Decomposition of Overlapping Protein Complexes: A Graph Theoretical Method for Analyzing Static and Dynamic Protein Associations

Background: Most cellular processes are carried out by multi-protein complexes, groups of proteins that bind together to perform a specific task. Some proteins form stable complexes, while other proteins form transient associations and are part of several complexes at different stages of a cellular process. A better understanding of this higher-order organization of proteins into overlapping complexes is an important step towards unveiling functional and evolutionary mechanisms behind biological networks. Results: We propose a new method for identifying and representing overlapping protein complexes (or larger units called functional groups) within a protein interaction network. We develop a graph-theoretical framework that enables automatic construction of such representation. We illustrate the effectiveness of our method by applying it to TNF/NF-B and pheromone signaling pathways. Conclusion: The proposed representation helps in understanding the transitions between functional group...

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2005
• Where: RECOMB
• Authors: Elena Zotenko, Katia S. Guimarães, Raja Jothi, Teresa M. Przytycka
• Keywords: Computational Biology, Functional Groups, Numerous Interacting Partners, Pheromone Signaling Pathways, RECOMB 2005