Boffin builds first DNA-based computer

The first DNA-based computer, which is small enough to inject into the human body and could dramatically improve the detection and treatment of disease, has been built and tested in Israel.

The programmable DNA-based computer - made-up from a liquid of synthetic genes - has a capacity for one billion computations per second.

According to developers, the computer is designed to be injected into a patient's body. Once inside, the computer will seek out any diseased tissue and produce a drug to cure or treat it on the spot.

Dr Shapiro, mathematician at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel, who designed the computer three years ago, presented the successful results of the trial in today's edition of the science journal Nature.