What is the difference between bacteria and supercomputers? The difference is that bacteria are more "advanced" because they have more circuits and stronger processing capabilities. All life is' calculating '. From individual cells that respond to chemical signals to complex organisms that navigate in specific environments, information processing is the core of life systems. After decades of experimentation, scientists have finally begun to collect cells, molecules, and even entire organisms to perform computational tasks for human purposes. Essentially, computers are just information processors, and people are increasingly realizing that nature possesses a wealth of these abilities. The most obvious example is the nervous system of complex organisms, which can process a large amount of data from the environment and "dictate" various complex behaviors. But even the smallest cells are filled with complex biomolecular pathways that respond to input signals, turning genes on and off, producing chemicals, or self-organizing. Ultimately, all incredible feats in life rely on the ability of DNA to store, replicate, and transmit genetic instructions. How to build a biological computer? Biological system has its own unique advantages: more compact, more energy efficient, self-sustaining and self-healing, and is particularly good at processing signals from nature. In the past 20 years, powerful cellular and molecular engineering tools have finally enabled people to take a step forward in building biocomputers. Christopher Voight, a biosyntheticist at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said that the core of the method is "biological circuit", similar to the electronic circuit in a computer. These circuits involve various biomolecular interactions to obtain inputs and process them to produce different outputs, just like their silicon counterparts. By editing the genetic instructions that support these processes, people can now reconnect these circuits to perform functions that nature never planned. In 2019, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology utilized CRISPR technology to construct a bioequivalent equivalent to a computer central processing unit (CPU). This CPU is inserted into a cell, where it regulates the activity of different genes in response to specially designed RNA sequences, enabling cells to implement logic gates similar to those in silicon computers. The Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics in India went further in 2021 to induce a group of Escherichia coli to calculate a simple maze solution. The circuit is distributed between several strains of Escherichia coli, each of which is designed to solve some problems. By sharing information, the circuit successfully achieved how to navigate through multiple mazes. Most Biological system are different from the binary logic of classical computers, and they will not solve problems step by step like computer chips. They are full of repetitive, strange feedback loops, and completely different processes running side by side at different speeds. Even weirder is that organisms' computing power can be completely detached from their natural environment. Scientists at Lund University in Sweden are experimenting with a completely different method of biological computing, using tiny protein filaments driven by Molecular motor to propel around a maze. The structure of the maze has been carefully designed, and the filaments can simultaneously explore all routes. This means that solving larger problems does not require more time
Edit：Hou Wenzhe Responsible editor：WeiZe
Source：Science and Technology Daily
Special statement: if the pictures and texts reproduced or quoted on this site infringe your legitimate rights and interests, please contact this site, and this site will correct and delete them in time. For copyright issues and website cooperation, please contact through outlook new era email：lwxsd@liaowanghn.com
Sci-Tech
Recommended Reading Change it 
Home
