Proteomics-Leading the Postgenome Era
蛋白质组学—引领后基因组时代

Proteomics is the study of proteins and their interactions in a cell. Proteomics research first came to the fore with the introduction of two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. At the turn of the century, proteomics has increasingly applied to life science with the wide-spread introduction of mass spectrometry and protein chip. There is intense interest in applying proteomics to foster a better understanding of disease processes, develop new biomarkers for diagnosis and early detection of disease using proteomic patterns of body fluid samples. Clinical proteomics can directly change clinical practice, including diagnosis based on proteomic profiling as a complement to histopathology, individualized selection of therapeutic combinations that best target the entire disease-specific protein network, realtime assessment of therapeutic efficacy and toxicity, and rational modulation of therapy based on changes in the diseased protein network associated with drug resistance. Besides, proteomics is also applied to the discovery of new therapeutic targets and to the study of drug effects. In pace with the successful completion of the Human Genome Project (HGP), wave of proteomics raised the curtain on postgenome era. The study of proteomics provides mankind with a better understanding of disease and life. The development and technologies of proteomics, as well as its application on disease in the last decade are reviewed. Finally, the future prospective of proteomics is also addressed.