细胞在转录和翻译遗传信息的时候会产生一定的随机性，这种随机波动被称为“噪音”，遗传回路中的噪音可造成细胞功能和表型之间的差别，因此得到越来越多的关注。但是目前对这种噪音的来源以及它如何影响细胞的功能了解甚少。
德克萨斯州立大学的John E.Ladbury 和Stefan T.Arold 的研究结果表明细胞噪音可能来自于蛋白质与蛋白质间的强烈相互作用（protein–protein interactions，PPi），并揭示了这种内部相互作用最终导致细胞信号通路的建立。相关学术成果发表在近期的Cell子刊Trends in Biochemical and Science上。研究人员表示，蛋白的多聚化或复合体形成，蛋白浓度的变换以及对复杂信号的整合过程都可能产生噪音。之所以能检测到噪音，是因为细胞内信号转导的过程更偏向于一系列的概率事件的组合，而不是直线型的传播过程。
癌症的形成是与细胞信号网络紊乱有关，因此，理解了这种噪音信号对细胞的影响有可能对癌症理论有更新的认识。（生物谷 Bioon.com ）
doi:10.1016/j.tibs.2012.01.001
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PMID:
Noise in cellular signaling pathways: causes and effects
John E. Ladbury, Stefan T. Arold
Noise caused by stochastic fluctuations in genetic circuits (transcription and translation) is now appreciated as a central aspect of cell function and phenotypic behavior. Noise has also been detected in signaling networks, but the origin of this noise and how it shapes cellular outcomes remain poorly understood. Here, we argue that noise in signaling networks results from the intrinsic promiscuity of proteinprotein interactions (PPIs), and that this noise has shaped cellular signal transduction. Features promoted by the presence of this molecular signaling noise include multimerization and clustering of signaling components, pleiotropic effects of gross changes in protein concentration, and a probabilistic rather than a linear view of signal propagation
