The professors, posed side-by-side for a photo in the entrance hall of the Institute of Mathematics, Statistics and Scientific Computing (Imecc) at Unicamp, form a true all-star team. Together, they have transformed the coldness of calculations and tables into practical actions and public policies that guide governments and save lives throughout Brazil. Forty years ago, inspired by the idea of "playing differently with numbers," they realized that an unlikely partnership between mathematicians and biologists would yield results and, even better, positive outcomes. Thus, they began to dedicate themselves to the field of biomathematics.
Biology is responsible for presenting the complex phenomena of life. Mathematics organizes them into measurable and analyzable patterns. The result is an interdisciplinary field that applies tools, models, and theories to study, simulate, and predict biological phenomena and systems. The goal here is to translate various aspects of life into equations and graphs, allowing us to test scenarios, analyze population dynamics, and understand the incidence and progression of diseases, for example.
In 1980, the idea of creating one of the first Brazilian groups in this research field emerged, still as a possibility. The course of action was established through undergraduate research projects with students, guided by Professor Rodney Bassanezi who, according to a newspaper report from that time, strictly followed the objective of "breaking down barriers that always made interactions between mathematicians and biologists difficult".
Starting in 1986, Bassanezi, in partnership with colleagues João Frederico Meyer, Laércio Vendite, Laécio Carvalho de Barros, Wilson Castro Ferreira Júnior, and Estevão Esmi Laureano – and more recently, the team was reinforced by Professor Jaqueline Godoy Mesquita – formed the group that is considered a benchmark in biomathematics in the country.
Another impetus for the work to advance was a series of lectures given at the University in June 1989 by the Israeli-American Lee Segel, a professor at the Weizmann Institute in Israel. He consolidated the path for the expansion of biomathematics at Unicamp. Segel himself defined himself as a "preacher in search of followers."
At that time, one of the research projects developed at the University observed the dynamics of cancerous tumor growth and its resistance to chemotherapeutic drugs. The work was done in partnership with the Prof. Dr. José Aristodemo Pinotti Women's Hospital – Caism. It was a continuation of research developed by Professor Laércio Vendite, also from Unicamp, in his doctoral thesis carried out in Trento, Italy.
Together with a group of Italian oncologists, Vendite developed a mathematical model to analyze the resistance acquired by tumor cells after a certain period of treatment with chemotherapy. Based on the initial size of the tumor, it was possible to determine what fraction of it became resistant to the drug. Through simulations of tumor growth rate, mutation rate, and destruction of cancer cells by the medication, the mathematical model determined when the treatment ceased to be effective and when it became necessary to change the drugs used, thus optimizing the treatment's effectiveness.
The synergy between two seemingly disparate areas caught the attention of the surrounding community and other students at the end of that decade. According to a newspaper report. Folha de S. PaulAccording to a study published in June 1989, of the 11 master's students admitted to the Department of Applied Mathematics at Unicamp, eight had chosen the field of biomathematics.
Over these four decades, the group has contributed to the development of mathematical models applied to real-world societal problems. The impact of epidemic spread, population dynamics, drug development, agricultural pest control, environmental pollution, predicting treatment efficacy, genetics and heredity, as well as applications in biological and medical systems are just a few examples. In this context, it is interesting to highlight that mathematics is not only used to "solve calculations," but also to identify patterns; make predictions; reduce uncertainties; and support decision-making.
fuzzy logic
Looking more closely at the work developed, it's important to mention the use of Fuzzy Logic in the surveys conducted by the Imecc team. It was introduced to the world in 1965 by the Azerbaijani-American engineer and computer scientist Lotfi Zadeh, who taught at the University of California, Berkeley (USA). The professor created a method that allowed computers to understand and process information based on human language and reasoning, which don't operate solely on absolute certainties. Fuzzy Logic allows a machine's analysis to evaluate and act with certain degrees of imprecision, just as the brain would. We are talking about something that, today, can be applied to the functioning of Artificial Intelligence.
In parallel, to reinforce the infinite possibilities of biomathematics, the group has been working together with the Faculty of Medical Sciences (FCM) on the diagnosis of prostate cancer. “Based on academic work, software was produced to predict the staging (A medical process that assesses the location, size, and extent of a disease in the body.") of the disease," explains Professor Barros.
Another study concerns the risks of forest fires, which are calculated from physical variables (altitude, forest typology, presence of roads and watercourses). This indicator involves Machine Learning models and the aforementioned Fuzzy Logic so that, based on real georeferenced data, it is possible to identify locations in a given region that have a higher propensity for the occurrence of forest fires, optimizing decision-making by the Public Authorities.
Professor Estevão Esmi, who has been with the group for a decade, also uses Fuzzy Logic in collaborative work with FCM, having developed everything from a system to aid in the diagnosis of endometriosis to issues involving ICUs for high-risk pregnant women. "Currently, I am working on developing a computer system based on machine learning to assist in the accurate creation of Autism Spectrum Disorder diagnoses," he says.
With so many areas of focus, Professor Barros mentions that, in addition to training a large number of people in this field over 40 years of biomathematics, one of the group's solid legacies is its teaching materials – books and a journal – which can be accessed via the following link: https://www.ime.unicamp.br/~biomat/revistas.htm.
