Using Blender for molecular animation and scientific representation

Zoppè Monica, Yuri Porozov, Raluca Andrei, Stefano Cianchetta, Maria Francesca Zini, Tiziana Loni, Claudia Caudai, Marco Callieri

DNA spiral  NMR  tiny scale 

The inside of a cell is a nanoworld in which life happens at tiny scale and high speed: hundreds of protein characters (minute as ants or large as elephants) play their roles in several different and fascinating environments, as varied as forest and desert, ocean and metropolis. Biologists have revealed the events of inner life using experimental quantitative and qualitative techniques and describe them in (difficult) scientific reports. We want to bring the beauty of biology to everyone's reach, using Blender in a rigorous but at the same time creative way. We have produced scripts to import crystallographic and NMR information from scientific databases, and are in the process of developing algorithms to obtain animations from still (3D) images. We also intend to use creative renderings in order to convey information about the physical and chemical properties of the subcellular environments and of the surface of each component in the cell. Our work has the primary aim of enabling scientists to observe directly the objects of their study, by showing the kinetics and conformational changes as animations, but it can be of great value for teaching, for the spread of scientific knowledge and thinking, and provide artists with inspiration as representation of life, well beyond the DNA spiral.