In silico

In silico is a term used in computational biology to describe experiments performed on computer or via computer simulation. The term is a play on Latin phrases used in biology such as in vivo, in vitro, and in situ, which mean in life, in glass, and in position, respectively. In silico experiments can be much cheaper, faster and less ethically complicated than experiments done in vivo or in vitro, as they don't involve living organisms.

Overview

The phrase in silico was coined in 1989 by Pedro Miramontes, a mathematician at UNAM, Mexico, to mean "performed on computer or via computer simulation." The term was introduced to express the distinction of computational or mathematical model studies from traditional experimental studies, in vivo, in vitro, and in situ.

Applications

In silico studies are now widely used in a variety of fields such as genomics, proteomics, pharmacology, drug discovery, and cell biology. For example, in pharmacology, potential drugs can be tested in silico to assess their potential therapeutic and side effects. Similarly, in genetics, in silico tools are used to predict the effects of mutations on protein function.

Limitations

While in silico studies can provide valuable insights, they also have limitations. The accuracy of in silico studies is dependent on the accuracy of the computational models used, which in turn depend on the accuracy of the biological knowledge used to create them. Therefore, in silico studies can never fully replace in vivo or in vitro studies.

See also

• Computational biology
• In vivo
• In vitro
• In situ
• Pharmacology
• Genomics
• Proteomics

References

In silico Resources
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