Operational Taxonomic Units classification: Diving into Phenetics Approach with the 16S Subunit
Operational Taxonomic Units (or OTUs) are useful approximations for taxonomic species in groups where classification is difficult. As such, OTU classifications based on DNA sequences are commonly used in metagenomics studies to describe sample diversity. Since there are no a…
Researching the communication structure of online health communities with social network analysis and computational linguistics, a group informatics approach
Online communities are virtual social structures that promote communication among Internet users on various discussion subjects. Research has found that online communities make communication possible for every person and are highly active with almost every Web user being a member…
Large-scale biomedical image analysis using Big Data Infrastructure
Biomedical imaging informatics involves the analysis, manipulation, and computational calculation of digitally acquired biomedical images to gain knowledge and insights. Informatics technologies are being developed to assist biomedical researchers to identify meaningful objects from raw images, extract content, process information,…
Developing a Decision Support Software for CINV Prevention
The US National Center for Health Statistics estimated that more than 19 million adults in the US have ever been diagnosed with cancer. Chemotherapy is one of the important modality of cancer treatments. Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea and Vomiting (CINV) are the…
Knowledge Discovery System for Research Hypothesis Generation from Serendipitous Findings
From the discovery of penicillin and x-rays to the development of many of today’s chemotherapy agents, serendipitous findings tangential to the researcher’s intended purpose, the “That’s funny…” moments, have greatly impacted the health and well-being of society. As an information…
Model-, structure-, and sequence-based methods for prediction of protein binding sites
Identification of protein-protein binding sites is important in understanding the protein function. The binding site prediction methods that rely on structure are generally more accurate than those ones relying on sequence. However, the coverage of structure-based methods is significantly lower…
Sequence Identity Study for Operational Taxonomic Unit Classification
In metagenomics studies of microorganisms, Operational Taxonomic Unit (OTU) is often used as the replacement for species distinction. This pseudo-species definition is helpful in cases when the scientists would like to understand the composition and diversity of the culture in…
Predictive Analytics On Medicare/Medicade Cost Outcomes
LIGHT2 (Leveraging Information Technology for Hi-Tech and Hi-Touch Care) is a federally funded project using 24 “Nurse Care Managers” to manage the health of 10,000 Medicare and Medicaid patients. Its goal is to reduce exacerbations of chronic diseases, which would…
A Deep Learning Network Approach to ab initio Protein Secondary Structure Prediction
The necessity for reliable ab initio protein secondary structure prediction is growing along with the demand for accurate tertiary structure prediction. Although recent developments have slightly exceeded previous methods of secondary structure prediction, these methods rarely surpass 80% accuracy. Developing…