Decoding signalling networks by mass spectrometry-based proteomics

Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology 11, 427-439 (June 2010) | doi:10.1038/nrm2900

Decoding signalling networks by mass spectrometry-based proteomics.

Chunaram Choudhary1 & Matthias Mann1,2

1. The Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Protein Research, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Blegdamsvej 3, 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark.
2.Department of Proteomics and Signal Transduction, Max Planck Institute for Biochemistry, Martinsried, Germany.

Signalling networks regulate essentially all of the biology of cells and organisms in normal and disease states. Signalling is often studied using antibody-based techniques such as western blots. Large-scale 'precision proteomics' based on mass spectrometry now enables the system-wide characterization of signalling events at the levels of post-translational modifications, protein–protein interactions and changes in protein expression. This technology delivers accurate and unbiased information about the quantitative changes of thousands of proteins and their modifications in response to any perturbation. Current studies focus on phosphorylation, but acetylation, methylation, glycosylation and ubiquitylation are also becoming amenable to investigation. Large-scale proteomics-based signalling research will fundamentally change our understanding of signalling networks.

http://www.nature.com/nrm/journal/v11/n6/abs/nrm2900.html