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Freitag T, Kaps P, Ramtke J, Bertels S, Zunke E, Schneider B, Becker AS, Koczan D, Dubinski D, Freiman TM, Wittig F, Hinz B, Westhoff MA, Strobel H, Meiners F, Wolter D, Engel N, Troschke-Meurer S, Bergmann-Ewert W, Staehlke S, Wolff A, Gessler F, Junghanss C, Maletzki C. Combined inhibition of EZH2 and CDK4/6 perturbs endoplasmic reticulum-mitochondrial homeostasis and increases antitumor activity against glioblastoma. NPJ Precis Oncol 2024; 8:156. [PMID: 39054369 PMCID: PMC11272933 DOI: 10.1038/s41698-024-00653-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2024] [Accepted: 07/11/2024] [Indexed: 07/27/2024] Open
Abstract
He, we show that combined use of the EZH2 inhibitor GSK126 and the CDK4/6 inhibitor abemaciclib synergistically enhances antitumoral effects in preclinical GBM models. Dual blockade led to HIF1α upregulation and CalR translocation, accompanied by massive impairment of mitochondrial function. Basal oxygen consumption rate, ATP synthesis, and maximal mitochondrial respiration decreased, confirming disrupted endoplasmic reticulum-mitochondrial homeostasis. This was paralleled by mitochondrial depolarization and upregulation of the UPR sensors PERK, ATF6α, and IRE1α. Notably, dual EZH2/CDK4/6 blockade also reduced 3D-spheroid invasion, partially inhibited tumor growth in ovo, and led to impaired viability of patient-derived organoids. Mechanistically, this was due to transcriptional changes in genes involved in mitotic aberrations/spindle assembly (Rb, PLK1, RRM2, PRC1, CENPF, TPX2), histone modification (HIST1H1B, HIST1H3G), DNA damage/replication stress events (TOP2A, ATF4), immuno-oncology (DEPDC1), EMT-counterregulation (PCDH1) and a shift in the stemness profile towards a more differentiated state. We propose a dual EZH2/CDK4/6 blockade for further investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Freitag
- Department of Medicine, Clinic III -Hematology, Oncology, Palliative Medicine, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Philipp Kaps
- Department of Medicine, Clinic III -Hematology, Oncology, Palliative Medicine, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Justus Ramtke
- Department of Medicine, Clinic III -Hematology, Oncology, Palliative Medicine, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Sarah Bertels
- Department of Medicine, Clinic III -Hematology, Oncology, Palliative Medicine, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Emily Zunke
- Department of Medicine, Clinic III -Hematology, Oncology, Palliative Medicine, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Björn Schneider
- Institute of Pathology, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Anne-Sophie Becker
- Institute of Pathology, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Dirk Koczan
- Department of Immunology, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Daniel Dubinski
- Department of Neurosurgery, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Thomas M Freiman
- Department of Neurosurgery, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Felix Wittig
- Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Burkhard Hinz
- Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Mike-Andrew Westhoff
- Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, University Medical Center Ulm, Ulm, Germany
| | - Hannah Strobel
- Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, University Medical Center Ulm, Ulm, Germany
| | - Franziska Meiners
- Institute for Biostatistics and Informatics in Medicine and Aging Research (IBIMA), Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Daniel Wolter
- Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Facial Plastic Surgery, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Nadja Engel
- Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Facial Plastic Surgery, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
- Oscar Langendorff Institute of Physiology, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Sascha Troschke-Meurer
- Department of Pediatric Oncology and Hematology, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Wendy Bergmann-Ewert
- Core Facility for Cell Sorting & Cell Analysis, Laboratory for Clinical Immunology, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Susanne Staehlke
- Institute for Cell Biology, University Medical Center Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Annabell Wolff
- Department of Medicine, Clinic III -Hematology, Oncology, Palliative Medicine, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Florian Gessler
- Department of Neurosurgery, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Christian Junghanss
- Department of Medicine, Clinic III -Hematology, Oncology, Palliative Medicine, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
| | - Claudia Maletzki
- Department of Medicine, Clinic III -Hematology, Oncology, Palliative Medicine, Rostock University Medical Center, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany.
