Proteins are the second-most abundant substances in the body, next to water. They are the fundamental building blocks of the body, essential for the growth and repair of internal organs, blood, muscles, skin, and the formation of antibodies, enzymes, and hormones. But they are also essential components of bacteria, viruses, and other organisms that can harm the body. Even a slight change in that process can turn the protein into a disease. Another endeavor, the Human Genome Project, is mapping the sequence of genes in the human body.
Genes determine how amino acids fold into proteins.
The genome project will make it possible to find the sequence of amino acids in a particular protein, but learning how those amino acids fold into the protein will help determine its function . That's the key. All the computer's power, working 24 hours a day for a full year, will be needed to unravel this folding process. The number of possible three-dimensional shapes for a protein is greater than the number of atoms in the universe. The understanding of this process could give greater insight into how viruses and bacteria work, perhaps leading to the defeat of infectious disease like HIV, hepatitis, and the common cold.