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The field of molecular computing came to prominence in 1994 when Len Adleman described a DNA computer based on PCR (Science, 266:1021–4). Such computers could be useful for solving particular problems but are fairly inflexible. "The main problem is that PCR can amplify the wrong DNA sequences, so errors can build up and large useful computations are difficult to perform," says Thomas Schneider of the National Cancer Institute's Laboratory of Experimental and Computational Biology.Schneider

Bioinformatics researchers who perform alignments of long protein sequences face a difficult choice: They can get accurate results in hours (sometimes days), or quick results if they're willing to sacrifice accuracy. Now, Robert C. Edgar, an independent researcher in Mill Valley, Calif., has an alternative: a sequencing algorithm that delivers both high accuracy and speed. Edgar calls his new algorithm MUSCLE (multiple sequence comparison by log expectation).MUSCLE uses a log expectation score t

Study is important in understanding transformation of monomers into polymers

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Senators skip meeting on potential ways to improve $5.6 billion US biodefense program

Nobel Laureate who played a key role in the elucidation of the double helix was 88

Ciechanover, Hershko, and Rose awarded for discovery of ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis

A virtual stock market for trading on Nobel Prize candidates missed medicine winners altogether

The third effort this year to recruit foreign researchers is launched by the Helmholtz Association

Prize in Physiology or Medicine awarded to Axel and Buck for research into the sense of smell

At their final meeting, EU commissioner's life science advisors warn about US dominance

Agreement hailed as a model for ethnobotany projects