Bio-Computers : Will Lead The Revolution in Our Biology
An attempt to make living cells perform work now done by chips.
Bio computers use systems of biologically derived molecules — such as DNA and proteins — to perform computational calculations. The development of biocomputers has been made possible by the expanding new science of nanobiotechnology. The biological computer is an implantable device that is mainly used for tasks like monitoring the body’s activities or inducing therapeutic effects, all at the molecular or cellular level.
The term nanobiotechnology can be defined as any type of technology that uses both nano-scale materials, i.e. materials having characteristic dimensions of 1–100 nanometers, as well as biologically based materials. A restrictive definition views nanobiotechnology more specifically as the design and engineering of proteins that can then be assembled into larger, functional structures so that they interact that can ultimately result in the computational functionality of a computer.
Biocomputing can turn living organisms into computational systems which simply means “one who calculates”, and with no electronics required.
Biological computers are types of microcomputers and a kind of biosensors that are specifically designed to be used for medical applications. This could enable a system of biosensors that has the ability to detect or target specific types of cells that could be found in the patient’s body which could be used to carry out or perform target-specific medicinal operations.
The researchers believe that the complexity of the structure of biological molecules could allow Bio- Computers to outperform from their electronic counterparts in future.
DNA was recognized as the most important molecule of living nature. The ability to store billions of data is an important feature of the DNA. The silicon chip is far behind when it comes to storage capacity and a single unit of DNA can store as much information as 1 trillion of data. While in biological computing CPU is replaced by DNA , the cell is considered as a computational system and its program resides in DNA.
And now, a group of scientists are working to expand the field of computers to include cells, animals, and other living organisms. Some of their experiments are highly theoretical; others represent the first steps toward usable biological computers. All are attempts to make life perform work now done by chips and circuit boards.
Last year, Swiss bioengineers announced that they had programmed human cells to do binary addition or subtraction. They genetically engineered the cells with an elaborate circuit of genes that turn one another on or off. The cells can process two inputs added to their dish and display an answer.
Experts feel that one advantage of biocomputers may be that they can function in places that conventional electronics can’t such as computing in harsh environments like the bottom of the ocean, the human body, or on another planet where our computers may not survive, and Life forms could thrive in settings where silicon chips might melt, freeze, or disintegrate.
Scientists believe that cells could be programmed into “smart cell implants” that sense health problems in the human body and administer tailored therapies. For example, a patient with a high risk of breast cancer could receive an implant that would recognize cancer-indicating molecules and produce proteins to kill the cells making them.
A team from ETH Zurich and the University of Basel are making headways on constructing biocomputers and are in the process of making their most advanced system to date. Using nine different cell populations assembled into 3D cultures, the team of synthetic biologists has managed to get them to behave like a very simple electronic computational circuit. The electrical wiring and signaling are replaced them with chemical inputs, and built a living computer that responds to incoming data and process it using elementary logic gates.
But Israeli researchers are working on tiny nano-computers that could do the job of Bio-computers. They envision tiny machines made of biomolecules that autonomously dig through the body looking for disease, computing a diagnosis and delivering drugs all at the same time. It’s a long way off, but they’re making progress.
The idea is to someday create stream of biomolecular nano-computers that can autonomously and continuously patrol our bodies for the signs of disease. And with more and better computation, the biomachines could also deliver the first round of preventative drugs to the site of growing disease, acting as a first line of defense against infection.
Similar to nano-robots, the expectation is that bio-computers will be inoculated into the human body to perform complex tasks, for instance sensing and monitoring the status of organs or repairing tissues and organs in real time.
The implantable biological computer is a device which could be used in various medical applications where intercellular evaluation and treatment are needed. The main advantage of this technology over others is that a doctor can focus on or find and treat only damaged or diseased cells. Selective cell treatment is made possible. Bio-computers made of RNA strands might eventually serve as basis for producing biofuels from cells, or to control “smart drugs” that medicate only under certain conditions.
Of course, all this is few years or decades away. The idea that of nanomachines — even ones constructed of biomolecules — swimming our bloodstreams loaded up with drug payloads is a bit worrying. What if they malfunction or misdiagnose? What if they accidentally release too much of a drug at the wrong place, or by mistake mix the wrong drugs causing a harmful pharmaceutical drink?
Biocomputation is a developing future research field and Of course, all this is years or a decade away. It’s incredibly difficult to engineer a system like this, because biological matter is far more intricate than silicon chips and copper circuitry. If efforts like this continue, we can expect to see implantable, living computers within animals — those perfectly unifying with their own biology — in the near future.
Bio-computers are of a world in which biomolecular systems will be used to diagnose diseases and create “designer” cell functions. Also biocomputers are man-made biological networks whose goal is to probe and control biological cells and organisms, and It’s understandable that a brave new world is emerging in time to come.
