPNN ✓
│  └─ AF2 optimization → Consider ColabDesign
│
└─ Need fixed positions?
   ├─ Yes → Use --fixed_positions_jsonl
   └─ No → ProteinMPNN ✓ (design all)

Typical performance

| Campaign Size | Time (T4) | Cost (Modal) | Notes |

|---------------|-----------|--------------|-------|

| 100 backbones × 8 seq | 15-20 min | ~$2 | Standard |

| 500 backbones × 8 seq | 1-1.5h | ~$8 | Large campaign |

| 1000 backbones × 16 seq | 3-4h | ~$18 | Comprehensive |

Throughput: ~50-100 sequences/minute on T4 GPU.


Verify

grep -c "^>" output/seqs/*.fa  # Should match backbone_count × num_seq_per_target

Troubleshooting

Low sequence diversity: Increase sampling_temp to 0.2-0.3

Poor recovery: Decrease sampling_temp to 0.1

OOM errors: Reduce batch_size

Unwanted cysteines: Use --omit_AAs "C"

Error interpretation

| Error | Cause | Fix |

|-------|-------|-----|

| RuntimeError: CUDA out of memory | Long protein or large batch | Reduce batch_size or use larger GPU |

| KeyError: 'A' | Chain not in PDB | Check chain IDs in your PDB file |

| JSONDecodeError | Invalid JSONL format | Validate JSON syntax (see Common Mistakes) |

| IndexError: list index | Empty chain or residue list | Check PDB has atoms, not just HEADER |


Next: Structure prediction for validation → protein-qc for filtering.

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How to use it

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