ABSTRACT
Microarrays can be used to study any type of interaction in which the arrayed material can be suitably deposited and the binding reagent hybridized and directly or indirectly labeled, or its binding otherwise detected. Microarrays were initially applied to equivalents of Southern and northern blot experiments, but they have considerable potential in the study of other interactions, including between proteins, and proteins and other substrates. Indeed, protein-based microarray applications were first established fairly soon after the DNA-based microarrays were introduced, but their subsequent development has been significantly slower. It was always my intention to develop protein microarrays within the context of our functional genomics research. However, like many we focused initially on nucleic acid-based microarrays, believing that these were more established and easier to perform. Once we finally moved onto proteins, it was immediately apparent that they are certainly no more problematic than nucleic acid-based studies and, indeed in several respects, are actually easier to do. On reflection, there was no need to put this area of work off in the early stages, and those with microarray experience should readily consider working in this area.
