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WHAT'S BIOINFORMATICS?
Published on December 7, 2001
Author: In the marriage of powerful supercomputers and scientific
research at the molecular level, some see a chance to cash in on a new
frontier. By STEPHEN WATSON - News Staff Reporter
© The Buffalo News Inc.
The medical community in recent years noticed that some particularly nasty infections were resisting not only penicillin, but even the strongest antibiotics available.
So they turned to the University at Buffalo's Center for Computational Research for help. Technicians entered biological data on an existing antibiotic's molecular structure into UB computers, creating an intricate 3-D model of the drug. By manipulating the drug's structure, they made a stronger version of the antibiotic that was unrecognizable to the bacteria -- and therefore successful in warding off infections, said Russ Miller, the center's director. This marriage of powerful supercomputers and scientific research at the molecular level is known as bioinformatics. Some say it may save Buffalo's economy and have profound benefits for residents. "It's going to change their lives dramatically," Miller said. "This is going to have an impact like you've never seen. You can have drugs tailor-made for you as an individual." To that end, academic, political and business leaders pin high hopes on a proposed state Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics. The center, to be located in Buffalo's medical corridor, would amplify current research being done at UB's computational research center and other institutions in the medical corridor. Estimates from UB suggest the center could generate 4,000 new jobs and $500 million in economic impact over five years. Gov. George E. Pataki, in Buffalo on Thursday to announce private investors backing Buffalo's center, said bioinformatics can be a major economic force. "It's an important step toward global leadership in the 21st century economy," the governor told reporters Thursday. Buffalo's is one of four Centers of Excellence being created statewide. The others are in Rochester, in Albany and on Long Island. Each focuses on a different emerging high-tech industry. There's also talk of New York City and Syracuse obtaining Centers of Excellence, although no announcements have been made. The Rochester, Long Island and Albany centers have each already received major private sponsorship and funding. Albany has a commitment of $160 million in private money, much of it from IBM. Kodak, Corning and Xerox have pledged $45 million to Rochester and promised to raise another $30 million. A collection of high-tech firms on Long Island in April pledged $40 million for the Stony Brook center. The partners estimated that they would raise $60 million more in federal, university and private money. In recent months, there had been concern that no major private funding had been announced for the UB center, but that concern melted Thursday with the governor's announcement that more than $150 million in private financing had been lined up. Pataki also announced that he would commit $50 million in state funds from next year's budget to the Buffalo project. That would be a major commitment from the state, which until now had included only $10 million in the current budget for all four centers and other state high-tech projects. The four centers are also hoping for federal money. The bioinformatics project relies on work melding the biological sciences with supercomputers. "It's really created a new frontier," said Bruce A. Holm, UB's senior associate vice president for health affairs. Biological scientists have had great success in mapping the human genome, an enterprise that has generated a tremendous amount of raw data that is difficult to assess and manipulate, Holm said. That's where supercomputers come into play, he said. By running volumes of scientific data through the computers, researchers can make great strides in molecular testing, medical research and other fields. Bioinformatics has real promise in moving ideas from the research lab to the production floor, Holm and other officials said. Holm noted that the work of the late Lawrence D. Jacobs, a UB neurologist, into the treatment of relapsing multiple sclerosis led to creation of Avonex, a drug that generates $1 billion per year for a Massachusetts drug company. Through the bioinformatics center, a local company would be better positioned to build on local research. Not every idea forged in the center would be on the scale of an Avonex, Holm said, "but one or two big hits makes a big difference in a community of this size." UB's Miller points to the success of the university's high-powered computing center as an example of what the bioinformatics center could bring to the area. UB has invested $2 million in its computing center, along with $6 million in donated equipment from private companies, Miller said. That initial investment has generated $40 million in research work by UB faculty who use the center's computers. One small high-tech firm, IBC Digital, has been able to double its work force thanks to its access to the computer center, Miller said. Through bioinformatics, Miller said, scientists could produce drugs tailored for individual use, down to the milligram. "Some of the work that's already been done in this area is clearly cutting-edge economic development," said Assembly Majority Leader Paul A. Tokasz, D-Cheektowaga. Buffalo must turn to new fields such as bioinformatics as the re-gion's economy is weaned off its dependence on manufacturing, Tokasz and others said. Holm said bioinformatics is a field uniquely suited for Buffalo to enter because it's in its infancy andnot yet dominated by any one region of the country. Too often, he said, Buffalo companies have entered "hot areas" of research too late, resulting in limit-ed commercial success. In bioinformatics, Holm said, "Everybody is on relatively equal footing." e-mail: swatson@buffnews.comJAMES P. McCOY/Buffalo News Russ Miller, director of
the University at Buffalo's Center for Computational Research, with a
UB supercomputer. UB's computing power is a key part of the new
project.
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