GENE-EXPRESSION IN NORMAL AND DISEASE STATES - IDENTIFICATION OF THERAPEUTIC TARGETS

Analysis of gene-expression patterns derived from large expressed sequ ence tag (EST) databases has become a valuable tool in the discovery o f therapeutic targets and diagnostic markers. Sequence data derived fr om a wide variety of cDNA libraries offer a wealth of information for identifying genes for pharmaceutical product development. Collecting, storing, organizing, analyzing and presenting cDNA expression data req uires advanced bioinformatics methods and high-performance computation al equipment. Comparison of expression patterns from normal and diseas e tissues enables inferences about gene function to be made, and medic ally relevant genes as candidates for therapeutics research and develo pment programs to be identified.