Pulmonary genomics, proteomics, and PLUNCs

Over the past decade Pulmonary Medicine, like many biomedical research fields, has benefited enormously from the major advances that have occurred in genomic and proteomic techniques. The relative abundance of potential samples including lung tissue and cells, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF), and sputum make pulmonary conditions attractive for many profiling studies, which are ultimately aimed at identifying novel diagnostic and prognostic disease markers. Thankfully, these studies have largely confirmed the presence of many expected proteins as well as the identification of novel genes and proteins. These studies do, however, lend themselves to the development (in researchers) of one of two conditions named and identified by Naftali Kaminski as AGLSS (Acute Gene List Staring Syndrome) and CGLSS (Chronic Gene List Staring Syndrome). Both conditions are characterized by sleep deprivation, refusal to return to the bench, and excitement about funny gene names, but the chronic condition may also involve paralysis of career (what is now called Kaminski's tetrad). Notwithstanding the above concerns, it is beyond doubt that the use of unbiased proteomic and genomic analyses have led to the identification of many novel molecules which by the very means of their identification are likely to play roles in the biology of the respiratory tract. In these studies there is often a selection of proteins that are consistently observed to be present and/or differentially expressed. In this short overview we will focus on members of a novel family of proteins, the PLUNCs, which may be considered as a paradigm for such gene/protein identification.