Deep learning in omics: a survey and guideline.

Journal: Briefings in functional genomics
Published Date:

Abstract

Omics, such as genomics, transcriptome and proteomics, has been affected by the era of big data. A huge amount of high dimensional and complex structured data has made it no longer applicable for conventional machine learning algorithms. Fortunately, deep learning technology can contribute toward resolving these challenges. There is evidence that deep learning can handle omics data well and resolve omics problems. This survey aims to provide an entry-level guideline for researchers, to understand and use deep learning in order to solve omics problems. We first introduce several deep learning models and then discuss several research areas which have combined omics and deep learning in recent years. In addition, we summarize the general steps involved in using deep learning which have not yet been systematically discussed in the existent literature on this topic. Finally, we compare the features and performance of current mainstream open source deep learning frameworks and present the opportunities and challenges involved in deep learning. This survey will be a good starting point and guideline for omics researchers to understand deep learning.

Authors

  • Zhiqiang Zhang
    Suzhou Institute of Biomedical Engineering and Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou 215163, China.
  • Yi Zhao
    Department of Biostatistics and Health Data Science, Indiana University School of Medicine.
  • Xiangke Liao
    School of Computer Science, National University of Defense Technology, Changsha, China.
  • Wenqiang Shi
    Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, Department of Medical Genetics, University of British Columbia, Rm 3109, 950 West 28th Avenue, Vancouver, V5Z 4H4, Canada.
  • Kenli Li
    College of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering & National Supercomputer Centre in Changsha, Hunan University, Changsha, China.
  • Quan Zou
  • Shaoliang Peng
    School of Computer Science, National University of Defense Technology, Changsha, China.