The past as the key to the present: Resurrection of ancient proteins from eosinophils

Moving from gene sequences to protein behaviors, and from there to cellular function, organismal biology, and fitness, is an immediate challenge to biology in the postgenomic age. Genome databases are, of course, nothing more than collections of molecular structures for organic “natural products.” Unfortunately, the chemical structure of an organic compound does not transparently reveal its behavior or its function in a biological system. This is true even if the molecular structure is a protein sequence.

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