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Blandon IR, DiBona E, Battenhouse A, Vargas S, Mace C, Seemann F. Analysis of the Skin and Brain Transcriptome of Normally Pigmented and Pseudo-Albino Southern Flounder ( Paralichthys lethostigma) Juveniles to Study the Molecular Mechanisms of Hypopigmentation and Its Implications for Species Survival in the Natural Environment. Int J Mol Sci 2024; 25:7775. [PMID: 39063015 PMCID: PMC11277284 DOI: 10.3390/ijms25147775] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2024] [Revised: 07/08/2024] [Accepted: 07/11/2024] [Indexed: 07/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Southern flounder skin pigmentation is a critical phenotypic characteristic for this species' survival in the natural environment. Normal pigmentation allows rapid changes of color for concealment to capture prey and UV light protection. In contrast, highly visible hypopigmented pseudo-albinos exhibit a compromised immune system and are vulnerable to predation, sensitive to UV exposure, and likely have poor survival in the wild. Skin and brain tissue samples from normally pigmented and hypopigmented individuals were analyzed with next-generation RNA sequencing. A total of 1,589,613 transcripts were used to identify 952,825 genes to assemble a de novo transcriptome, with 99.43% of genes mapped to the assembly. Differential gene expression and gene enrichment analysis of contrasting tissues and phenotypes revealed that pseudo-albino individuals appeared more susceptible to environmental stress, UV light exposure, hypoxia, and osmotic stress. The pseudo-albinos' restricted immune response showed upregulated genes linked to cancer development, signaling and response, skin tissue formation, regeneration, and healing. The data indicate that a modified skin collagen structure likely affects melanocyte differentiation and distribution, generating the pseudo-albino phenotype. In addition, the comparison of the brain transcriptome revealed changes in myelination and melanocyte stem cell activity, which may indicate modified brain function, reduced melanocyte migration, and impaired vision.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ivonne R. Blandon
- Coastal Fisheries Division CCA Marine Development Center, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, 4300 Waldron Rd., Corpus Christi, TX 78418, USA
| | - Elizabeth DiBona
- Department of Life Sciences, College of Science, Texas A and M University-Corpus Christi, 6300 Ocean Drive, Corpus Christi, TX 78412, USA
| | - Anna Battenhouse
- Center for Biochemical Research Computing Facility, University of Texas at Austin, 100 East 24th, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Sean Vargas
- Genomic Core Facility, University of Texas at San Antonio, UTSA Circle, San Antonio, TX 78249, USA;
| | - Christopher Mace
- Coastal Fisheries Division CCA Marine Development Center, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, 4300 Waldron Rd., Corpus Christi, TX 78418, USA
| | - Frauke Seemann
- Department of Life Sciences, College of Science, Texas A and M University-Corpus Christi, 6300 Ocean Drive, Corpus Christi, TX 78412, USA
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Doddi S, Hamoud AR, Eby HM, Zhang X, Imami AS, Shedroff E, Schiefer I, Moreno-Lopez J, Gamm D, Meller J, McCullumsmith RE. Transcriptomic Analysis of Metastatic Uveal Melanoma and Differences in Male and Female Patients. Cancer Genomics Proteomics 2024; 21:350-360. [PMID: 38944422 PMCID: PMC11215432 DOI: 10.21873/cgp.20452] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2024] [Revised: 03/20/2024] [Accepted: 04/02/2024] [Indexed: 07/01/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND/AIM Uveal melanoma is an ocular malignancy whose prognosis severely worsens following metastasis. In order to improve the understanding of molecular physiology of metastatic uveal melanoma, we identified genes and pathways implicated in metastatic vs non-metastatic uveal melanoma. PATIENTS AND METHODS A previously published dataset from Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) was used to identify differentially expressed genes between metastatic and non-metastatic samples as well as to conduct pathway and perturbagen analyses using Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA), EnrichR, and iLINCS. RESULTS In male metastatic uveal melanoma samples, the gene LOC401052 is significantly down-regulated and FHDC1 is significantly up-regulated compared to non-metastatic male samples. In female samples, no significant differently expressed genes were found. Additionally, we identified many significant up-regulated immune response pathways in male metastatic uveal melanoma, including "T cell activation in immune response". In contrast, many top up-regulated female pathways involve iron metabolism, including "heme biosynthetic process". iLINCS perturbagen analysis identified that both male and female samples have similar discordant activity with growth factor receptors, but only female samples have discordant activity with progesterone receptor agonists. CONCLUSION Our results from analyzing genes, pathways, and perturbagens demonstrate differences in metastatic processes between sexes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sishir Doddi
- Department of Neurosciences, University of Toledo College of Medicine, Toledo, OH, U.S.A
| | - Abdul-Rizaq Hamoud
- Department of Neurosciences, University of Toledo College of Medicine, Toledo, OH, U.S.A
| | - Hunter M Eby
- Department of Neurosciences, University of Toledo College of Medicine, Toledo, OH, U.S.A
| | - Xiaolu Zhang
- Department of Neurosciences, University of Toledo College of Medicine, Toledo, OH, U.S.A
| | - Ali Sajid Imami
- Department of Neurosciences, University of Toledo College of Medicine, Toledo, OH, U.S.A
| | - Elizabeth Shedroff
- Department of Neurosciences, University of Toledo College of Medicine, Toledo, OH, U.S.A
| | - Isaac Schiefer
- Department of Medicinal and Biological Chemistry, College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH, U.S.A
| | - Jose Moreno-Lopez
- Department of Medicinal and Biological Chemistry, College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH, U.S.A
| | - David Gamm
- McPherson Eye Research Institute and Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, U.S.A
| | - Jaroslaw Meller
