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Updated: May 29, 2026
09:29
Using the Open-Source MALDI TOF-MS IDBac Pipeline for Analysis of Microbial Protein and Specialized Metabolite Data
Published on: May 15, 2019
MetaTree: an interactive web platform for aligned hierarchical data visualization and multi-group comparison
Qing Wu1,2, Ailing Zhang1,2, Zhibin Ning1
1Faculty of Medicine, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada.
BMC Bioinformatics
|May 28, 2026
Summary
MetaTree is a new web platform for visualizing and comparing hierarchical data, like microbiome studies. It enables direct, topology-consistent comparisons across multiple samples and experimental groups, simplifying data analysis.
Area of Science:
- Computational Biology
- Bioinformatics
- Microbiome Research
Background:
- Hierarchical quantitative profiles are crucial in microbiome studies and other fields.
- Comparing multiple samples and groups while maintaining hierarchical structure is difficult.
- Existing methods often require manual figure assembly and lack aligned comparisons.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop an open-source platform for interactive visualization and comparative analysis of hierarchical quantitative data.
- To address the challenges in comparing multiple samples and experimental groups within a shared hierarchy.
- To facilitate the generation of publication-ready figures for hierarchical datasets.
Main Methods:
- Developed MetaTree, an installation-free, browser-based platform.
- Anchored samples, groups, and contrasts to a shared reference hierarchy for topology consistency.
- Integrated statistical testing with false discovery rate (FDR) control for clade comparisons.
- Implemented user-configurable controls for visual encoding, filtering, and layout.
- Utilized interactive navigation, adaptive label handling, and branch collapsing for large hierarchies.
Main Results:
- MetaTree provides topology-consistent visualization and comparison of hierarchical profiles.
- The platform enables one-to-one node correspondence for aligned comparisons across views.
- Users can identify clades with significant differences between conditions using integrated statistical testing.
- Configurable controls allow adaptation of figures to various datasets and reporting needs.
- Interactive features ensure usability for large and complex hierarchies.
Conclusions:
- MetaTree is a web platform for topology-consistent visualization and comparison of hierarchical data.
- It supports coordinated multi-panel exploration and automated comparison matrices.
- Facilitates rapid generation of publication-ready figures for microbiome and other hierarchical datasets.
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