Is Information Technology the Future for Life Science?
In today's rapidly changing life science environment computing and information technology (IT) have revolutionised many aspects of research and business, facilitating advances in such areas as molecular biology, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals and healthcare. Researchers, academic institutions and commercial organisations have become increasingly reliant on IT to perform their compute-, data-intensive and mission critical work, accelerating the execution of many of the most time-sensitive programmes and enabling researchers to more effectively manage their workload.
The remarkable success of modern molecular biology could not have been possible without the tremendous advances in computing and IT. One of the most prominent projects in which this marriage between IT and life science has been witnessed is in the completion of the first human genome in April 2003. This landmark achievement would not have been reached so early had it not been for the advances in the IT industry.
But the amazing advances do not end with the Human Genome Project (HGP). As research institutions race to complete their work to meet publication and marketing demands, need for greater bandwidth, more powerful computers and more distributed computing methodologies in the research laboratories are compelling computer manufacturers and vendors to invent newer and better ways of addressing and fulfilling these research needs.
Companies such as IBM, Sun Microsystems, Intel, Hewlett Packard and Microsoft have made their mark in this demanding market by launching life science departments to address the growing need for computing in this industry. Areas where computing and IT is being widely utilised in the life science industry include molecular modelling, bioinformatics, medical imagining, diagnostics, prognostics, therapeutics, delivery of seamless patient care, drug discovery and development, bio-simulation, clinical informatics, tele-medicine and many more.
IBM has been paying special attention to the life science industry. In February 2004 it announced it's US$250 million healthcare initiative aimed at helping healthcare providers and payers manage costs, reduce medical errors, and deliver better patient care. A key focus of IBM's healthcare initiative is the development of consulting practices, information resources, and customised industry solutions to assist in the transformation of hospitals and small and medium sized healthcare providers. In June of this year it's Blue Gene/L prototype systems appeared on the Top 10 list of supercomputers. The Blue Gene project, which was announced in 1999, had two main goals: advancing our understanding of biologically important processes via large scale simulation, particularly the mechanisms behind protein folding; and exploring novel ideas in massively parallel machine architecture and software.
With the life science industry faced with the ever increasing problem of reducing research and development time and costs, researchers are now turning to grid computing as the most efficient and cost-effective way to increase productivity and bring drugs and therapies to the market more rapidly. At the 2004 Computerworld Honors Program the company United Devices was awarded the 21st-Century Achievement Award for visionary use of information technology in the category of Medicine. The company was nominated by IBM in recognition of its leading role in the creation of the world's largest public computer grid to aid in the search for drug candidates to combat smallpox, anthrax, and cancer. Sun Microsystems has also made its mark in the life science market with its bio-grid strategy aimed at allowing scientific organisations to come together and share computer power securely and effectively.
Another company which has demonstrated key focus in the life science industry is Apple with the manufacturing of its Mac OS-based systems, such as the Workgroup Cluster for Bioinformatics, specifically designed for the scientific arena. Apple's Mac OS X Server platforms were designed to meet the growing demands of scientists, as well as others, engaged in high-performance computing.
Computational Technologies in Modern Molecular Modelling and Bioinformatics
With the completion of the human genome, researchers are now armed with the basic blueprints of life and an urge to answer many of the questions underpinning the relationship between drugs and target proteins, to help in the development of new therapeutics. A variety of powerful molecular modelling software platforms and tools now exist to help researchers in their quest to identify and understand biochemical reactions, as well as their physiological and pathological roles, to enhance the drug discovery process. Such tools include Accelrys' DS ViewrPro, a powerful molecular visualisation tool and DS GeneAtlas, a tool which can be used to generate 3-dimensional information simply and quickly; RasMol, the classic freeware molecular graphics visualisation program developed by Roger Sayle; ProteinExplorer, a derivative of RasMol; Chime, a web-based 3-dimensions molecular structure viewer; and many others.
With modern molecular modelling technologies researchers can easily and successfully create, visualise and analyse molecular models from DNA to macromolecular proteins. These useful software tools provide research scientists with valuable information when predicting properties and behaviour of chemical and biological systems to make powerful deduction from research projects to more rapidly market their products.
Computational Technologies in the Medical Arena
Today's healthcare providers are constantly faced with tough challenges of improving the quality of care while reducing costs. To overcome this, many hospitals and healthcare institutions are looking to various computing and informatics technologies to help them manage and share information rapidly and securely. Information technology has become a valuable and popular tool in areas including diagnostics, prognostics, patient monitoring and care, electronic booking of patient records, e-prescribing, business management and medical education, and is playing a key role in identifying cost-effective treatments at a time when healthcare has become a top priority to all. To meet the growing needs of the healthcare and medical institutions computer manufacturers and IT organisations, for example, IBM, Microsoft, Sun, Intel and Siemens are developing cost-effective technologies and solutions to streamline and automate daily processes, reduce administrative costs and allow for better healthcare as the focus shifts from paperwork to patient.
The emergence of hand-held and mobile devices, can aid physicians and other healthcare providers to readily access patient's medical information from anywhere and at any time closing the information gaps surrounding care delivery. Such devices can help by eliminating paper-based medical records and improve quick access to patient records, clinical results, pharmaceutical databases and information concerning new treatments at the point-of-care. One area of healthcare where hand-held and mobile devices may be of great benefit is in the treatment of patients in remote places such as at the site of an accident or at home in mission-critical situation. Patient's medical information can be accessed with the touch of a button and updated at the point of care reducing the risk of medical errors and inefficiencies.
It cannot be disputed the impact and benefits computational software and information technologies have had in the growth and advances of the life science industry. Scientific organisations are increasingly turning to IT to help them solve their compute-intensive problems and reduce costs, reaching their research targets more quickly. In addition, technology manufacturers and vendors are providing more computer-based solutions to assist these organisations to combat such problems. With this in mind one can only conclude that IT is an ideal partner for the life science industry and where the future lies for the life science.