systems biology

Systems biology is the computational and mathematical analysis and modeling of complex biological systems. It is a biology-based interdisciplinary field of study that focuses on complex interactions within biological systems, using a holistic approach (holism instead of the more traditional reductionism) to biological research. This multifaceted research domain necessitates the collaborative efforts of chemists, biologists, mathematicians, physicists, and engineers to decipher the biology of intricate living systems by merging various quantitative molecular measurements with carefully constructed mathematical models. It represents a comprehensive method for comprehending the complex relationships within biological systems. In contrast to conventional biological studies that typically center on isolated elements, systems biology seeks to combine different biological data to create models that illustrate and elucidate the dynamic interactions within a system. This methodology is essential for understanding the complex networks of genes, proteins, and metabolites that influence cellular activities and the traits of organisms.  One of the aims of systems biology is to model and discover emergent properties, of cells, tissues and organisms functioning as a system whose theoretical description is only possible using techniques of systems biology. By exploring how function emerges from dynamic interactions, systems biology bridges the gaps that exist between molecules and physiological processes.

As a paradigm, systems biology is usually defined in antithesis to the so-called reductionist paradigm (biological organisation), although it is consistent with the scientific method. The distinction between the two paradigms is referred to in these quotations: "the reductionist approach has successfully identified most of the components and many of the interactions but, unfortunately, offers no convincing concepts or methods to understand how system properties emerge ... the pluralism of causes and effects in biological networks is better addressed by observing, through quantitative measures, multiple components simultaneously and by rigorous data integration with mathematical models." (Sauer et al.) "Systems biology ... is about putting together rather than taking apart, integration rather than reduction. It requires that we develop ways of thinking about integration that are as rigorous as our reductionist programmes, but different. ... It means changing our philosophy, in the full sense of the term." (Denis Noble)