Environmental health research in the post-genome era: new fields, new challenges, and new opportunities.
The human genome sequence provides researchers with a genetic framework to eventually understand the relationships of gene-environment interactions. This wealth of information has led to the birth of several related areas of research, including proteomics, functional genomics, pharmacogenomics, and toxicogenomics. Developing techniques such as DNA/protein microarrays, small-interfering RNA (siRNA) applications, two-dimensional gel electrophoresis, and mass spectrometry in conjunction with advanced analysis software and the availability of Internet databases offers a powerful set of tools to investigate an individual's response to specific stimuli. This review summarizes these emerging scientific fields and techniques focusing specifically on their applications to the complexities of gene-environment interactions and their potential role in environ-mental biosecurity.
Bower
Jacquelyn J
JJ
Pathology and Physiology Research Branch, Health Effects Laboratory Division, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Morgantown, West Virginia, USA.
Shi
Xianglin
X
D000818:Animals; D023482:Bioterrorism; D019295:Computational Biology; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D004782:Environmental Health; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D015894:Genome, Human; D023281:Genomics; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D020411:Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D040901:Proteomics; D012106:Research