Computers may solve cancer mysteries

Computers can be used to untangle the intricacies of cancer biology, according to the researchers. Image: AlexRaths/iStockphoto Computers can be used to identify cancer treatment targets that wouldn't otherwise have been considered, according to research by an Australian team.Professor Mark Ragan from The University of Queensland's Institute for Molecular Bioscience (IMB), who led the research team, says they found that computational methods could be used to untangle the intricacies of cancer biology.“Cancer is not a disease caused by single genes. Rather, it is changes to the underlying gene regulatory networks that prompt tumours to grow and spread,” he said.“Understanding gene regulatory networks in healthy and diseased tissues is therefore critical to devising effective cancer treatments.“These networks involve vast numbers of interactions between different molecules, making conventional experimental approaches, which are focused on individual genes, too time-consuming,” he said.The findings came from the team's analysis of different computational methods of studying gene regulatory...

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