Wd∗ $W_{d}^{*}$-test: robust distance-based multivariate analysis of variance

Abstract Background Community-wide analyses provide an essential means for evaluation of the effect of interventions or design variables on the composition of the microbiome. Applications of these analyses are omnipresent in microbiome literature, yet some of their statistical properties have not be...

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Main Authors: Bashir Hamidi, Kristin Wallace, Chenthamarakshan Vasu, Alexander V. Alekseyenko
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2019-04-01
Series:Microbiome
Subjects:
Online Access:http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s40168-019-0659-9
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author Bashir Hamidi
Kristin Wallace
Chenthamarakshan Vasu
Alexander V. Alekseyenko
author_facet Bashir Hamidi
Kristin Wallace
Chenthamarakshan Vasu
Alexander V. Alekseyenko
author_sort Bashir Hamidi
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Background Community-wide analyses provide an essential means for evaluation of the effect of interventions or design variables on the composition of the microbiome. Applications of these analyses are omnipresent in microbiome literature, yet some of their statistical properties have not been tested for robustness towards common features of microbiome data. Recently, it has been reported that PERMANOVA can yield wrong results in the presence of heteroscedasticity and unbalanced sample sizes. Findings We develop a method for multivariate analysis of variance, Wd∗ $W_{d}^{*}$, based on Welch MANOVA that is robust to heteroscedasticity in the data. We do so by extending a previously reported method that does the same for two-level independent factor variables. Our approach can accommodate multi-level factors, stratification, and multiple post hoc testing scenarios. An R language implementation of the method is available at https://github.com/alekseyenko/WdStar. Conclusion Our method resolves potential for confounding of location and dispersion effects in multivariate analyses by explicitly accounting for the differences in multivariate dispersion in the data tested. The methods based on Wd∗ $W_{d}^{*}$ have general applicability in microbiome and other ‘omics data analyses.
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spelling doaj.art-da43338ecd9e49c9bd643fd882f6c1542022-12-21T23:56:38ZengBMCMicrobiome2049-26182019-04-01711910.1186/s40168-019-0659-9Wd∗ $W_{d}^{*}$-test: robust distance-based multivariate analysis of varianceBashir Hamidi0Kristin Wallace1Chenthamarakshan Vasu2Alexander V. Alekseyenko3Program for Human Microbiome Research, Medical University of South CarolinaDepartment of Public Health Science, Medical University of South CarolinaDepartment of Microbiology and Immunology, Medical University of South CarolinaProgram for Human Microbiome Research, Medical University of South CarolinaAbstract Background Community-wide analyses provide an essential means for evaluation of the effect of interventions or design variables on the composition of the microbiome. Applications of these analyses are omnipresent in microbiome literature, yet some of their statistical properties have not been tested for robustness towards common features of microbiome data. Recently, it has been reported that PERMANOVA can yield wrong results in the presence of heteroscedasticity and unbalanced sample sizes. Findings We develop a method for multivariate analysis of variance, Wd∗ $W_{d}^{*}$, based on Welch MANOVA that is robust to heteroscedasticity in the data. We do so by extending a previously reported method that does the same for two-level independent factor variables. Our approach can accommodate multi-level factors, stratification, and multiple post hoc testing scenarios. An R language implementation of the method is available at https://github.com/alekseyenko/WdStar. Conclusion Our method resolves potential for confounding of location and dispersion effects in multivariate analyses by explicitly accounting for the differences in multivariate dispersion in the data tested. The methods based on Wd∗ $W_{d}^{*}$ have general applicability in microbiome and other ‘omics data analyses.http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s40168-019-0659-9Welch MANOVADistance MANOVAHeteroscedastic test
spellingShingle Bashir Hamidi
Kristin Wallace
Chenthamarakshan Vasu
Alexander V. Alekseyenko
Wd∗ $W_{d}^{*}$-test: robust distance-based multivariate analysis of variance
Microbiome
Welch MANOVA
Distance MANOVA
Heteroscedastic test
title Wd∗ $W_{d}^{*}$-test: robust distance-based multivariate analysis of variance
title_full Wd∗ $W_{d}^{*}$-test: robust distance-based multivariate analysis of variance
title_fullStr Wd∗ $W_{d}^{*}$-test: robust distance-based multivariate analysis of variance
title_full_unstemmed Wd∗ $W_{d}^{*}$-test: robust distance-based multivariate analysis of variance
title_short Wd∗ $W_{d}^{*}$-test: robust distance-based multivariate analysis of variance
title_sort wd∗ w d test robust distance based multivariate analysis of variance
topic Welch MANOVA
Distance MANOVA
Heteroscedastic test
url http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s40168-019-0659-9
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AT chenthamarakshanvasu wdwdtestrobustdistancebasedmultivariateanalysisofvariance
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