SINC: a scale-invariant deep-neural-network classifier for bulk and single-cell RNA-seq data

Motivation: Scaling by sequencing depth is usually the first step of analysis of bulk or single-cell RNA-seq data, but estimating sequencing depth accurately can be difficult, especially for single-cell data, risking the validity of downstream analysis. It is thus of interest to eliminate the use of sequencing depth and analyze the original count data directly. Results: We call an analysis method `scale-invariant' (SI) if it gives the same result under different estimates of sequencing depth and hence can use the original count data without scaling. For the problem of classifying samples into pre-specified classes, such as normal versus cancerous, we develop a deep-neural-network based SI classifier named scale-invariant deep neural-network classifier (SINC). On nine bulk and single-cell datasets, the classification accuracy of SINC is better than or competitive to the best of eight other classifiers. SINC is easier to use and more reliable on data where proper sequencing depth is hard to determine.