Gokbag, B. | bioRxiv Science

bioRxiv2026

Interpretable gene networks from single-cell foundation models reveal conserved neurogenic dysfunction in Parkinson's disease

Interpreting large-scale single-cell transcriptomic data remains a major challenge for understanding disease mechanisms. Recent single-cell foundation models learn rich representations of gene relationships across millions of cells, yet methods for translating these embeddings into biologically interpretable gene networks remain limited. Here we present scGENet, a computational framework that constructs context-specific gene interaction networks from foundation model-derived gene embeddings. By fine-tuning pretrained models on transcriptomic data from human midbrain organoids, scGENet generates transcriptome-scale gene modules that capture biologically meaningful cellular programs. Benchmarking across multiple foundation models demonstrates that networks derived from a fine-tuned scGPT brain model show the highest concordance with curated neuronal pathways, Parkinsons disease (PD) genetic risk loci, and independent patient-derived transcriptional signatures. Applying this framework to human iPSC-derived PD midbrain organoids reveals transcriptional modules associated with neuronal differentiation, synaptic signaling, and cell-cycle regulation. Single-nucleus RNA sequencing further links these programs to altered cellular composition, including reduced dopaminergic neurons, expansion of radial glia-like progenitors, and a dopaminergic neuron subtype expressing SNCA and VGLUT2. Integration with independent human substantia nigra datasets identifies a conserved neurogenic program disrupted across genetic and idiopathic PD. Together, these results establish a generalizable strategy for extracting interpretable gene networks from single-cell foundation models, enabling systematic discovery of disease-relevant molecular programs across diverse tissues and datasets.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2021

DGCyTOF: deep learning with graphic cluster visualization to predict cell types of single cell mass cytometry data

BackgroundSingle-cell mass cytometry, also known as cytometry by time of flight (CyTOF) is a powerful high-throughput technology that allows analysis of up to 50 protein markers per cell for the quantification and classification of single cells. Traditional manual gating utilized to identify new cell populations has been inadequate, inefficient, unreliable, and difficult to use, and no algorithms to identify both calibration and new cell populations has been well established. MethodsA deep learning with graphic cluster (DGCyTOF) visualization is developed as a new integrated embedding visualization approach in identifying canonical and new cell types. The DGCyTOF combines deep-learning classification and hierarchical stable-clustering methods to sequentially build a tri-layer construct for known cell types and the identification of new cell types. First, deep classification learning is constructed to distinguish calibration cell populations from all cells by softmax classification assignment under a probability threshold, and graph embedding clustering is then used to identify new cell populations sequentially. In the middle of two-layer, cell labels are automatically adjusted between new and unknown cell populations via a feedback loop using an iteration calibration system to reduce the rate of error in the identification of cell types, and a 3-dimensional (3D) visualization platform is finally developed to display the cell clusters with all cell-population types annotated. ResultsUtilizing two benchmark CyTOF databases comprising up to 43 million cells, we compared accuracy and speed in the identification of cell types among DGCyTOF, DeepCyTOF, and other technologies including dimension reduction with clustering, including Principal Component Analysis (PCA), Factor Analysis (FA), Independent Component Analysis (ICA), Isometric Feature Mapping (Isomap), t-distributed Stochastic Neighbor Embedding (t-SNE), and Uniform Manifold Approximation and Projection (UMAP) with k-means clustering and Gaussian mixture clustering. We observed the DGCyTOF represents a robust complete learning system with high accuracy, speed and visualization by eight measurement criteria. The DGCyTOF displayed F-scores of 0.9921 for CyTOF1 and 0.9992 for CyTOF2 datasets, whereas those scores were only 0.507 and 0.529 for the t-SNE+k-means; 0.565 and 0.59, for UMAP+ k-means. Comparison of DGCyTOF with t-SNE and UMAP visualization in accuracy demonstrated its approximately 35% superiority in predicting cell types. In addition, observation of cell-population distribution was more intuitive in the 3D visualization in DGCyTOF than t-SNE and UMAP visualization. ConclusionsThe DGCyTOF model can automatically assign known labels to single cells with high accuracy using deep-learning classification assembling with traditional graph-clustering and dimension-reduction strategies. Guided by a calibration system, the model seeks optimal accuracy balance among calibration cell populations and unknown cell types, yielding a complete and robust learning system that is highly accurate in the identification of cell populations compared to results using other methods in the analysis of single-cell CyTOF data. Application of the DGCyTOF method to identify cell populations could be extended to the analysis of single-cell RNASeq data and other omics data. Availability and implementationA Python package (Python 3) and analysis scripts for reproducing the results are available at https://lijcheng12.github.io/DGCyTOF/. DGCyTOF python package contactLijun.cheng@osu.edu. Supplementary informationSupplementary data are available at journal **** online. Key pointsO_LIDGCyTOF has been developed for the automatic identification of known and new cell populations. C_LIO_LIOptimal dimension reduction that integrates graphic-clustering technology facilitates highly accurate identification of new cell populations. C_LIO_LIUse of a feedback-calibration system can enhance the homology of cell types for the identification of cell populations. C_LIO_LIThree-dimensional visualization technology allows vivid depiction of cell types to improve their classification. C_LI

bioinformatics↗