Tensor-structured decomposition improves systems serology analysis

Systems serology provides a broad view of humoral immunity by profiling both the antigen-binding and Fc properties of antibodies. These studies contain structured biophysical profiling across disease-relevant antigen targets, alongside additional measurements made for single antigens or in an antigen-generic manner. Identifying patterns in these measurements helps guide vaccine and therapeutic antibody development, improve our understanding of diseases, and discover conserved regulatory mechanisms. Here, we report that coupled matrix-tensor factorization (CMTF) can reduce these data into consistent patterns by recognizing the intrinsic structure of these data. We use measurements from two previous studies of HIV- and SARS-CoV-2-infected subjects as examples. CMTF outperforms standard methods like principal components analysis in the extent of data reduction while maintaining equivalent prediction of immune functional responses and disease status. Under CMTF, model interpretation improves through effective data reduction, separation of the Fc and antigen-binding effects, and recognition of consistent patterns across individual measurements. Data reduction also helps make prediction models more replicable. Therefore, we propose that CMTF is an effective general strategy for data exploration in systems serology.

Automated summary

Systems serology provides a comprehensive view of humoral immunity by analyzing both antigen-binding and Fc properties of antibodies, which aids in guiding vaccine and therapeutic antibody development, improving disease understanding, and discovering conserved regulatory mechanisms. Coupled matrix-tensor factorization (CMTF) reduces data into consistent patterns by recognizing the intrinsic structure of the data, outperforming standard methods in data reduction while maintaining equivalent prediction accuracy for immune functional responses and disease status. CMTF improves model interpretation, data reduction, and prediction model replicability, making it an effective general strategy for data exploration in systems serology.