FOCUS ON CANCER PROTEOMICS Functional proteomics to dissect tyrosine kinase signalling pathways in cancer

Advances in the generation and interpretation of proteomics data have spurred a transition from focussing on protein identification to functional analysis. Here, we review recent proteomics results that have elucidated new aspects of the role and regulation of signal transduction pathways in cancer using the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), ERK and breakpoint cluster region (BCR)–ABL1 networks as examples. The emerging theme to understand cancer signalling as networks of multi-protein machines that process information in a highly dynamic environment that is shaped by changing protein interactions and posttranslational modifications (PTMs). Cancerous genetic mutations derange these protein networks in complex ways that are tractable by proteomics.