There are, for example, typically 5 to 10 different protein forms of each gene due to post- translational modification. Differential protein modifications such as phosphorylation and glycosylation regulate both gene expression and cell-cell interactions involved in development. Its clear that further progress in molecular biology depends on modeling and understanding the effects of PTMs on proteins. It is for this reason that functional genomics is funded by both business and government alike, although primarily the former. Notwithstanding the derision of John McCrone these bodies are not misguided nor throwing their money away.
Functional genomics is the coming man, even for psychology.
James Watson's metaphor this week was brilliant. The genes are like 30,000 actors in a play. A play of 30,00 actors would be damn hard to follow, even if all the actors looked different, which they don't. We know the script was written by natural selection and that the same actors can appear in different plays. Some actors are stars, some are character actors, and some are regional amateurs.