Hi folks, I"m no protein expert, but as part of my discussion i'm comparing a couple of studies using rt-PCR and ELISA to measure cytokine responses. I'm sure i've read somewhere or been told (and have always thought), that you can not directly correlate the level of gene expression with actual protein produced.
I'm just wondering if someone can tell me if this is right, and if so explain it to me. I can not seem to find any papers which actually go into any detail about this, and i'm slightly confused! Don't want to make a random statement in the dissertation without backing up with a reference! (if anyone knows of paper which even hints at this, it would be much appreciated!).
Thank you, a stressed alpaca!

Sorry, this post has just got me thinking about chicken and whether I will be able to fit into my jeans if I buy KFC. hmmm.

Alpacalover, that is true what you state although I can't think of a paper off the top of my head where there is any detail about it - and I can't really explain either I'm afraid (I'm not a geneticist but I did need to assume a direct relationship for my PhD even though I was told it wasn't accurate).

The concentration of the cognate protein in the cell is governed by both protein synthesis (driven by transcription) and protein degrdation (influenced by many factors). The expressed gene gives the potential for a protein to be expressed but can't be directly correlated in many cases. See: "Chen, G, Gharib, T G, Huang, C C, et al. Discordant protein and mRNA expression in lung adenocarcinomas, Mol Cell Proteomics, 1, 304-313 (2002)"; "4. Mehra, A, Lee KH, and Hatzimanikatis V. Insights into the relation between mRNA and protein expression patterns: I. Theoretical considerations. Biotechnol Bioeng, 2003. 84 (7) 822-33."; "7. Anderson, L and Seilhamer, J. A comparison of selected mRNA and protein abundances in human liver, Electrophoresis, 18 (3-4), 533-7 (1997)." ; "Doherty MK and Beynon RJ. (2006): Protein dynamics on the scale of the proteome, Exp. Rev. Proteomics, 3 (1), 97-110."

Thank you all! I'm am so glad I didn't dream up this fact! :) Cheers Cytochrome, I will have a look at these papers after my tea! :)