With the human genome mapped, and with the mapping of more
than one hundred animal genomes in progress, the amount of genetic
data available is increasing exponentially. This exponential
increase in data is having an immediate impact on the process of
drug development. By using techniques of information technology to
manipulate data regarding the genes, proteins, and biochemical
pathways associated with various diseases, scientists are beginning
to be able to design drugs in a systematic fashion. In the context
of any given disease, scientists look to see whether a gene, a protein
for which the gene codes, or another protein in the relevant biochemical
pathway could be the “target” biological molecule, the
“knocking out” of which would halt or slow the
disease's progression. Once a target molecule has been
identified and characterized structurally, drug therapies that
would be likely to knock out this target can be identified and
tested systematically. The merger of information technology
and genetic technology has changed the process of pharmaceutical
development so much that a new term—bioinformatics—has
been coined to describe this new approach to such development.