Archive · 28 Jul 2025
Scientists Discover Thousands of Hidden Proteins
Scientists are finding lots of new proteins that we didn't know existed!
They used to find them by accident, like when they looked at earthworm blood.
Now, they use special tools to see how cells make proteins, which helps them find hidden ones.
They learned that they missed many proteins because they thought genes started in a certain way and that proteins were always big.
Some proteins are actually small!
Finding these hidden proteins, especially in viruses, is tricky and takes a long time.
Scientists have discovered thousands of previously unknown proteins.
The search for proteins has accelerated with advancements in technology.
Ribosome profiling has revealed many messenger RNA molecules that don't correspond to known genes.
Scientists previously missed proteins due to assumptions about gene start sequences and protein size.
Research on hidden microproteins in viruses, such as the coronavirus, is challenging and time-consuming.
- Who
- Scientists are leading the research, with contributions from biochemists, systems biologists, and researchers in various fields.
- What
- Scientists are discovering thousands of new, previously unknown proteins.
- When
- Scientists have been making these discoveries over time, with recent studies in the last month.
- Where
- Research is being conducted in various labs, including at the University of California, Irvine, and Harvard Medical School in the US.
- Why
- To fully understand how our biology works, it is necessary to have a complete accounting of all of the components.
- Discovered Proteins
- 4,208 previously unknown proteins made by viruses such as influenza and HIV
- Method
- Ribosome profiling
- Microprotein Size
- Some contain just a couple dozen amino acids.
- First Protein Discovery
- 1840
- Human Genome Genes
- 20,000
- Virus Study Duration
- Four months to study the coronavirus