An array of insights: application of DNA chip technology in the study of cell biology

The advent of DNA microarray technology has ushered in an era of systems biology whereby researchers can study the transcriptional behavior of thousands of genes in parallel. Advances in manufacturing techniques and informatics, and the availability of several genome sequences have furthered these capabilities to the point where whole-transcriptome studies can be accomplished in yeast, flies and plants, and soon will be possible in mammals. Concomitant with the expanding ability of the technology has been the development of novel techniques and their application towards the study of cellular biology ∗ This article is the third review in our ‘Interdisciplinary Biology’ series that commenced in the January 2003 issue of TCB. eds. .