Representativeness
Years passed and new members emerged, such as Professor Jaqueline Godoy Mesquita, the current president of the Brazilian Mathematical Society and the Latin American and Caribbean Mathematical Union. She is the only woman in the group so far. “Representation is extremely important. Recently, we had the approval of another woman in a competition in the field of Applied Mathematics, and I very much hope that she will join the group, further strengthening this female presence. Although we have observed important advances, there is still significant underrepresentation. The presence of women in research, leadership, and decision-making spaces is fundamental because it generates identification and inspires new generations,” she comments. “Biomathematics can, and should, also be a space of representation, showing young female students that they belong to this universe and can occupy any position they desire,” the professor reinforces.
Pandemic
Jaqueline Mesquita points out that, during the coronavirus pandemic, mathematical models were applied to support decisions related to quarantines, predict waves of contagion, and understand the dynamics of COVID-19 spread. “But biomathematics goes far beyond the field of health. Today, facing challenges such as climate change and global warming, it can also be a great ally in modeling environmental phenomena, studying impacts on ecosystems, predicting future scenarios, and contributing to sustainable solutions. It is an area that is directly connected to improving quality of life and addressing problems that affect the whole of society,” she notes.
future
According to Professor Laércio Vendite, biomathematics has evolved significantly over the last four decades thanks in part to technology. “Initially, many studies worked with more theoretical models and with quite limited computational capacity. Today, we have access to large volumes of data, much more powerful computers, and tools capable of analyzing extremely complex biological systems in real time,” he explains. “This evolution has brought biomathematics even closer to areas such as medicine, genetics, epidemiology, and neuroscience, expanding its practical applications in society,” he explains.
Colleague Laécio de Barros believes that the legacy of biomathematics is quite encouraging. “Like many areas of Applied Mathematics, we believe that ours will also naturally make use of new technologies in the pursuit of addressing issues related to life in general; potentially ranging from psychology to questions of environmental comfort. I mention these two because we have already been consulted by specialists in these areas about the possibility of assisting them in some way,” he says.
In this context, Artificial Intelligence has taken on an increasingly important role. AI allows, for example, the processing of considerable amounts of biological and medical data, the identification of patterns that are difficult to perceive using traditional methods, and the creation of biomathematical models that are more precise and faster. "Currently, biomathematics and Artificial Intelligence are working together in a highly integrated way in various research areas, especially in fields such as medical diagnosis, epidemic prediction, personalized medicine, and drug development," explains Vendite.
According to him, more than replacing classical mathematical models, AI emerges as a tool that expands analytical capacity and opens new possibilities for scientific research. The trend is for biomathematics to play an increasingly strategic role in the future, especially in areas that require prediction, analysis of large volumes of data, and rapid decision-making.
Personalized medicine
In healthcare, for example, the expectation is to advance in so-called "personalized medicine," where mathematical models can help indicate the most appropriate treatments for each patient, considering specific genetic and clinical characteristics.
There is also great potential in areas such as climate change, environmental preservation, sustainable agriculture, and the study of population aging.
“Ultimately, biomathematics tends to consolidate itself as a bridge between data and decisions. In an increasingly complex world, it offers tools to transform scattered information into useful knowledge for science and society,” Vendite points out.
Recently, IMECC hosted a scientific event in the field of biomathematics, bringing together researchers from various parts of the world, such as Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, the United States, Spain, India, Italy, Poland, Portugal, the Czech Republic, and Turkey. "This demonstrates not only the scientific quality developed here, but also Unicamp's ability to promote international connections and strengthen collaborations on a global scale," affirms Professor Jaqueline Mesquita, making it clear that she and her teammates continue to advance in the field of science, and rapidly.
Europe is the 'cradle'
Europe is the birthplace of the discipline, but it took the form we know today in the 1920s, with the independent development of predation equations by the Ukrainian-born biophysicist Alfred James Lotka and the Italian mathematician Vito Volterra. As a formal academic discipline, the first postgraduate course in biomathematics was started in 1947 in the United States, at the University of Chicago, by the Russian biophysicist Nicolas Rashevsky.
Conference
A conference held in the second half of May at the Institute of Mathematics, Statistics and Scientific Computing (Imecc) celebrated Martin Bohner, an internationally renowned mathematician and professor at the Missouri University of Science and Technology. Bohner is widely known for his pioneering role in the development of dynamical timescale equations, a theory that unifies differential and difference equations and has impacted research in various fields of knowledge.
Author of more than 350 articles and seven books, Bohner also held important academic leadership positions as editor of scientific journals and president of the International Society of Difference Equations. This conference celebrated his 60th birthday and honored a career marked by scientific excellence, collaboration, and profound contribution to the international mathematical community.
Applications of Mathematics
- Epidemiology: use of mathematical models to predict the spread of infectious diseases and plan vaccination or containment strategies;
- EcologyAnalysis of interactions between species, population growth dynamics, and preservation of endangered species;
- Genetics and Evolution: study of mutations, gene frequencies in populations over time, and pedigrees using probability and statistics;
- Biomedicine and Pharmacology: simulations of how medications spread through the body and calculation of the ideal dosage for treatments;
- Physiology: Mathematical modeling of the functioning of specific organs, such as the way blood flows in the circulatory system or the electrical impulses in the heart.
Source: Imecc
Cover Photo
