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Help & Documentation

LncACTdb 4.0 help document.

Welcome to LncACTdb 4.0

LncACTdb 4.0 is an updated resource of experimentally supported ceRNA interactions and multi-level regulatory networks curated from bulk tissues, cell lines, organoids and single-cell transcriptomes for precision oncology.

LncACTdb 4.0 features substantial updates in data volume, biological coverage, and analytical functionality.
(1) We manually curated 15,058 high-confidence, experimentally supported ceRNA-disease associations and annotated 16,937 potential biomarkers for precision oncology.
(2) Leveraging large-scale transcriptomic cohorts, the database encompasses data from >80,000 individuals and ~600,000 single cells across human and mouse, spanning over 80 tissues and more than 200 disease types.
(3) Novel ceRNA interactions were systematically identified across four distinct biological scales—bulk tissues, cell lines, organoids, and single-cell transcriptomes—providing unprecedented multi-resolution views.
(4) A suite of newly developed online tools (including ceExpression, ceFunction, ceSpecific, ceNetwork and ceSurvival) enables in-depth mechanistic exploration at both the single-sample and single-cell levels.
(5) Furthermore, we have significantly enhanced computational efficiency, result visualization, and interactive data presentation, ensuring a user-friendly experience for clinical and translational researchers.

282M+
ceRNA interaction
4
dataset levels
15,058
validated ceRNAs
16,937
validated biomarkers
80,000+
clinical individuals
600,000+
single cells

The LncACTdb 4.0 home page

Figure slot — drop your screenshot at home/img/help/overview-home.png Suggested: a full-page screenshot of the LncACTdb 4.0 home page
Figure 1. The LncACTdb 4.0 home page.

Result page

Every search lands on a result page built to the same template. Top to bottom, having four blocks:

1
Profile banner — the molecule / disease / dataset, its IDs, external links (NCBI, Ensembl, GeneCards, PubMed) and a strip of key figures.
2
Modality strip & KPIs — animated counters and a bar showing how the evidence splits across the four dataset level.
3
Interactive landscape — a chart where each point is one dataset (axes = samples vs. ceRNA count, size = genes, colour = modality). The custom legend doubles as a filter that is linked to the table below; clicking a bubble flashes the matching table row.
4
Linked data table — a sortable, exportable DataTable (CSV / Excel / Print, column visibility). The first column drills down: View opens the per-dataset page, Detail opens the final pair-in-dataset hub.
Figure slot — drop your screenshot at home/img/help/result-gene.png Suggested: a Gene result page showing the bubble landscape + table
Figure 2. ceRNA Gene result page: profile banner, landscape chart and linked table.

The Browse explorer

Browse is a single-page explorer: an expandable category tree on the left, a results panel on the right.

Figure slot — drop your screenshot at home/img/help/browse.png Suggested: the Browse page with the tree open and a table loaded
Figure 3. The Browse explorer: category tree (left) and results (right).

Analysis tools

LncACTdb 4.0 ships twelve interactive tools. Eight are universal — they run on a dataset of any data level — and four are single-cell only, built on the per-cell coordinates and cell-state scores.

Universal runs on any data level  ·  Single-cell needs a single-cell dataset

Tool 01

ceExpression Universal

ceRNA expression

Profiling ceRNA expression and correlation landscapes across individuals. Pick one lncRNA–mRNA pair in a dataset: the top row paints lncRNA expression, mRNA expression and the ceRNA significance (−log10 p) on the dataset's UMAP / t-SNE embedding; the bottom row gives three Pearson regression scatters so you can see how tightly the two transcripts track each other.

Inputs
  • Dataset
  • lncRNA & mRNA (linked pair selectors)
  • UMAP / t-SNE toggle
Outputs
  • Three embedding maps (lnc / mRNA expr + ceRNA significance)
  • Three regression scatters with Pearson r and a linear fit
  • Maps fold away for datasets with < 5 samples
Figure slot home/img/help/tool-ceexpression.png
Tool 02

ceClinic Universal

Clinical association

Profiling ceRNA expression changes across stratified clinical individuals. Overlay a clinical variable — stage, age, subtype and the like — on a pair's three embedding maps, then read how lncRNA / mRNA expression and ceRNA significance split across the clinical groups as a boxplot or scatter.

Inputs
  • Dataset · lncRNA & mRNA pair
  • Clinical variable (sample-specific)
Outputs
  • Three expression / significance maps
  • Clinical stratification chart (box / scatter)
Figure slot home/img/help/tool-ceclinic.png
Tool 03

ceFunction Universal

Functional score

Bridging ceRNA expression and functional omics across individuals. For one pair and one pathway it draws the three expression maps (lnc / mRNA expr + ceRNA significance) alongside a fourth map of the pathway-enrichment score on the same embedding, then correlates the pathway score against lncRNA expression, mRNA expression or the ceRNA significance — switchable, Pearson or Spearman.

