Although genomics has dominated the front pages of scientific journals and mainstream media outlets, researchers are quietly discussing the limitations of DNA and molecular biology in describing the behavior of proteins. Keith Ashman, senior research scientist at EMBL in Germany, believes that DNA-based research tools are going to naturally evolve into proteomics.
Genomics is just a linear interpretation of a protein.
In the early '90s, protein identification became much easier with advances in mass spectrometry. 2-D gels is another bottleneck to proteomics. We couldn't analyze a protein within a reasonable amount of time. For the past two years, Ashman and EMBL have been working with Genomic Solutions, a Michigan-based advanced biotechnology company, to assist researchers trying to manage this logistics nightmare. Increasing throughput and reproducibility are the advantages to our machines.