- Division of Biomedical Informatics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, U.S.A
| | - Robert E McCullumsmith
- Department of Neurosciences, University of Toledo College of Medicine, Toledo, OH, U.S.A.;
- Neurosciences Institute, ProMedica, Toledo, OH, U.S.A
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Garg K, Kumar A, Kizhakkethil V, Kumar P, Singh S. Overlap in oncogenic and pro-inflammatory pathways associated with areca nut and nicotine exposure. CANCER PATHOGENESIS AND THERAPY 2024; 2:187-194. [PMID: 39027148 PMCID: PMC11252521 DOI: 10.1016/j.cpt.2023.09.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2023] [Revised: 09/08/2023] [Accepted: 09/14/2023] [Indexed: 07/20/2024]
Abstract
Background Betel nut/areca nut/Areca catechu is one of the most commonly used psychoactive substance, and is also a major preventable cause of cancer. Unlike other psychoactive substances, such as nicotine, the mechanisms underlying addiction to areca nuts and related oncogenesis remain elusive. Recent reports suggest a possible overlap in the mechanisms of action of nicotine and areca nuts in the human body. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the interactome of human proteins associated with areca nut exposure and the intricate similarities and differences in the effects of the two psychoactive substances on humans. Methods A list of proteins associated with areca nut use was obtained from the available literature using terms from Medical Subject Headings (MeSH). Protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks and functional enrichment were analyzed. The results obtained for both psychoactive substances were compared. Results Given the limited number of common proteins (36/226, 16%) in the two sets, a substantial overlap (612/1176 nodes, 52%) was observed in the PPI networks, as well as in Gene Ontology. Areca nuts mainly affect signaling pathways through three hub proteins (alpha serine/threonine-protein kinase, tumor protein 53, and interleukin-6), which are common to both psychoactive substances, as well as two unique hub proteins (epidermal growth factor receptor and master regulator of cell cycle entry and proliferative metabolism). Areca nut-related proteins are associated with unique pathways, such as extracellular matrix organization, lipid storage, and metabolism, which are not found in nicotine-associated proteins. Conclusions Areca nuts affect regulatory mechanisms, leading to systemic toxicity and oncogenesis. Areca nuts also affect unique pathways that can be studied as potential markers of exposure, as well as targets for anticancer therapeutic agents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Krati Garg
- Department of Biochemical Engineering and Biotechnology, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi, Delhi 110016, India
| | - Anuj Kumar
- Division of Molecular Biology, ICMR-National Institute of Cancer Prevention and Research (ICMR-NICPR), Indian Council of Medical Research, Noida, Uttar Pradesh 201301, India
| | - Vidisha Kizhakkethil
- Department of Biotechnology, Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632024, India
| | - Pramod Kumar
- Division of Molecular Biology, ICMR-National Institute of Cancer Prevention and Research (ICMR-NICPR), Indian Council of Medical Research, Noida, Uttar Pradesh 201301, India
| | - Shalini Singh
- ICMR-National Institute of Cancer Prevention & Research (ICMR-NICPR), Indian Council of Medical Research, Noida, Uttar Pradesh 201301, India
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Jackson DJ, Cerveau N, Posnien N. De novo assembly of transcriptomes and differential gene expression analysis using short-read data from emerging model organisms - a brief guide. Front Zool 2024; 21:17. [PMID: 38902827 PMCID: PMC11188175 DOI: 10.1186/s12983-024-00538-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2024] [Accepted: 06/12/2024] [Indexed: 06/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Many questions in biology benefit greatly from the use of a variety of model systems. High-throughput sequencing methods have been a triumph in the democratization of diverse model systems. They allow for the economical sequencing of an entire genome or transcriptome of interest, and with technical variations can even provide insight into genome organization and the expression and regulation of genes. The analysis and biological interpretation of such large datasets can present significant challenges that depend on the 'scientific status' of the model system. While high-quality genome and transcriptome references are readily available for well-established model systems, the establishment of such references for an emerging model system often requires extensive resources such as finances, expertise and computation capabilities. The de novo assembly of a transcriptome represents an excellent entry point for genetic and molecular studies in emerging model systems as it can efficiently assess gene content while also serving as a reference for differential gene expression studies. However, the process of de novo transcriptome assembly is non-trivial, and as a rule must be empirically optimized for every dataset. For the researcher working with an emerging model system, and with little to no experience with assembling and quantifying short-read data from the Illumina platform, these processes can be daunting. In this guide we outline the major challenges faced when establishing a reference transcriptome de novo and we provide advice on how to approach such an endeavor. We describe the major experimental and bioinformatic steps, provide some broad recommendations and cautions for the newcomer to de novo transcriptome assembly and differential gene expression analyses. Moreover, we provide an initial selection of tools that can assist in the journey from raw short-read data to assembled transcriptome and lists of differentially expressed genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel J Jackson
- University of Göttingen, Department of Geobiology, Goldschmidtstr.3, Göttingen, 37077, Germany.
| | - Nicolas Cerveau
- University of Göttingen, Department of Geobiology, Goldschmidtstr.3, Göttingen, 37077, Germany
| | - Nico Posnien
- University of Göttingen, Department of Developmental Biology, GZMB, Justus-Von-Liebig-Weg 11, Göttingen, 37077, Germany.
