PARALLEL NETWORK-BASED BIOCOMPUTATION

Bio4Comp, an EU-funded research project focuses on pushing the limit for what size of such problems can be practically solved.  We call our approach "network-based  biocomputation": The idea is that biomolecular machines, each only a few billionth of a meter (nanometers) in size, can solve problems by moving through a nanofabricated network of channels designed to represent a mathematical algorithm; an approach we termed “network-based biocomputation”. Whenever the biomolecules reach a junction in the network, they either add a number to the sum they are calculating or leave it out. That way, each biomolecule acts as a tiny computer with processor and memory. While an individual biomolecule is much slower than a current computer, they are self-assembling so that they can be used in large numbers, quickly adding up their computing power.  How this works is explained in the video by ColdFusions TV below. Members of the Bio4Comp team have recently demonstrated in a publication in PNAS, that this approach works not only in theory but also in practice. 

Research Article in PNAS: Parallel computation with molecular-motor-propelled agents in nanofabricated networks

Imagine a computer chip that runs on a few nanogram of biochemical fuel rather than kilowatts of electrical power. In the video below Heiner Linke, coordinator of Bio4Comp, explains how that works.