Introduction: STKE Focus Issue on Genomics

Abstract

This week's special issue of Science ( ) titled Unlocking the Genome takes a broad look at the genomics research and examines the state and promise of the field as it has evolved in the few short months since the much-heralded publication of the human genome sequences. This focus issue of the STKE highlights related material at STKE, some new and some already available on the site. The business end of any genome is really the proteins it encodes, and that is the focus of two new contributions to the STKE. A Protocol from Matter et al . ( ) gives detailed methods for expression cloning in mammalian cells. Expression cloning uses cultured cells to screen cDNAs to find sequences encoding proteins that produce a particular biological effect of interest. The author explains recent technical advances that allow improved construction of cDNA libraries, more efficient transfection of the cDNA into cells, and expression of large amounts of the encoded protein. In their Perspective, Ashman et al . ( ) assure us that It is accepted wisdom that the deluge of genomic and proteomic data will somehow lead to insights into biological complexity. They go on to help justify that belief by explaining some of the most fruitful of the current approaches to turning sequence data into insight into protein and biological function. Their focus is on understanding protein interaction networks. In Science , Baker and Sali ( ) discuss protein modeling from sequence information and Stevens et al . ( ) summarize the global efforts to enable full understanding of the three dimensional structures of proteins on a genome-wide scale. We encourage you to take advantage of this coordinated focus on Genomics here at STKE, in Science , at the Science Functional Genomics Web site ( ), and at our new Knowledge Environment, the Science of Aging (SAGE) KE ([sageke.sciencemag.org][1]) Featured in this Focus Issue on Genomics Related Resources at STKE [1]: http://sageke.sciencemag.org