Inputs
  • Dataset · lncRNA & mRNA pair
  • Pathway category + signature
  • Correlation axis & method (Pearson / Spearman)
Outputs
  • Expression maps + a pathway-score map on one embedding
  • Pathway-score vs expression / significance scatter
Figure slot home/img/help/tool-cefunction.png
Tool 04

ceFuncCompare Universal

Pathway compare

Comparing functional signatures across multi-context biological profiles. Project per-sample / per-cell enrichment scores onto the embedding and set two signatures against each other. Scores come from six categories — GO BP / CC / MF, MSigDB Hallmark, KEGG pathway and an extra enrichment set — precomputed for every dataset.

Inputs
  • Dataset
  • Two category + signature pickers
Outputs
  • Embedding maps coloured by signature score
  • Distribution boxplot & signature-vs-signature scatter
  • Score data table
Figure slot home/img/help/tool-cefunccompare.png
Tool 05

ceSpecific Universal

Interaction detection

Evaluating ceRNA interaction specificity across tissues, cell lines, organoids and single-cell transcriptomes. Pick a pair and see exactly where it is detected: bulk datasets draw a per-sample lollipop, single-cell datasets draw a grouped bar across cell types — so you can tell a broadly active interaction from a context-specific one.

Inputs
  • Dataset
  • lncRNA & mRNA pair
Outputs
  • Bulk: per-sample lollipop of detection
  • Single cell: grouped bar across cell types
Figure slot home/img/help/tool-cespecific.png
Tool 06

ceDataNet Universal

Data network

Constructing multi-scale ceRNA regulatory networks from bulk to single-cell resolution. A focal lncRNA or mRNA sits at the centre, ringed by its top-N partners in the chosen dataset; node size and edge width scale with the number of shared miRNAs. Switch between force and circular layouts, set Top-N, and click any node to open that partner's profile.

Inputs
  • Focal gene (lncRNA or mRNA, type-ahead)
  • Dataset (data-level-grouped picker)
  • Top-N partners: 15 / 30 / 50 / All
Outputs
  • Interactive force / circular network graph
  • Linked partner table (Ensembl, type, shared miRNAs, detection rate)
  • PNG & CSV (nodes + edges) export
Figure slot home/img/help/tool-cedatanet.png
Tool 07

ceSampleNet Universal

Sample network

Constructing sample-level ceRNA networks for tumor heterogeneity analysis. Rebuild the full ceRNA network active in one chosen sample (a bulk GSM) or one cell type (single cell) from the top significant pairs in that context — a way to see which interactions are switched on here, not just across the whole cohort.

Inputs
  • Dataset
  • Sample (bulk) or cell type (single cell)
Outputs
  • Sample-specific ceRNA network graph (top pairs by significance)
  • Adapts to bulk vs. single-cell datasets
  • PNG & CSV export
Figure slot home/img/help/tool-cesamplenet.png
Tool 08

ceSurvival Universal

Survival analysis

Linking ceRNA axes to clinical outcomes via large-scale survival analysis. Split patients into high- and low-expression groups for a chosen lncRNA in a chosen disease and draw the Kaplan–Meier curve with its log-rank significance — a quick read on a lncRNA's prognostic value. Curve colours are yours to set.

Inputs
  • Gene (lncRNA)
  • Disease / cohort
  • Curve colours
Outputs
  • Kaplan–Meier plot (high vs. low expression)
  • Log-rank significance
Figure slot home/img/help/tool-cesurvival.png
Single-cell resolution tools

The four tools below need a single-cell (S) dataset — they read the per-cell coordinates, cell types and 25 cell-state scores. They default to a single-cell cohort.

Tool 09

scCluster Single-cell

Cell clustering

Clustering single cells and quantifying ceRNA counts in TME. Draw the single-cell UMAP / t-SNE scatter coloured by any metadata layer — cell type, sample, patient, source, stage, or the clustering resolution (0.1–0.9). The usual first step when exploring a single-cell dataset.

Inputs
  • Single-cell dataset
  • Colour-by metadata field
  • UMAP / t-SNE toggle
Outputs
  • Coloured single-cell embedding scatter
  • Click a cell to open its cell-detail page
Figure slot home/img/help/tool-sccluster.png
Tool 10

scTrajectory Single-cell

Trajectory

Tracing cell trajectories via four classic algorithms. Lay out developmental trajectories on the single-cell embedding with Monocle 2, Monocle 3, Slingshot or CytoTRACE, coloured by pseudotime, state, lineage or potency. Monocle 3 pseudotime is computed live and root-dependent — click any cell to make it the root and recompute.

