First complete computer model of an organism

A Whole-Cell Computational Model Predicts Phenotype from Genotype

• Jonathan R. Karr^1, 4, 
• Jayodita C. Sanghvi^2, 4, 
• Derek N. Macklin², 
• Miriam V. Gutschow², 
• Jared M. Jacobs², 
• Benjamin Bolival Jr.², 
• Nacyra Assad-Garcia³, 
• John I. Glass³, 
• Markus W. Covert^2,

First complete computer model of an organism

Mammoth effort produces complete computational model of the bacterium Mycoplasma genitalium, opening the door for future biological computer-aided design

July 20, 2012

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Mycoplasma genitalium (credit: J. Craig Venter Institute)

In a breakthrough effort for computational biology, Stanford University researchers have produced the world’s first complete computer model of an organism.

A team led by Stanford bioengineering Professor Markus Covert used data from more than 900 scientific papers to account for every molecular interaction that takes place in the life cycle of Mycoplasma genitalium — the world’s smallest free-living bacterium.

By encompassing the entirety of an organism in silicon, the paper fulfills a longstanding goal for the field. Not only does the model allow researchers to address questions that aren’t practical to examine otherwise, it represents a stepping stone towards the use of computer-aided design in bioengineering and medicine./.../