Alpha&ESMhFolds: An Updated Web Server for the Comparison, Evaluation, and Annotation of Human AlphaFold2 and ESMFold Models

Read full text
Authors: Manfredi Matteo, Vazzana Gabriele, Castrense Savojardo, Pier Luigi Martelli, Rita Casadio
Cited by: 2
References: 22

Abstract

• The DB is aligned with the latest releases of UniProt, PDB, Pfam, and AlphaFold DB. • We allow the comparison of pairs of models predicted with AlphaFold2 (v6) and ESMFold. • We functionally characterize the models by mapping Pfam entries on the structures. • A consensus of Quality Assessment methods allows the selection of the best model. The human reference proteome is routinely modeled with predictive tools such as AlphaFold2 and ESMFold. The two methods, based on different procedures, can behave differently depending on the experimental information available for a protein. We previously released a public database that stores pairs of predicted models, allowing us to obtain insights into the two methods and providing a resource where users can select the better model for downstream analysis. Here, we update the database after the latest release of UniProt (2025_04), we functionally characterise the models by mapping Pfam entries on the 3D structures, and we introduce external quality assessment metrics to evaluate and compare the models. We observe that, regardless of the quality and similarity of the predicted models, both AlphaFold2 and ESMFold converge with high pLDDT values in regions covered by Pfam entries. Alpha&ESMhFolds, including all its features, is freely available at https://alpha-esmhfolds.biocomp.unibo.it/ .

Fields of Study & Subjects

Advanced Proteomics Techniques and Applications Protein Structure and Dynamics Machine Learning in Bioinformatics

Publication details

Journal / source
Journal of Molecular Biology
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Volume
438
Issue
18
Pages
169663–169663
Publication date
23 January 2026
Language
EN