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Brown PA. Genes Differentially Expressed Across Major Arteries Are Enriched in Endothelial Dysfunction-Related Gene Sets: Implications for Relative Inter-artery Atherosclerosis Risk. Bioinform Biol Insights 2024; 18:11779322241251563. [PMID: 38765020 PMCID: PMC11100403 DOI: 10.1177/11779322241251563] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2023] [Accepted: 04/13/2024] [Indexed: 05/21/2024] Open
Abstract
Atherosclerosis differs across major arteries. Although the biological basis is not fully understood, limited evidence of genetic differences has been documented. This study, therefore, was aimed to identify differentially expressed genes between clinically relevant major arteries and investigate their enrichment in endothelial dysfunction-related gene sets. A bioinformatic analysis of publicly available gene-level read counts for coronary, aortic, and tibial arteries was performed. Differential gene expression was conducted with DeSeq2 at a false discovery rate of 0.05. Differentially expressed genes were then subjected to over-representation analysis and active-subnetwork-oriented enrichment analysis, both at a false discovery rate of 0.005. Enriched terms common to both analyses were categorized for each contrast into immunity/inflammation-, membrane biology-, lipid metabolism-, and coagulation-related terms, and the top differentially expressed genes validated against Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics' Bgee database. There was mostly upregulation of differentially expressed genes for the coronary/tibial and aorta/tibial contrasts, but milder changes for the coronary/aorta contrast. Transcriptomic differences between coronary or aortic versus tibial samples largely involved immunity/inflammation-, membrane biology-, lipid metabolism-, and coagulation-related genes, suggesting potential to modulate endothelial dysfunction and atherosclerosis. These results imply atheroprone coronary and aortic environments compared with tibial artery tissue, which may explain observed relative inter-artery atherosclerosis risk.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul A Brown
- Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medical Sciences Teaching and Research Complex, The University of the West Indies, Kingston, Jamaica
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Pussila M, Laiho A, Törönen P, Björkbacka P, Nykänen S, Pylvänäinen K, Holm L, Mecklin JP, Renkonen-Sinisalo L, Lehtonen T, Lepistö A, Linden J, Mäki-Nevala S, Peltomäki P, Nyström M. Mitotic abnormalities precede microsatellite instability in lynch syndrome-associated colorectal tumourigenesis. EBioMedicine 2024; 103:105111. [PMID: 38583260 PMCID: PMC11002576 DOI: 10.1016/j.ebiom.2024.105111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2023] [Revised: 03/21/2024] [Accepted: 03/26/2024] [Indexed: 04/09/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Lynch syndrome (LS) is one of the most common hereditary cancer syndromes worldwide. Dominantly inherited mutation in one of four DNA mismatch repair genes combined with somatic events leads to mismatch repair deficiency and microsatellite instability (MSI) in tumours. Due to a high lifetime risk of cancer, regular surveillance plays a key role in cancer prevention; yet the observation of frequent interval cancers points to insufficient cancer prevention by colonoscopy-based methods alone. This study aimed to identify precancerous functional changes in colonic mucosa that could facilitate the monitoring and prevention of cancer development in LS. METHODS The study material comprised colon biopsy specimens (n = 71) collected during colonoscopy examinations from LS carriers (tumour-free, or diagnosed with adenoma, or diagnosed with carcinoma) and a control group, which included sporadic cases without LS or neoplasia. The majority (80%) of LS carriers had an inherited genetic MLH1 mutation. The remaining 20% included MSH2 mutation carriers (13%) and MSH6 mutation carriers (7%). The transcriptomes were first analysed with RNA-sequencing and followed up with Gorilla Ontology analysis and Reactome Knowledgebase and Ingenuity Pathway Analyses to detect functional changes that might be associated with the initiation of the neoplastic process in LS individuals. FINDINGS With pathway and gene ontology analyses combined with measurement of mitotic perimeters from colonic mucosa and tumours, we found an increased tendency to chromosomal instability (CIN), already present in macroscopically normal LS mucosa. Our results suggest that CIN is an earlier aberration than MSI and may be the initial cancer driving aberration, whereas MSI accelerates tumour formation. Furthermore, our results suggest that MLH1 deficiency plays a significant role in the development of CIN. INTERPRETATION The results validate our previous findings from mice and highlight early mitotic abnormalities as an important contributor and precancerous marker of colorectal tumourigenesis in LS. FUNDING This work was supported by grants from the Jane and Aatos Erkko Foundation, the Academy of Finland (330606 and 331284), Cancer Foundation Finland sr, and the Sigrid Jusélius Foundation. Open access is funded by Helsinki University Library.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marjaana Pussila
- Molecular and Integrative Biosciences Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
| | - Aleksi Laiho
- Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Program, Faculty of Biosciences, and Institute of Biotechnology, Helsinki Institute of Life Science (HiLIFE), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Petri Törönen
- Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Program, Faculty of Biosciences, and Institute of Biotechnology, Helsinki Institute of Life Science (HiLIFE), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Pauliina Björkbacka
- Department of Veterinary Biosciences, and Finnish Centre for Laboratory Animal Pathology (FCLAP), Helsinki Institute of Life Science (HiLIFE), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Sonja Nykänen
- Molecular and Integrative Biosciences Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Kirsi Pylvänäinen
- Faculty of Sports and Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland
| | - Liisa Holm
- Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Program, Faculty of Biosciences, and Institute of Biotechnology, Helsinki Institute of Life Science (HiLIFE), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Jukka-Pekka Mecklin
- Well Being Services County of Central Finland, Department of Science, Jyväskylä, Finland; Faculty of Sports and Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland
| | - Laura Renkonen-Sinisalo
- Department of Surgery, Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland; Applied Tumour Genomics, Research Programs Unit, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Taru Lehtonen
- Department of Surgery, Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Anna Lepistö
- Department of Surgery, Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland; Applied Tumour Genomics, Research Programs Unit, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Jere Linden
- Department of Veterinary Biosciences, and Finnish Centre for Laboratory Animal Pathology (FCLAP), Helsinki Institute of Life Science (HiLIFE), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Satu Mäki-Nevala
- Department of Medical and Clinical Genetics, University of Helsinki, Finland
| | - Päivi Peltomäki
- Department of Medical and Clinical Genetics, University of Helsinki, Finland; HUSLAB Laboratory of Genetics, HUS Diagnostic Center, Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Minna Nyström
- Molecular and Integrative Biosciences Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
