‘Omic’ technologies adopt a holistic view of the molecules that make up a cell, tissue or organism. They are aimed primarily at the universal detection of genes (genomics), mRNA (transcriptomics), proteins (proteomics) and metabolites (metabolomics) in a specific biological sample in a non-targeted and non-biased manner. This can also be referred to as high-dimensional biology; the integration of these techniques is called systems biology (Figure 1) (see Box 1 for a list of definitions).1,2 The basic aspect of these approaches is that a complex system can be understood more thoroughly if considered as a whole. Systems biology and omics experiments differ from traditional studies, which are largely hypothesis-driven or reductionist. By contrast, systems biology experiments are hypothesis-generating, using holistic approaches where no hypothesis is known or prescribed but all data are acquired and analysed to define a hypothesis that can be further tested.3
These strategies have many applications and much potential. Omic technology can be applied not only for the greater understanding of normal physiological processes but also in disease processes where they play a role in screening, diagnosis and prognosis as well as aiding our understanding of the aetiology of diseases. Omic strategies lend themselves to biomarker discovery as they investigate multiple molecules simultaneously. Omic investigation is increasingly being used in drug discovery and assessment of their toxicity and efficacy.4,5 Pharmacogenomics — the intersection of genomics and pharmacology — is the study of the role of inheritance in individual variation in drug response which can potentially be used to individualise and optimise drug therapy.6 Pharmacogenomics is especially important for oncology, as severe systemic toxicity and unpredictable efficacy are hallmarks of cancer therapies.7 Systems approaches to conditions such as cancer, cardiovascular disease and obesity give the opportunity to facilitate greatly the success of selecting novel targets for treatments and drug development. In the future, systems biology may enable us to develop new approaches that will be predictive, preventive and personalised.
Research in obstetrics and gynaecology is currently taking advantage of these possibilities. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of the omic experiment and technologies and their potential application to women’s health research.