  With the recent developments in proteomic technologies, a complete human
proteome project (HPP) appears feasible for the first time. However, there is
still debate as to how it should be designed and what it should encompass. In
"proteomics speak", the debate revolves around the central question as to
whether a gene-centric or a protein-centric proteomics approach is the most
appropriate way forward. In this paper, we try to shed light on what these
definitions mean, how large-scale proteomics such as a HPP can insert into the
larger omics chorus, and what we can reasonably expect from a HPP in the way it
has been proposed so far.