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Mohammed Zaidh S, Aher KB, Bhavar GB, Irfan N, Ahmed HN, Ismail Y. Genes adaptability and NOL6 protein inhibition studies of fabricated flavan-3-ols lead skeleton intended to treat breast carcinoma. Int J Biol Macromol 2024; 258:127661. [PMID: 37898257 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.127661] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2023] [Revised: 08/10/2023] [Accepted: 10/23/2023] [Indexed: 10/30/2023]
Abstract
Breast cancer invasive 2.3 million women worldly and second prominent factor of cancer-related mortality. Finding a new site-specific and safe small molecule is a current need in this field. With the aid of deep learning Algorithms, we analyzed the published big database from cancer CBioportal to find the best target protein. Further, Multi-omics analysis such as enrichment analysis, scores of molecular, RNA biological function at a cellular level, and protein domain were obtained and matched to find the better hit molecules. The gene analysis output shows nucleolar protein 6 plays a significant responsibility in breast carcinoma and 354 natural and synthetic lead molecules are docked inside the active site. Docking result gave the output hit molecule falavan-3-ols with a binding score of -5.325 (Kcal/mol) and interaction analysis illustrates, 13 active amino acids favoring the binding interaction with functional groups of the hit molecule compared to the standard molecule Abemacilib (-2.857 (Kcal/mol)). Best docked complex of flavan-3-ols and NOL6 protein subjected to dynamic simulation 100 ns to study the stability. The results proved that π-π stacked, carbon‑hydrogen and electrostatic interactions are stable throughout the 100 ns simulation. The overall results conclude the hit molecule flavan-3-ol will be a safe and potent lead molecule to generate and treat breast carcinoma patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Mohammed Zaidh
- Crescent School of Pharmacy, BS Abdur Rahman Crescent Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai 600048, India
| | - Kiran Balasaheb Aher
- Department of Pharmaceutical Quality Assurance, Shri Vile Parle Kelavani Mandal's Institute of Pharmacy, Dhule, Maharashtra 424001, India
| | - Girija Balasaheb Bhavar
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Shri Vile Parle Kelavani Mandal's Institute of Pharmacy, Dhule, Maharashtra 424001, India
| | - N Irfan
- Crescent School of Pharmacy, BS Abdur Rahman Crescent Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai 600048, India.
| | - Haja Nazeer Ahmed
- Crescent School of Pharmacy, BS Abdur Rahman Crescent Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai 600048, India
| | - Y Ismail
- Crescent School of Pharmacy, BS Abdur Rahman Crescent Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai 600048, India
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Wang R, Chen Y, Chen J, Ma M, Xu M, Liu S. Integration of transcriptomics and metabolomics analysis for unveiling the toxicological profile in the liver of mice exposed to uranium in drinking water. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2023; 335:122296. [PMID: 37536476 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2023.122296] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2023] [Revised: 04/17/2023] [Accepted: 07/29/2023] [Indexed: 08/05/2023]
Abstract
Uranium is a contaminate in the underground water in many regions of the world, which poses health risks to the local populations through drinking water. Although the health hazards of natural uranium have been concerned for decades, the controversies about its detrimental effects continue at present since it is still unclear how uranium interacts with molecular regulatory networks to generate toxicity. Here, we integrate transcriptomic and metabolomic methods to unveil the molecular mechanism of lipid metabolism disorder induced by uranium. Following exposure to uranium in drinking water for twenty-eight days, aberrant lipid metabolism and lipogenesis were found in the liver, accompanied with aggravated lipid peroxidation and an increase in dead cells. Multi-omics analysis reveals that uranium can promote the biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acids through dysregulating the metabolism of arachidonic acid (AA), linoleic acid, and glycerophospholipid. Most notably, the disordered metabolism of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) like AA may contribute to lipid peroxidation induced by uranium, which in turn triggers ferroptosis in hepatocytes. Our findings highlight disorder of lipid metabolism as an essential toxicological mechanism of uranium in the liver, offering insight into the health risks of uranium in drinking water.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruixia Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100085, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Yongjiu Chen
- Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Translational Research (Ministry of Education), Department of Unit III & Ostomy Service, Gastrointestinal Cancer Center, Peking University Cancer Hospital & Institute, Beijing, 100142, China
| | - Jiahao Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100085, China; School of Environment, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, 310024, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Minghao Ma
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100085, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Ming Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100085, China; School of Environment, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, 310024, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China.
| | - Sijin Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100085, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
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10
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Milano M, Agapito G, Cannataro M. An Exploratory Application of Multilayer Networks and Pathway Analysis in Pharmacogenomics. Genes (Basel) 2023; 14:1915. [PMID: 37895264 PMCID: PMC10606656 DOI: 10.3390/genes14101915] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2023] [Revised: 09/26/2023] [Accepted: 10/05/2023] [Indexed: 10/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Over the years, network analysis has become a promising strategy for analysing complex system, i.e., systems composed of a large number of interacting elements. In particular, multilayer networks have emerged as a powerful framework for modelling and analysing complex systems with multiple types of interactions. Network analysis can be applied to pharmacogenomics to gain insights into the interactions between genes, drugs, and diseases. By integrating network analysis techniques with pharmacogenomic data, the goal consists of uncovering complex relationships and identifying key genes to use in pathway enrichment analysis to figure out biological pathways involved in drug response and adverse reactions. In this study, we modelled omics, disease, and drug data together through multilayer network representation. Then, we mined the multilayer network with a community detection algorithm to obtain the top communities. After that, we used the identified list of genes from the communities to perform pathway enrichment analysis (PEA) to figure out the biological function affected by the selected genes. The results show that the genes forming the top community have multiple roles through different pathways.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marianna Milano
- Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, University Magna Græcia of Catanzaro, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy
- Data Analytics Research Center, University Magna Græcia of Catanzaro, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy; (G.A.); (M.C.)
| | - Giuseppe Agapito
- Data Analytics Research Center, University Magna Græcia of Catanzaro, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy; (G.A.); (M.C.)
