RNAcare: integrating clinical data with transcriptomic evidence using rheumatoid arthritis as a case study.

Journal: BMC medical genomics
Published Date:

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Gene expression analysis is a crucial tool for uncovering the biological mechanisms that underlie differences between patient subgroups, offering insights that can inform clinical decisions. However, despite its potential, gene expression analysis remains challenging for clinicians due to the specialised skills required to access, integrate, and analyse large datasets. Existing tools primarily focus on RNA-Seq data analysis, providing user-friendly interfaces but often falling short in several critical areas: they typically do not integrate clinical data, lack support for patient-specific analyses, and offer limited flexibility in exploring relationships between gene expression and clinical outcomes in disease cohorts. Users, including clinicians with a general knowledge of transcriptomics, however, who may have limited programming experience, are increasingly seeking tools that go beyond traditional analysis. To overcome these issues, computational tools must incorporate advanced techniques, such as machine learning, to better understand how gene expression correlates with patient symptoms of interest.

Authors

  • Mingcan Tang
    School of Infection & Immunity, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.
  • William Haese-Hill
    School of Infection & Immunity, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.
  • Fraser Morton
    School of Infection & Immunity, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.
  • Carl Goodyear
    School of Infection & Immunity, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.
  • Duncan Porter
    School of Infection & Immunity, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.
  • Stefan Siebert
    Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom.
  • Thomas D Otto
    Institute of Infection, Immunity & Inflammation, MVLS, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK. Thomasdan.otto@glasgow.ac.uk.