RAPID ADVANCES IN synthetic biology are enabling the radical reengineering of biological systems through genetic manipulation. Further revolutionary advances will be enabled by a deeper understanding of the physics employed by living systems to achieve particular functions. At a molecular level, such functions include molecular recognition, i.e., how and why two molecules bind to one another. One of the most prominent challenges in biomolecular theory and computation is the creation of simple, accurate models of these physics that can be employed in inverse design methodologies similar to those used in other areas of engineering; such methodologies are important for the development of complex synthetic systems with well-understood properties, because they allow engineers to focus on important functional specifications rather than on the design space itself. The electronic design automation (EDA) community possesses broad expertise in computational physics and the mathematics of engineering design, which raises the exciting possibility that EDA may play enabling roles in the development of advanced design tools for biomolecules.
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