Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
1.3
PROTEIN NETWORKS
Andreas Wagner
University of New Mexico and The Santa Fe Institute,
Albuquerque, New Mexico
This introductory survey to protein networks and their biomedical applications has three
parts. First, I introduce some of the most promising and widely used experimental ap-
proaches to study protein expression on a genome-wide scale. Second, I introduce ex-
perimental approaches to identify physical protein interactions on a genome-wide scale.
Finally, I present some examples of how such network information might be profitably
used in medical applications.
1.
INTRODUCTION
Genome-wide approaches to study the living are poised to revolutionize
medicine in at least three areas: diagnosis, toxicology, and drug development.
The example of drug development illustrates vividly the important role that pro-
teins will play in this revolution. Not only are the functional products of most
genes proteins, the targets for the vast majority of known pharmaceuticals are
also proteins. To develop new drugs thus is to identify agents that can either
block or mimic the action of key proteins in an organism's or a cell's life cycle,
be it a pathogen, a cancerous cell, a cell necessary for an immune response or a
cell important in some aspect of regeneration. However, efficiency is only one
aspect of a good pharmaceutical, specificity being equally necessary. Ideally, a
drug should interact with its intended target (protein), and only with this target.
Address correspondence to: Andreas Wagner, Department of Biology, University of New Mexico,
167A Castetter Hall, Albuquerque, NM 817131-1091 (wagnera@unm.edu).
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