How ciliates manipulate their own DNA – A splendid example of natural computing

  • Authors:

  • David M. Prescott;Grzegorz Rozenberg

  • Affiliations:

  • University of Colorado, Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, Boulder, CO 80309-0347 USA;University of Colorado, Department of Computer Science, Boulder, CO 80309-0347 USA&semi/ Leiden Institute of Advanced Computer Science, Leiden University, 2333 CA Leiden, The Netherlands

  • Venue:
  • Natural Computing: an international journal
  • Year:
  • 2002

Quantified Score

Hi-index 0.00

Visualization

Abstract

DNA computing is a novel and vivid researcharea which is genuinely interdisciplinary –computer scientists and molecular scientistscollaborate to investigate the use of DNAmolecules for the purpose of computing. DNAcomputing in vivo is the investigation ofcomputations taking place naturally in a livingcell, with the goal of understandingcomputational properties of DNA molecules intheir native environment. Gene assembly inciliates (single cell organisms) is perhaps themost involved process of DNA manipulation yetknown in living organisms. The computationalnature of this process has attracted muchattention in recent years. The resultsobtained so far demonstrate that this processof gene assembly is a splendid example ofcomputing taking place in nature, i.e., NaturalComputing. Indeed, DNA computing in vivomay be far more widespread in nature than wecurrently recognize. This paper is a tutorialon (computational nature of the) gene assemblyin ciliates, which is intended for a broadaudience of researchers interested in NaturalComputing. In particular, no knowledge ofmolecular biology is assumed on the part of themotivated reader.