Frontiers in Physiology最新文献

{"title":"Limb asymmetry in swimmers and its correlation with sprint performance.","authors":"Jinjin Dai, Junjun Xu, Jianjun Lin","doi":"10.3389/fphys.2026.1809652","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2026.1809652","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Inter-limb strength asymmetry is well-established as an injury risk factor, yet its relationship with athletic performance remains controversial and context-dependent. In swimming-a bilateral cyclical sport theoretically requiring symmetrical force production-the characteristics and performance implications of strength asymmetry remain insufficiently understood, particularly regarding contraction velocity and sex.</p><p><strong>Objective: </strong>This study aimed to: (1) characterize shoulder and hip isokinetic strength asymmetry in competitive swimmers at 60°/s and 180°/s; (2) explore sex differences in asymmetry profiles; and (3) examine associations of absolute strength and strength asymmetry with sprint performance.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Thirty-two swimmers (20 males, 12 females) aged 18-22 years completed isokinetic assessments of shoulder flexion/extension, shoulder internal/external rotation, and hip flexion/extension at 60°/s and 180°/s. Asymmetry indices were calculated using the percentage difference method. Swimming performance was evaluated via 15-m start, turn, and 100-m freestyle times. Between-session reliability was established (ICC = 0.988-0.998; CV = 1.85%-6.25%). Mann-Whitney U tests, Wilcoxon signed-rank tests, and Spearman rank correlation were performed.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Males demonstrated significantly greater absolute strength and faster performance times than females (all p<0.001). Mann-Whitney U tests revealed a significant sex difference in hip extension asymmetry at 180°/s, with female swimmers exhibiting greater asymmetry than males (p = 0.019). Asymmetry indices were generally higher at 180°/s than at 60°/s, with significant velocity-dependent increases only for shoulder external rotation in males (Z = -2.373, p = 0.016, r = 0.531). Spearman rank correlation showed that, in females, hip extension torque at 60°/s was significantly positively correlated with turn time (left: rho = 0.679, p < 0.05; right: rho = 0.618, p < 0.05). In males, left shoulder extension at 60°/s and 180°/s showed significant negative correlations with turn time (rho = -0.470 and -0.531, respectively, both p < 0.05). No significant correlations were observed between any asymmetry index and performance in either sex.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Strength asymmetry in swimmers is movement-, velocity-, and sex-specific, with female swimmers exhibiting greater hip extension asymmetry at high velocity. Absolute hip extensor strength is significantly associated with turn performance in females, whereas in males, shoulder extensor strength correlates negatively with turn time. Strength asymmetry is generally unrelated to swimming performance, supporting the view that asymmetry should not be universally deemed detrimental. These findings provide evidence-based guidance for individualized strength diagnostics in competitive swimming.</p>","PeriodicalId":12477,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Physiology","volume":"17 ","pages":"1809652"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-04-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13143600/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147836223","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Ensemble fuzzy multilayer neural perceptron with optimized feature selection for cardiac disease prediction using MRI and ECG data.","authors":"J K Kiruthika, P Thangaraj","doi":"10.3389/fphys.2026.1719922","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2026.1719922","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>One of the major causes of death in the general population is cardiovascular disease. Life-threatening cardiac disease is influenced by several factors, including age, gender, blood sugar, cholesterol, heart rate, and more. There are so many factors that it can be challenging for specialists to assess each one. The current approach utilizes electrocardiogram (ECG) data and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) image features but suffers from poor performance and high error rates. To address this problem, we employ an ensemble-based fuzzy multilayer neural perceptron (EFMLNP) model to predict cardiac disease. Initially, an image from the University of California, Irvine (UCI) Machine Learning Repository was selected to analyze the prognosis of cardiovascular disease. To effectively replicate the raw data values in the dataset, a median box filter (MBF) is used to pre-process the MRI dataset, reducing irrelevant values. The second stage, segmentation, uses adaptive mean gray segmentation (AMGS) to initialize two clusters for regions of interest and non-interest. The dataset is then tested using a feature-selection method based on recursive spectral spider optimization (RSSO) to identify the most pertinent characteristics for diagnosing heart disease (optimal reduced-feature splitting). Lastly, we examine a machine learning feature-extraction model and perform test analysis on the reduced features. The proposed EFMLNP method is evaluated using metrics including precision, recall, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC). The experimental outcome demonstrates that the accuracy is 98.3%, the precision is 97.15%, the recall is 98.43%, the F1-score is 96.34%, and the ROC is 0.96.