Great post, Madelyn!
They are solving the "code" for folding proteins that has been the holy grail of protein chemists ever since we recognized that,
1) Each protein has a distinct shape or conformation in its "native", active state, that,
2) Proteins spontaneously assume that shape when they are synthesized in the organism of origin and that,
3) Many (most) proteins can spontaneously refold into their native conformation after being "unfolded" by certain chemicals referred to as denaturants or chaotropes.
Solving this folding code will allow us to design proteins that assume a specific shape which allows them to "dock" into specific sites on other molecules to affect their biological activity.
This has great significance for the design of drugs that can modify/prevent the development of neurodegenerative diseases like PD, AD, ALS, Huntington's disease, etc.