Biology can integrate with Computing

It is time to understand how Biology can integrate with new age computing. It is about in-depth understanding in the field of computational and systems biology and represents a synthesis of ideas and approaches from the life sciences, physical sciences, computer science, and engineering.

Recent advances in biology, including the human genome project and massively parallel approaches to probing biological samples, have created new opportunities to understand biological problems from a systems perspective.

Systems modelling and design are well established in engineering disciplines but are newer in biology. Advances in computational and systems biology require multidisciplinary teams with skill in applying principles and tools from engineering and computer science to solve problems in biology and medicine.

Experts say that when Biology integrates with computing then a unique field creates that is computational biology, it has emerged at the intersection of biology and computer science, with the aim of developing computational tools and techniques to analyse and understand biological data.

Biology can be integrated with computing like:

Bioinformatics: This is a field that combines biology, computer science, and information technology to develop tools and methods for managing and analyzing large biological datasets, such as DNA sequences and protein structures.

Systems biology: This field uses computational models to study complex biological systems, such as cellular networks and metabolic pathways.

Synthetic biology: This is an interdisciplinary field that combines biology, engineering, and computer science to design and build new biological systems with specific functions.

Computational genomics: This field uses computational methods to analyse and interpret genomic data, such as gene expression and DNA sequence variations.

Machine learning: This is a subset of artificial intelligence that uses algorithms to learn patterns in data and make predictions or decisions. It has been applied in biology to analyse large datasets and identify patterns or relationships that may be difficult for humans to detect.

Going forward, the integration of biology and computing has the potential to revolutionize our understanding of the natural world, as well as to develop new technologies and applications in fields such as medicine, biotechnology, and environmental science.

S Mohini Ratna, Editor, VARINDIA