Replies

• 1

  Jose Manuel Otero

  25 October 2008 | 18:31

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  Hi Nev – thanks for the discussion point. I must admit, I have never really heard the difference between “Systems” and “System” considered, although in the context you present it, it is certainly feasible that there could be different meanings.

  The field of biotechnology, almost exclusively, refers to Systems Biology. Systems Biology has taken on many meanings, but as recently discussed at the International Conference on Systems Biology 2008 (www.icsb-2008.org, Goteborg, Sweden), a common definition cited is:

  An approach to biological research that requires quantitative and analytical integration of numerous data sets of specific biological parts that are integrated and function within a larger matrix, and consequently, their characterization in a systems fashion is required to fully understand the behavior of the larger biological entity.

  There are of course many articles detailing definitions of these terms, but I think most would agree to the above statement.

  As an aside, I can say that the field has also lost a bit of control with respect to terminology. I remember when I was studying chemical engineering, and the following terms all emerged within 1-2 years of each other:

  biomedical engineering
  biological engineering
  bioengineering
  biotechnological engineering
  biotechnology

  With the exception of biomedical engineering, are there really differences between the above terms? Probably not…

  And, if you were to consult with most microbial and cellular physiologists, they would balk at the idea that “systems biology” is now a novel approach. There are reports from the 1920s, when cellular physiology was actively being pursued (Dr. Krebs discovered and detailed the citric acid cycle during this time period, now referred to as the Krebs cycle) that if you read them today, would be called “systems biology”. People have been doing this for a long time; however, what has perhaps changed is the informatics/quantitative approach – the computational power/knowledge available today enables “systems” and integration to occur at a much larger scale – scales that will be required to understand cellular function.

  All right, I’ve slightly deterred from the original question, but hopefully it provides an opinion worthy of consideration…

  Cheers everyone,
  Manny

• 2

  Maxine Clarke

  25 October 2008 | 21:13

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  I don’t think I’ve heard the term “system” biology either. When I did a physiology degree in the Dark Ages, the “buzz concepts” were negative and positive feedback of systems. The phrase “systems biology” had not been invented. Nowadays, one does not hear the term “physiology” as much as then, reciprocally.