Recently, a mouse with diminished interferon (proteins made and released by host cells in response to the presence of pathogens such as viruses, bacteria, parasites or tumor cells) was identified in our laboratory, said Bruce Beutler, Regental Professor and Director, Center for Genetics of Host Defense, UT Southwestern Medical Center. “Because we had sequenced the genomic DNA of its grandfather, we knew that the mouse likely had a mutation in a gene coding for the protein kinase TBK1. Without any mapping, we determined the exact cause of the phenotype. In former times, before it was possible to routinely sequence the genome of these mice, we would have spent months and thousands of dollars arriving at this same conclusion. This is a hint of the speed and dexterity that advanced computing can provide. It permits us to exclude obvious causes of phenotype and concentrate on what is new. Our research would be impossible without enormous computational resources.
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