- Department of Law, Economics and Social Sciences, University Magna Græcia of Catanzaro, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy
| | - Mario Cannataro
- Data Analytics Research Center, University Magna Græcia of Catanzaro, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy; (G.A.); (M.C.)
- Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, University Magna Græcia of Catanzaro, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy
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11
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Chicco D, Cumbo F, Angione C. Ten quick tips for avoiding pitfalls in multi-omics data integration analyses. PLoS Comput Biol 2023; 19:e1011224. [PMID: 37410704 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1011224] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Data are the most important elements of bioinformatics: Computational analysis of bioinformatics data, in fact, can help researchers infer new knowledge about biology, chemistry, biophysics, and sometimes even medicine, influencing treatments and therapies for patients. Bioinformatics and high-throughput biological data coming from different sources can even be more helpful, because each of these different data chunks can provide alternative, complementary information about a specific biological phenomenon, similar to multiple photos of the same subject taken from different angles. In this context, the integration of bioinformatics and high-throughput biological data gets a pivotal role in running a successful bioinformatics study. In the last decades, data originating from proteomics, metabolomics, metagenomics, phenomics, transcriptomics, and epigenomics have been labelled -omics data, as a unique name to refer to them, and the integration of these omics data has gained importance in all biological areas. Even if this omics data integration is useful and relevant, due to its heterogeneity, it is not uncommon to make mistakes during the integration phases. We therefore decided to present these ten quick tips to perform an omics data integration correctly, avoiding common mistakes we experienced or noticed in published studies in the past. Even if we designed our ten guidelines for beginners, by using a simple language that (we hope) can be understood by anyone, we believe our ten recommendations should be taken into account by all the bioinformaticians performing omics data integration, including experts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Davide Chicco
- Institute of Health Policy Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Fabio Cumbo
- Genomic Medicine Institute, Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Claudio Angione
- School of Computing Engineering and Digital Technologies, Teesside University, Middlesbrough, United Kingdom
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12
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Chicco D, Ferraro Petrillo U, Cattaneo G. Ten quick tips for bioinformatics analyses using an Apache Spark distributed computing environment. PLoS Comput Biol 2023; 19:e1011272. [PMID: 37471333 PMCID: PMC10358940 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1011272] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Some scientific studies involve huge amounts of bioinformatics data that cannot be analyzed on personal computers usually employed by researchers for day-to-day activities but rather necessitate effective computational infrastructures that can work in a distributed way. For this purpose, distributed computing systems have become useful tools to analyze large amounts of bioinformatics data and to generate relevant results on virtual environments, where software can be executed for hours or even days without affecting the personal computer or laptop of a researcher. Even if distributed computing resources have become pivotal in multiple bioinformatics laboratories, often researchers and students use them in the wrong ways, making mistakes that can cause the distributed computers to underperform or that can even generate wrong outcomes. In this context, we present here ten quick tips for the usage of Apache Spark distributed computing systems for bioinformatics analyses: ten simple guidelines that, if taken into account, can help users avoid common mistakes and can help them run their bioinformatics analyses smoothly. Even if we designed our recommendations for beginners and students, they should be followed by experts too. We think our quick tips can help anyone make use of Apache Spark distributed computing systems more efficiently and ultimately help generate better, more reliable scientific results.
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Affiliation(s)
- Davide Chicco
- Institute of Health Policy Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | | | - Giuseppe Cattaneo
- Dipartimento di Informatica, Università di Salerno, Fisciano (Salerno), Italy
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13
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Zhao K, Rhee SY. Interpreting omics data with pathway enrichment analysis. Trends Genet 2023; 39:308-319. [PMID: 36750393 DOI: 10.1016/j.tig.2023.01.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2022] [Revised: 11/24/2022] [Accepted: 01/13/2023] [Indexed: 02/09/2023]
Abstract
Pathway enrichment analysis is indispensable for interpreting omics datasets and generating hypotheses. However, the foundations of enrichment analysis remain elusive to many biologists. Here, we discuss best practices in interpreting different types of omics data using pathway enrichment analysis and highlight the importance of considering intrinsic features of various types of omics data. We further explain major components that influence the outcomes of a pathway enrichment analysis, including defining background sets and choosing reference annotation databases. To improve reproducibility, we describe how to standardize reporting methodological details in publications. This article aims to serve as a primer for biologists to leverage the wealth of omics resources and motivate bioinformatics tool developers to enhance the power of pathway enrichment analysis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kangmei Zhao
- Department of Plant Biology, Carnegie Institution for Science, Stanford, CA 94025, USA.
| | - Seung Yon Rhee
- Department of Plant Biology, Carnegie Institution for Science, Stanford, CA 94025, USA.
