Proteomics and its Medicinal Research
Proteomics is a large study of proteome. A proteome is a set of proteins produced in an organism, system, or biological situation. For example, it can represent a proteome of a species (such as Homo sapiens) or an organ (such as the liver). Proteome is not constant. It varies from cell to cell and changes over time. To some degree, the proteome reflects the underlying transcriptome. However, protein activity (often measured by the kinetics of processes involving proteins) is regulated by many factors, in addition to the expression level of the relevant gene.
Proteomics is used to Research:
When and where proteins are expressed
Rates of protein production, degradation, and steady-state abundance
How proteins are modified (for example, post-translational modifications (PTMs) such as phosphorylation)
The movement of proteins between subcellular compartments
The involvement of proteins in metabolic pathways
How proteins interact with one another
Proteomics can provide significant biological information for many biological problems, such as:
Which proteins interact with a particular protein of interest (for example, the tumour suppressor protein p53)? (Human example)
Which proteins are localised to a subcellular compartment (for example, the mitochondrion)? (Human example)
Which proteins are involved in a biological process (for example, circadian rhythm)? (Human example)