Inputs
  • Single-cell dataset
  • Trajectory method & colour-by
  • Click-to-set root (Monocle 3)
Outputs
  • Trajectory scatter coloured by pseudotime / state
  • Live Monocle 3 recompute on root change
Figure slot home/img/help/tool-sctrajectory.png
Tool 11

scCeExp Single-cell

Cell expression

Profiling ceRNA expression patterns at single-cell level. Paint a lncRNA's expression, an mRNA's expression, or a pair's ceRNA significance straight onto the single-cell embedding, switching between UMAP, t-SNE, Monocle 2 and Monocle 3 coordinates — so you can see which cell populations carry a transcript or interaction.

Inputs
  • Single-cell dataset
  • Mode: lncRNA / mRNA / ceRNA pair
  • Embedding (UMAP / t-SNE / Monocle)
Outputs
  • Expression / significance projected on the embedding
  • Continuous colour scale per mode
Figure slot home/img/help/tool-scceexp.png
Tool 12

scState Single-cell

Cell state

Profiling diverse dynamic single-cell states precisely. Colour the embedding by any one of 25 cell-state scores — proliferation, EMT, hypoxia, stemness, inflammation, senescence and more — and read how that state spreads across cell types with a box / violin toggle, tying ceRNA biology to functional cell states.

Inputs
  • Single-cell dataset
  • Cell-state score (one of 25)
  • Cell type · point size · embedding
Outputs
  • Embedding coloured by the chosen state score
  • Per-cell-type distribution (box / violin)
Figure slot home/img/help/tool-scstate.png

Statistics

The Statistics page is an overview of the whole resource. Its centrepiece is an interactive anatomical atlas: hover an organ on the body map to preview its datasets, samples and ceRNA pairs, then click through to browse that tissue. A mosaic of charts and the full dataset catalogue sit below it.

Anatomical atlas — a body map linked to a per-tissue panel and a live dataset ranking.
Chart mosaic — modality split, ceRNA hubs, Experimental validated by RNA class, biomarker clinical roles, top cancers, evidence by organism, expression direction and a per-dataset scatter.
Dataset catalogue — the full, searchable 447-dataset table.
Figure slot — drop your screenshot at home/img/help/statistics.png Suggested: the anatomical atlas + chart mosaic
Figure 4. The Statistics page anatomical atlas.

Download

The Download page has two routes: curated whole-database bundles for bulk analysis, and per-dataset files when you only need one dataset.

Curated bundles

Single .zip archives of the core tables — the interactome, validated evidence and annotations — exported from the MySQL backend as tab-separated files.

Per-dataset files

For each of the 447 datasets: the gene-expression matrix and any of its six functional-enrichment score sets, as R .rData objects ready to load().

Frequently asked questions

Click a question to expand its answer.

A lncRNA and an mRNA that share binding sites for one or more microRNAs. Because they compete for the same miRNA pool, they can indirectly regulate each other. Each LncACTdb 4.0 record captures one such lncRNA–mRNA pair together with the miRNAs they share.

A pair is detected independently in every dataset where the data support it. Each dataset therefore contributes its own detection rate, while the shared-miRNA set is a property of the pair itself and stays constant. This is why a pair's profile lists many datasets but a single miRNA list.

The computational interactome (104,899 pairs) is detected from expression data across all 447 datasets and powers Search, Browse and the tools. The validated layers — 15,058 axes and 16,937 biomarkers — are hand-curated from the literature and represent experimentally confirmed relationships. Both are searchable and browsable, but they answer different questions.

Eight tools are universal and run on a dataset of any data level. Four tools — scCluster, scTrajectory, scCeExp and scState — need a single-cell (S) dataset because they rely on per-cell coordinates and cell-state scores. A detail page only offers the tools that fit the dataset you are viewing.

Embedding maps need at least five samples to be meaningful. Datasets with fewer than five samples show a data table instead of the UMAP / t-SNE maps; the regression scatters and other panels still render.

Please cite the LncACTdb 4.0 resource and the original studies behind each dataset — PubMed IDs are listed on every dataset and detail page, and inside the validated-axis modals. See the Citation block below.

LncACTdb 4.0 works best in current versions of Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari. The interactive charts and large tables benefit from a desktop-sized screen; the layout still adapts to tablets and phones.

Yes — the curated bundles on the Download page package the core tables for bulk analysis. The very large per-sample detection table is provided through the per-dataset files rather than a single archive, to keep downloads manageable.

Contact & citation

How to cite

If LncACTdb 4.0 supports your work, please cite the LncACTdb 4.0 resource.

Citation

LncACTdb 4.0: an updated resource of experimentally supported ceRNA interactions and multi-level regulatory networks curated from bulk tissues, cell lines, organoids and single-cell transcriptomes for precision oncology.

See also the previous release, LncACTdb 3.0.