OMICs-driven research is exploratory in nature, and seeks to interrogate the entire molecular landscape, with the hope that key pathways or nodes that are aberrant in a disease could be uncovered through a comprehensive brute force screen. To date, comprehensive profiling using multiple “omics” platforms has yielded novel insights on a wide spectrum of diseases. These broad screens are very powerful and clinically useful because they:
Help identify key molecules and pathways in a given disease – this not only augments our understanding of the disease, it may also point to novel targets for drug treatment.
Help identify novel biomarkers for a given disease – these biomarkers can be used to identify diseases earlier and track disease progression non-invasively.
