Professor Zaida Luthey-Schulten and Colleagues Build Computer Model that Accurately Simulates Behavior of Cells

Date
12/31/11

Researchers have built a computer model of the crowded interior of a bacterial cell that – in a test of its response to sugar in its environment – accurately simulates the behavior of living cells.

Using data supplied by researchers at the Max Planck Institute, University of Illinois postdoctoral researcher Elijah Roberts and chemistry professor Zaida Luthey-Schulten built a computer model of a bacterial cell that accurately simulates the behavior of actual cells.

The new model is only a first step toward an accurate simulation of a whole working cell, the researchers said. The development of better models will rely on the work of those conducting research on actual cells. Their data provide the framework for improving computer models, Luthey-Schulten said, and offer a real-world test of the in silico cells’ ability to recreate the behavior of living cells.

For the full UI News Bureau article about the research, please click here.

 

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