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14
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Slater K, Williams JA, Schofield PN, Russell S, Pendleton SC, Karwath A, Fanning H, Ball S, Hoehndorf R, Gkoutos GV. Klarigi: Characteristic explanations for semantic biomedical data. Comput Biol Med 2023; 153:106425. [PMID: 36638616 DOI: 10.1016/j.compbiomed.2022.106425] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2022] [Revised: 12/04/2022] [Accepted: 12/13/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Annotation of biomedical entities with ontology classes provides for formal semantic analysis and mobilisation of background knowledge in determining their relationships. To date, enrichment analysis has been routinely employed to identify classes that are over-represented in annotations across sets of groups, such as biosample gene expression profiles or patient phenotypes, and is useful for a range of tasks including differential diagnosis and causative variant prioritisation. These approaches, however, usually consider only univariate relationships, make limited use of the semantic features of ontologies, and provide limited information and evaluation of the explanatory power of both singular and grouped candidate classes. Moreover, they are not designed to solve the problem of deriving cohesive, characteristic, and discriminatory sets of classes for entity groups. We have developed a new tool, called Klarigi, which introduces multiple scoring heuristics for identification of classes that are both compositional and discriminatory for groups of entities annotated with ontology classes. The tool includes a novel algorithm for derivation of multivariable semantic explanations for entity groups, makes use of semantic inference through live use of an ontology reasoner, and includes a classification method for identifying the discriminatory power of candidate sets, in addition to significance testing apposite to traditional enrichment approaches. We describe the design and implementation of Klarigi, including its scoring and explanation determination methods, and evaluate its use in application to two test cases with clinical significance, comparing and contrasting methods and results with literature-based and enrichment analysis methods. We demonstrate that Klarigi produces characteristic and discriminatory explanations for groups of biomedical entities in two settings. We also show that these explanations recapitulate and extend the knowledge held in existing biomedical databases and literature for several diseases. We conclude that Klarigi provides a distinct and valuable perspective on biomedical datasets when compared with traditional enrichment methods, and therefore constitutes a new method by which biomedical datasets can be explored, contributing to improved insight into semantic data.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karin Slater
- College of Medical and Dental Sciences, Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences, University of Birmingham, UK; Institute of Translational Medicine, University Hospitals Birmingham, NHS Foundation Trust, UK; MRC Health Data Research UK (HDR UK), Midlands, UK; University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK.
| | - John A Williams
- College of Medical and Dental Sciences, Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences, University of Birmingham, UK; Institute of Translational Medicine, University Hospitals Birmingham, NHS Foundation Trust, UK; University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK
| | - Paul N Schofield
- Department of Physiology, Development, and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, UK
| | - Sophie Russell
- College of Medical and Dental Sciences, Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences, University of Birmingham, UK
| | - Samantha C Pendleton
- College of Medical and Dental Sciences, Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences, University of Birmingham, UK
| | - Andreas Karwath
- College of Medical and Dental Sciences, Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences, University of Birmingham, UK; Institute of Translational Medicine, University Hospitals Birmingham, NHS Foundation Trust, UK; MRC Health Data Research UK (HDR UK), Midlands, UK; University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK
| | - Hilary Fanning
- Institute of Translational Medicine, University Hospitals Birmingham, NHS Foundation Trust, UK; University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK
| | - Simon Ball
- Institute of Translational Medicine, University Hospitals Birmingham, NHS Foundation Trust, UK; University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK
| | - Robert Hoehndorf
- Computer, Electrical and Mathematical Sciences & Engineering Division, Computational Bioscience Research Center, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, UK
| | - Georgios V Gkoutos
- College of Medical and Dental Sciences, Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences, University of Birmingham, UK; Institute of Translational Medicine, University Hospitals Birmingham, NHS Foundation Trust, UK; NIHR Experimental Cancer Medicine Centre, UK; NIHR Surgical Reconstruction and Microbiology Research Centre, UK; NIHR Biomedical Research Centre, UK; MRC Health Data Research UK (HDR UK), Midlands, UK; University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK
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15
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Chicco D, Shiradkar R. Ten quick tips for computational analysis of medical images. PLoS Comput Biol 2023; 19:e1010778. [PMID: 36602952 PMCID: PMC9815662 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1010778] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Medical imaging is a great asset for modern medicine, since it allows physicians to spatially interrogate a disease site, resulting in precise intervention for diagnosis and treatment, and to observe particular aspect of patients' conditions that otherwise would not be noticeable. Computational analysis of medical images, moreover, can allow the discovery of disease patterns and correlations among cohorts of patients with the same disease, thus suggesting common causes or providing useful information for better therapies and cures. Machine learning and deep learning applied to medical images, in particular, have produced new, unprecedented results that can pave the way to advanced frontiers of medical discoveries. While computational analysis of medical images has become easier, however, the possibility to make mistakes or generate inflated or misleading results has become easier, too, hindering reproducibility and deployment. In this article, we provide ten quick tips to perform computational analysis of medical images avoiding common mistakes and pitfalls that we noticed in multiple studies in the past. We believe our ten guidelines, if taken into practice, can help the computational-medical imaging community to perform better scientific research that eventually can have a positive impact on the lives of patients worldwide.
