Figure 1

Autism database comparison, modular workflow of MSET analysis, and autism enrichment evaluation of postpartum LS expression results. A) Pairwise comparison of redundancy in gene lists extracted from autism databases, calculated as the proportion of the smaller list that is identical to the larger list. Dark green corresponds to the highest possible redundancy (1), and red represents the least redundancy (0). B) Schematic view of modules that can be combined in MSET analysis. Enrichment of any gene database in the left hand column can be assessed within any set of expression data from the right hand column. The grey path connecting modules highlights the specific combination whose output is shown in the enlarged window in panel C. C) Output of MSET analysis for nine autism databases within postpartum LS expression results. The first window displays enrichment of Autism Genetic Database (AGD) genes within postpartum LS expression data, and is enlarged to include explanatory labels that highlight the important features of the graphical output. Y-axis represents the probability of X matches to database found in a randomly generated set of simulated results from the microarray background. The blue arrow shows how many matches were found in the actual significant postpartum LS expression changes and where that number falls on the probability density distribution. The enrichment p-value is derived from the number of simulated results that contained at least as many matches to database as the actual results. The following windows show MSET enrichment analyses for the other eight autism databases within postpartum LS expression data.