Using computational biology for the annotation of proteins

Research carried out at Universidad Carlos III of Madrid in collaboration with the Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Oncologicas employed computational techniques to improve the characterization of proteins. The system they developed has allowed them to predict, for example, the relationship between two human proteins and telomeres, which led to their possible implication in cellular aging and the development of cancer; this awaits experimental verification. Proteins are molecules that are formed by chains of amino acids and they play a fundamental role in all of life, given that they contain the coded information in genes; they, therefore, carry out numerous functions in an organism: immunological (antibodies), structural (they constitute the majority of cellular material), bioregulating (they form part of enzymes) and a long list of etceteras. In short, they regulate thousands of process that take place within all organisms, including inside the human organism, and they frequently do so by means of relationships they establish with other cells. "Analyzing and using this network of interactions is a very interesting task due to the large number of associations that exist and to the multiple forms in which one protein can influence the function of others," explains Professor Beatriz García, of UC3M's Computer Science department.