With the Human Genome Project in its culminating phase,
scientists are turning to the task of converting the soon to be completed DNA
sequence into information that will improve human medicine and health care. One
of the key challenges ahead is understanding how proteins direct biological
functions. Proteomics, the science of the cellular protein universe, attempts to
catalog and characterize proteins, compare variations in their expression levels
under different conditions (i.e., various stages of disease compared with
nondisease states), study their interactions, and identify their functional
roles. However, these studies will not produce a complete "proteome,"
or a map of an organism, because cells are always changing, as is protein
expression. Scientists believe there is a powerful distinction to be made
between the molecular function of an isolated protein and the function of that
protein in the complex cellular environment.
The goals of proteomics in medicine are to provide the ability to predict
rather than confirm disease and to construct a new, systematic way to discover
drugs. A preliminary step in achieving these goals requires that researchers
acquire or invent the technology to fit its aspirations. Several approaches are
being studied including structural genomics, a branch of proteomics, which
studies the shapes of proteins with the goal of constructing a lexicon as well
as an understanding of where in the body different proteins are produced, and
how each is controlled. One molecular biologist, Richard Burgess of the McArdle
Laboratory for Cancer Research at the University of Wisconsin, defines the scope
of proteomics as "a grab bag of activities that are all in the postgenomics
or functional genomics area, or the
what-do-we-need-to-know-to-make-sense-of-all-the-genomics-data arena."
Proteomics is not the study of proteins one by one, as has been done
traditionally, but in an automated, large-scale manner that requires new
technologies and techniques. Proteomics includes not only the identification and
quantification of proteins, but also the determination of their localization,
modifications, interactions, activities, and, ultimately, their function.
Considerable effort is currently being devoted to the development of novel
technologies to unravel the mystery of proteins.
Companies competing in the proteomics space offer technology platforms for
discovering or screening drug candidates or diagnostic markers. One of the ways
emerging proteomics companies fund their enterprises, is selling their services
to the pharmaceutical industry through an wide array of alliances and
collaborations. This report will examine competing technologies, and the
alliances being formed in the proteomics arena today.
Scope And Methodology
Although proteomics is being promoted as a separate industry, it is in fact a
set of technologies, which are being increasingly used in combination with
genomic technologies in the post-genomic era. This report provides an overview
of the state-of- the-art of proteomics technologies, and profiles proteomics
competitors. Companies competing in the proteomics sector offer platform
technologies for discovering or screening drug candidates or diagnostic markers.
One of the ways emerging proteomics companies fund their enterprises is by
selling their services to the pharmaceutical industry through an array of
alliances and collaborations. This report examines competing technologies, and
the alliances being formed in the proteomics arena today.
Information in this report comes from both primary and secondary sources. An
exhaustive search of online databases, scientific journals, investment reports,
and company literature make up the secondary source material. Interviews with
representatives of companies involved in proteomic research, academic
institutions, research laboratories, professional associations, and government
agencies make up the primary research. Data from all sources were compiled and
analyzed in order to ascertain the best possible estimates of the market size
and trends.
Key technologies discussed in depth include:
- Protein Separation
- Protein Identification and Characterization
- Protein Chip Technology
- Protein Function Studies
50 proteomic companies are profiled in this report, including:
- Applied Biosystems
- AxCell Biosciences
- Cellomics
- Cephergen Biosystems, Inc.
- Dyax Corporation
- GPC Biotech
- Hybrigenics
- InCyte Proteomics
- Large Scale Proteomics Corporation
- MDS Proteomics, Inc.
- MediChem Life Sciences
- Oxford GlycoSciences
- Packard BioScience
- Structural Bioinformatics
- Syrrx
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