Contemporary Proteomics Research
We are only just starting to value the great power and limitations of the genomics revolution, yet hard on its heels proteomics promises an even more revolutionary shift of biological and medical research. Encoded proteins carry out most biological functions, and to interpret how cells act, one must survey what proteins are present, how they interact with each other and what they do.
The term proteome defines the total protein complement in a given cell, tissue or being. In its wider sense, proteomics research also assesses protein activities, modifications and localization, and interactions of proteins in complexes. It is very much a technology-driven endeavor, and this aggregation of reviews reflects the advancement made and next developments required to discover proteins and protein complexes in biological samples comprehensively and quantitatively with both high sensitivity and fidelity.
By perusing world-wide patterns of protein content and function and how these change during evolution or in reaction to disease, proteomics research is poised to advance our understanding of systems-level cellular conduct. Clinical inquiry also hopes to gain from proteomics by both the recognition of new drug targets and the growth of new diagnostic markers.
Like genomics, the absolute scale of proteomics research makes it a community endeavor with the Human Proteome Organisation (HUPO) performing an significant function in coordinating proteomics projects world-wide. The wealth of data produced poses challenges for data management, and necessitates publicly approachable databases that use agreed standards to report protein information, allowing data comparison and consolidation. moreover, the expense and scale of proteomics technologies restricts their access, and solutions must be found that permit the widespread use of proteomics tools. In this intent, in a comment published in today's issue of Nature , Ruedi Aebersold proposes a community-wide scheme that could assist switching proteomics research towards a 'browsing mode' of probing through existing data.