Preclinical Western Blot in the Era of Digital Transformation and Reproducible Research, an Eastern Perspective

Saman Sargolzaei; Ajeet Kaushik; Seyed Soltani; M Hadi Amini; Mohammad Reza Khalghani; Navid Khoshavi; Arman Sargolzaei

doi:10.1007/s12539-021-00442-7

Preclinical Western Blot in the Era of Digital Transformation and Reproducible Research, an Eastern Perspective

Interdiscip Sci. 2021 Sep;13(3):490-499. doi: 10.1007/s12539-021-00442-7. Epub 2021 Jun 2.

Authors

Saman Sargolzaei¹, Ajeet Kaushik², Seyed Soltani³, M Hadi Amini⁴, Mohammad Reza Khalghani⁵, Navid Khoshavi⁶, Arman Sargolzaei⁷

Affiliations

¹ Department of Engineering, University of Tennessee at Martin, Martin, TN, USA. saman@utm.edu.
² Department of Natural Sciences, Florida Polytechnic University, Lakeland, FL, USA.
³ Mechanical Engineering Department, Florida Polytechnic University, Lakeland, FL, USA.
⁴ School of Computing and Information Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA.
⁵ Electrical and Computer Engineering Department, Florida Polytechnic University, Lakeland, FL, USA.
⁶ Computer Science Department, Florida Polytechnic University, Lakeland, FL, USA.
⁷ Department of Mechanical Engineering, Tennessee Technological University, Cookeville, TN, USA.

PMID: 34080131
DOI: 10.1007/s12539-021-00442-7

Abstract

The current research is an interdisciplinary endeavor to develop a necessary tool in preclinical protein studies of diseases or disorders through western blotting. In the era of digital transformation and open access principles, an interactive cloud-based database called East-West Blot ( https://rancs-lab.shinyapps.io/WesternBlots ) is designed and developed. The online interactive subject-specific database built on the R shiny platform facilitates a systematic literature search on the specific subject matter, here set to western blot studies of protein regulation in the preclinical model of TBI. The tool summarizes the existing publicly available knowledge through a data visualization technique and easy access to the critical data elements and links to the study itself. The application compiled a relational database of PubMed-indexed western blot studies labeled under HHS public access, reporting downstream protein regulations presented by fluid percussion injury model of traumatic brain injury. The promises of the developed tool include progressing toward implementing the principles of 3Rs (replacement, reduction, and refinement) for humane experiments, cultivating the prerequisites of reproducible research in terms of reporting characteristics, paving the ways for a more collaborative experimental design in basic science, and rendering an up-to-date and summarized perspective of current publicly available knowledge.

Keywords: Computational science; Digital transformation; Interdisciplinary; Online database; Reproducible research; Western blot.

MeSH terms

Blotting, Western
Humans
Research Design*