The human genome and gene expression profiling.
The mapping and sequencing of the human genome has generated a large resource for answering questions about human disease. This achievement is akin in scientific importance to developing the periodic table of elements. Plastic surgery has always been at the frontier medical research. This resource will help us to improve our understanding on the many unknown physiological and pathogical conditions we deal with daily, such as wound healing keloid scar formation, Dupuytren's disease, rheumatoid arthritis, vascular malformation and carcinogenesis. We are primed in obtaining both disease and normal tissues to use this resource and applying it to clinical use. This review is about the human genome, the basis of gene expression profiling and how it will affect our clinical and research practices in the future and for those embarking on the use of this new technology as a research tool, we provide a brief insight on its limitations and pitfalls.
Chin
David
D
Melanoma Genomics Group, The Queensland Institute of Medical Research, Herston, Brisbane 4029, Queensland, Australia. davidc@qimr.edu.au
Boyle
Glen M
GM
Theile
David R
DR
Parsons
Peter G
PG
Coman
William B
WB
D015870:Gene Expression; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D015894:Genome, Human; D006801:Humans; D020411:Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis