Microarrays and mass spectrometry - The future of proteomics

Our ability to study thousands of genes simultaneously over the last few years owing not only to the development of DNA microarray technology, but also to large-scale yeast two-hybrid and other methods, has brought about a paradigmatic shift in biology. Armed with the complete sequences of several genomes including humans, more and more biomedical investigators are now interested in understanding the functions of gene products, or proteins, on a global scale. In this article, the promises and pitfalls of two methods used for proteomics studies - protein microarrays and mass spectrometry - towards achieving this goal are discussed.