The researchers then bring other proteins into contact with them. If the combination turns on a gene, they know that the two proteins involved interact inside a cell. What is more, the interaction provides clues to the function of the proteins in vital processes such as cell reproduction. If the proteins don't interact, nothing happens. If they do, the yeast grows like crazy in a lab dish.
Every gene is encoded to express, or produce, a protein.
Turning a gene on with one protein leads a cell to make a different protein. By understanding protein-protein interactions, we can come to understand such things as how a human, complete with heart, brain, arms, and legs, develops from a single fertilized egg the size of a pinhead. We get a better handle on everything from cancer to baldness. I'm losing my hair because of male pattern baldness, and understanding the protein interactions that are involved might help me to do something about it before it's all gone. As an example, he cites the work of an alumnus of his lab, Antonios Zervos, now an instructor in dermatology at Massachusetts General Hospital.