Genomics Vs. Proteomics? Grade 12

The study of structures of genomes, including projects scuh as sequencing the human genome, is often referred to as GENOMICS. Many researchers claim that genomics is not nearly as significant as PROTEINOMICS, the study of protein structure + function. Which field, genomic or proteinomic, holds the greatest promise for advances in medicine and in our understanding of human develoement? Explain

Genetics gives you what is possible, proteomics gives you what actually is. Just because a particular gene exists doesn't mean it's being expressed, and even if it's being expressed, it doesn't tell you anything about how much it's being expressed. Proteomics has the potential to quantify the proteins in a cell (and proteins are the vast majority of the molecules that do something). For example, let's say you find an allele gene that is involved in tumorgenesis. Just because the gene exists in your given tissue doesn't mean that tissue is cancerous. But if you find the protein product of the gene being expressed, and that protein is a biomarker of cancer, then you might be able to say something about whether a tumor is present or not.
If you have a protein with a known amino acid sequence but unknown structure and function, then comparison with other proteins might provide insight on the structure and function of this protein.

I'd have to say proteomics, though it's difficult to know what your teacher is going after. Knowing the genome is cool and all, but not all of the genome codes for the proteins that actually carry out most of life's functions (roughly only 1% of the genome does that). Knowing protein shape and function has led to great strides in medications, vaccinations, and overall understanding of how the body works at different stages of development. The rest of the genome is used in various ways (such as the miRNAs that are involved in gene silencing, etc.), but I'm not so sure they are incredibly relevant in devo or medicine.