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Affiliation(s)
- Davide Chicco
- Institute of Health Policy Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Rakesh Shiradkar
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
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16
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Abstract
Applying computational statistics or machine learning methods to data is a key component of many scientific studies, in any field, but alone might not be sufficient to generate robust and reliable outcomes and results. Before applying any discovery method, preprocessing steps are necessary to prepare the data to the computational analysis. In this framework, data cleaning and feature engineering are key pillars of any scientific study involving data analysis and that should be adequately designed and performed since the first phases of the project. We call "feature" a variable describing a particular trait of a person or an observation, recorded usually as a column in a dataset. Even if pivotal, these data cleaning and feature engineering steps sometimes are done poorly or inefficiently, especially by beginners and unexperienced researchers. For this reason, we propose here our quick tips for data cleaning and feature engineering on how to carry out these important preprocessing steps correctly avoiding common mistakes and pitfalls. Although we designed these guidelines with bioinformatics and health informatics scenarios in mind, we believe they can more in general be applied to any scientific area. We therefore target these guidelines to any researcher or practitioners wanting to perform data cleaning or feature engineering. We believe our simple recommendations can help researchers and scholars perform better computational analyses that can lead, in turn, to more solid outcomes and more reliable discoveries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Davide Chicco
- Institute of Health Policy Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- * E-mail:
| | - Luca Oneto
- Dipartimento di Informatica Bioingegneria Robotica e Ingegneria dei Sistemi, Università di Genova, Genoa, Italy
- ZenaByte S.r.l., Genoa, Italy
| | - Erica Tavazzi
- Dipartimento di Ingegneria dell’Informazione, Università di Padova, Padua, Italy
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17
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Chicco D, Alameer A, Rahmati S, Jurman G. Towards a potential pan-cancer prognostic signature for gene expression based on probesets and ensemble machine learning. BioData Min 2022; 15:28. [PMID: 36329531 PMCID: PMC9632055 DOI: 10.1186/s13040-022-00312-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2022] [Accepted: 10/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Cancer is one of the leading causes of death worldwide and can be caused by environmental aspects (for example, exposure to asbestos), by human behavior (such as smoking), or by genetic factors. To understand which genes might be involved in patients’ survival, researchers have invented prognostic genetic signatures: lists of genes that can be used in scientific analyses to predict if a patient will survive or not. In this study, we joined together five different prognostic signatures, each of them related to a specific cancer type, to generate a unique pan-cancer prognostic signature, that contains 207 unique probesets related to 187 unique gene symbols, with one particular probeset present in two cancer type-specific signatures (203072_at related to the MYO1E gene). We applied our proposed pan-cancer signature with the Random Forests machine learning method to 57 microarray gene expression datasets of 12 different cancer types, and analyzed the results. We also compared the performance of our pan-cancer signature with the performances of two alternative prognostic signatures, and with the performances of each cancer type-specific signature on their corresponding cancer type-specific datasets. Our results confirmed the effectiveness of our prognostic pan-cancer signature. Moreover, we performed a pathway enrichment analysis, which indicated an association between the signature genes and a protein-protein interaction analysis, that highlighted PIK3R2 and FN1 as key genes having a fundamental relevance in our signature, suggesting an important role in pan-cancer prognosis for both of them.
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Affiliation(s)
- Davide Chicco
- grid.17063.330000 0001 2157 2938Institute of Health Policy Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto, 155 College Street, M5T 3M7 Toronto, Ontario Canada
| | - Abbas Alameer
- grid.411196.a0000 0001 1240 3921Department of Biological Sciences, Kuwait University, 13 KH Firdous Street, 13060 Kuwait City, Kuwait
| | - Sara Rahmati
- grid.231844.80000 0004 0474 0428Krembil Research Institute, 135 Nassau Street, M5T 1M8 Toronto, Ontario Canada
| | - Giuseppe Jurman
- grid.11469.3b0000 0000 9780 0901Fondazione Bruno Kessler, Via Sommarive 18, 38123 Povo (Trento), Italy
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18
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Chicco D, Jurman G. A brief survey of tools for genomic regions enrichment analysis. FRONTIERS IN BIOINFORMATICS 2022; 2:968327. [PMID: 36388843 PMCID: PMC9645122 DOI: 10.3389/fbinf.2022.968327] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2022] [Accepted: 09/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Functional enrichment analysis or pathway enrichment analysis (PEA) is a bioinformatics technique which identifies the most over-represented biological pathways in a list of genes compared to those that would be associated with them by chance. These biological functions are found on bioinformatics annotated databases such as The Gene Ontology or KEGG; the more abundant pathways are identified through statistical techniques such as Fisher’s exact test. All PEA tools require a list of genes as input. A few tools, however, read lists of genomic regions as input rather than lists of genes, and first associate these chromosome regions with their corresponding genes. These tools perform a procedure called genomic regions enrichment analysis, which can be useful for detecting the biological pathways related to a set of chromosome regions. In this brief survey, we analyze six tools for genomic regions enrichment analysis (BEHST, g:Profiler g:GOSt, GREAT, LOLA, Poly-Enrich, and ReactomePA), outlining and comparing their main features. Our comparison results indicate that the inclusion of data for regulatory elements, such as ChIP-seq, is common among these tools and could therefore improve the enrichment analysis results.
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Affiliation(s)
- Davide Chicco
- Institute of Health Policy Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Giuseppe Jurman
- Data Science for Health Unit, Fondazione Bruno Kessler, Trento, Italy
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