Case Study 4 



High Performance Life Science: 

 From Molecules to MRI 



Computer modeling of the Purkinje neuron helps explain its branching network of nearly 200.000 

 connections to other brain cells. 



High performance computing and communica- 

 tions is providing valuable insights into the mys- 

 teries of human health and disease. These 

 sophisticated new techniques allow for unprece- 

 dented study and understanding of the remark- 

 able self-assembly of atoms into molecules, 

 molecules into cells, cells into tissues, and organ 

 systems into the complete organisms that consti- 

 tute humanity itself. Important new medical 

 knowledge and new diagnostic tools have result- 

 ed from the HPCC Program. 



At the molecular level, supercomputing and sci- 

 entific visualization have provided valuable 

 insights into the molecular basis of asthma. 

 Corporate scientists at Eli Lilly collaborated 

 with visualization specialists at the National 

 Center for Supercomputer Applications to model 

 the three-dimensional molecular motions of 

 leukotrienes, naturally occurring "messenger 

 molecules" that induce the lungs to become stiff 

 and inflamed. With the goal of designing new 

 medicines to block the leukotriene receptor in 

 the lungs, these researchers used supercomputers 



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