Interactive visualization of large molecular systems with VTX: example with a minimal whole-cell model

TL;DR

VTX is a new open-source software that allows real-time visualization of large molecular systems, like a whole-cell model, using efficient rendering techniques.

Contribution

VTX introduces a meshless molecular graphics engine with adaptive level-of-detail rendering for efficient visualization of massive datasets.

Findings

VTX maintains consistent frame rates for a 114-million-bead model on standard hardware.

VTX uses less memory than VMD, PyMOL, and ChimeraX for large molecular datasets.

VTX includes features like SSAO and free-fly navigation for better exploration.

Abstract

VTX is an open-source molecular visualization software designed to overcome the scaling limitations of existing real-time molecular visualization software when handling massive molecular datasets. VTX employs a meshless molecular graphics engine utilizing impostor-based techniques and adaptive level-of-detail (LOD) rendering. This approach significantly reduces memory usage and enables real-time visualization and manipulation of large molecular systems. Performance benchmarks against VMD, PyMOL, and ChimeraX using a 114-million-bead Martini minimal whole-cell model demonstrate VTX’s efficiency, maintaining consistent frame rates even under interactive manipulation on standard computer hardware. VTX incorporates features such as Screen-Space Ambient Occlusion (SSAO) for enhanced depth perception and free-fly navigation for intuitive exploration of large molecular systems. VTX is open-source and free for non commercial use. Binaries for Windows and Ubuntu Linux are available at http://vtx.drugdesign.fr. VTX source code is available at https://github.com/VTX-Molecular-Visualization.

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