After mapping human genome, scientists release catalog of proteins that help make them work

Two teams of scientists are publishing first drafts of the human proteome. The proteome is a catalog of all of the different proteins the human body makes. This is a big accomplishment.

Why are scientists so interested in proteins? Proteins are the doers of the human body. They build things and break things down. They shuttle things around. They play major roles in the complicated dance the cell performs to read instructions from its own DNA. They’re also the primary products of the DNA. All the genes you have exist to make proteins. When somebody has a genetic disease, she has a problem in a protein, or several proteins, her body makes.

After scientists first read the entirety of human DNA in 2001, a natural next step was to identify all the proteins the DNA makes. Several teams are working toward this goal. Those not publishing first-draft proteomes today will surely continue their research. They’ll try to catalog the proteome more completely and to find mistakes in today’s drafts.

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Read the full, original story: Out Today: The First Catalog Of All The Proteins In The Human Body