MDFGNN-SMMA: prediction of potential small molecule-miRNA associations based on multi-source data fusion and graph neural networks

Abstract Background MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are pivotal in the initiation and progression of complex human diseases and have been identified as targets for small molecule (SM) drugs. However, the expensive and time-intensive characteristics of conventional experimental techniques for identifying SM-miRNA...

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Main Authors: Jianwei Li, Xukun Zhang, Bing Li, Ziyu Li, Zhenzhen Chen
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2025-01-01
Series:BMC Bioinformatics
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12859-025-06040-4
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author Jianwei Li
Xukun Zhang
Bing Li
Ziyu Li
Zhenzhen Chen
author_facet Jianwei Li
Xukun Zhang
Bing Li
Ziyu Li
Zhenzhen Chen
author_sort Jianwei Li
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Background MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are pivotal in the initiation and progression of complex human diseases and have been identified as targets for small molecule (SM) drugs. However, the expensive and time-intensive characteristics of conventional experimental techniques for identifying SM-miRNA associations highlight the necessity for efficient computational methodologies in this field. Results In this study, we proposed a deep learning method called Multi-source Data Fusion and Graph Neural Networks for Small Molecule-MiRNA Association (MDFGNN-SMMA) to predict potential SM-miRNA associations. Firstly, MDFGNN-SMMA extracted features of Atom Pairs fingerprints and Molecular ACCess System fingerprints to derive fusion feature vectors for small molecules (SMs). The K-mer features were employed to generate the initial feature vectors for miRNAs. Secondly, cosine similarity measures were computed to construct the adjacency matrices for SMs and miRNAs, respectively. Thirdly, these feature vectors and adjacency matrices were input into a model comprising GAT and GraphSAGE, which were utilized to generate the final feature vectors for SMs and miRNAs. Finally, the averaged final feature vectors were utilized as input for a multilayer perceptron to predict the associations between SMs and miRNAs. Conclusions The performance of MDFGNN-SMMA was assessed using 10-fold cross-validation, demonstrating superior compared to the four state-of-the-art models in terms of both AUC and AUPR. Moreover, the experimental results of an independent test set confirmed the model’s generalization capability. Additionally, the efficacy of MDFGNN-SMMA was substantiated through three case studies. The findings indicated that among the top 50 predicted miRNAs associated with Cisplatin, 5-Fluorouracil, and Doxorubicin, 42, 36, and 36 miRNAs, respectively, were corroborated by existing literature and the RNAInter database.
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spelling doaj-art-801d4bca4994476c82e1dec29e02b5e92025-01-19T12:40:59ZengBMCBMC Bioinformatics1471-21052025-01-0126112310.1186/s12859-025-06040-4MDFGNN-SMMA: prediction of potential small molecule-miRNA associations based on multi-source data fusion and graph neural networksJianwei Li0Xukun Zhang1Bing Li2Ziyu Li3Zhenzhen Chen4School of Artificial Intelligence, Hebei University of TechnologySchool of Artificial Intelligence, Hebei University of TechnologySchool of Artificial Intelligence, Hebei University of TechnologySchool of Artificial Intelligence, Hebei University of TechnologyBeijing Institute of Heart Lung and Blood Vessel Diseases, Beijing Anzhen Hospital of Capital Medical UniversityAbstract Background MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are pivotal in the initiation and progression of complex human diseases and have been identified as targets for small molecule (SM) drugs. However, the expensive and time-intensive characteristics of conventional experimental techniques for identifying SM-miRNA associations highlight the necessity for efficient computational methodologies in this field. Results In this study, we proposed a deep learning method called Multi-source Data Fusion and Graph Neural Networks for Small Molecule-MiRNA Association (MDFGNN-SMMA) to predict potential SM-miRNA associations. Firstly, MDFGNN-SMMA extracted features of Atom Pairs fingerprints and Molecular ACCess System fingerprints to derive fusion feature vectors for small molecules (SMs). The K-mer features were employed to generate the initial feature vectors for miRNAs. Secondly, cosine similarity measures were computed to construct the adjacency matrices for SMs and miRNAs, respectively. Thirdly, these feature vectors and adjacency matrices were input into a model comprising GAT and GraphSAGE, which were utilized to generate the final feature vectors for SMs and miRNAs. Finally, the averaged final feature vectors were utilized as input for a multilayer perceptron to predict the associations between SMs and miRNAs. Conclusions The performance of MDFGNN-SMMA was assessed using 10-fold cross-validation, demonstrating superior compared to the four state-of-the-art models in terms of both AUC and AUPR. Moreover, the experimental results of an independent test set confirmed the model’s generalization capability. Additionally, the efficacy of MDFGNN-SMMA was substantiated through three case studies. The findings indicated that among the top 50 predicted miRNAs associated with Cisplatin, 5-Fluorouracil, and Doxorubicin, 42, 36, and 36 miRNAs, respectively, were corroborated by existing literature and the RNAInter database.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12859-025-06040-4Small molecule-miRNA associationMulti-source data fusionGraph neural networksMultilayer perceptron
spellingShingle Jianwei Li
Xukun Zhang
Bing Li
Ziyu Li
Zhenzhen Chen
MDFGNN-SMMA: prediction of potential small molecule-miRNA associations based on multi-source data fusion and graph neural networks
BMC Bioinformatics
Small molecule-miRNA association
Multi-source data fusion
Graph neural networks
Multilayer perceptron
title MDFGNN-SMMA: prediction of potential small molecule-miRNA associations based on multi-source data fusion and graph neural networks
title_full MDFGNN-SMMA: prediction of potential small molecule-miRNA associations based on multi-source data fusion and graph neural networks
title_fullStr MDFGNN-SMMA: prediction of potential small molecule-miRNA associations based on multi-source data fusion and graph neural networks
title_full_unstemmed MDFGNN-SMMA: prediction of potential small molecule-miRNA associations based on multi-source data fusion and graph neural networks
title_short MDFGNN-SMMA: prediction of potential small molecule-miRNA associations based on multi-source data fusion and graph neural networks
title_sort mdfgnn smma prediction of potential small molecule mirna associations based on multi source data fusion and graph neural networks
topic Small molecule-miRNA association
Multi-source data fusion
Graph neural networks
Multilayer perceptron
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s12859-025-06040-4
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AT bingli mdfgnnsmmapredictionofpotentialsmallmoleculemirnaassociationsbasedonmultisourcedatafusionandgraphneuralnetworks
AT ziyuli mdfgnnsmmapredictionofpotentialsmallmoleculemirnaassociationsbasedonmultisourcedatafusionandgraphneuralnetworks
AT zhenzhenchen mdfgnnsmmapredictionofpotentialsmallmoleculemirnaassociationsbasedonmultisourcedatafusionandgraphneuralnetworks