</p>","PeriodicalId":12477,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Physiology","volume":"17 ","pages":"1719922"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-04-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13143658/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147836155","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Fatigue protocols and athletic performance: a systematic review with a focus on ecological relevance.","authors":"Ying Yu, Xinbi Zhang, Na Zhang, Yansheng Qu, Xuyang Wang, Ke He","doi":"10.3389/fphys.2026.1816311","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2026.1816311","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Fatigue is a major factor influencing athletic performance, yet findings across studies remain inconsistent. This inconsistency is likely related to substantial heterogeneity in fatigue-induction protocols, fatigue verification methods, and performance outcomes. This systematic review aimed to synthesize current evidence on the effects of sports fatigue on athletic performance and to discuss the ecological relevance of existing experimental fatigue models.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A systematic search was conducted in PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and Scopus up to November 2025. Randomized controlled trials with crossover or parallel-group designs investigating athletic performance under fatigue in trained athletes were eligible for inclusion.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A total of 56 experimental studies were included. Physical fatigue generally impaired physical performance, whereas its effects on perceptual-cognitive performance were heterogeneous across protocols, tasks, and outcome measures. Mental fatigue generally impaired endurance, motor skill, and perceptual-cognitive performance, with less consistent evidence for strength- and power-related outcomes. Evidence on dual fatigue was limited but suggested negative effects on endurance and perceptual-cognitive performance.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Current evidence is characterized by considerable heterogeneity in fatigue-induction protocols, fatigue verification methods, and performance outcomes. Single-fatigue paradigms remain valuable for mechanistic isolation, whereas dual-fatigue paradigms may offer complementary ecological relevance by approximating the concurrent physical and cognitive demands of sport. Future research should develop more standardized and ecologically valid fatigue models and further examine potential countermeasures, including neuroenhancement tools and targeted training strategies.</p>","PeriodicalId":12477,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Physiology","volume":"17 ","pages":"1816311"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-04-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13143685/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147836187","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Impacts of genetic selection on satellite cell function in poultry.","authors":"Joseph Yimiletey, Sandra G Velleman, Hui Yu","doi":"10.3389/fphys.2026.1807624","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2026.1807624","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Over the past several decades, intensive genetic selection has markedly increased growth rate, breast muscle yield, and production efficiency in commercial broilers. These gains have been accompanied by substantial changes in muscle organization, physiology, metabolism, and cellular regulation. Satellite cells, the resident muscle stem cells, play a key role in posthatch muscle growth by supplying nuclei to adjacent growing myofibers, thereby supporting the muscle hypertrophy process. This review summarizes the role of satellite cells in poultry muscle development and discusses how genetic selection for rapid muscle growth has reshaped satellite cell proliferation, differentiation, molecular profiles, and functional heterogeneity, with important consequences for muscle growth and quality. Moreover, increasing evidence suggests that changes in satellite cell function associated with genetic selection may contribute to the development of breast muscle myopathies, particularly wooden breast in broiler chickens. Moving forward, continued refinement of poultry production systems will benefit from deeper insights into satellite cell biology to support efficient muscle growth while reducing the occurrence of muscle myopathies.</p>","PeriodicalId":12477,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Physiology","volume":"17 ","pages":"1807624"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-04-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13143705/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147836237","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effect of conventional warm-up versus stretching warm-up on physical performance in children soccer players: a randomized crossover trial.","authors":"Jordan Hernandez-Martínez, Izham Cid-Calfucura, Joaquín Perez-Carcamo, Sebastián Canales-Canales, Eduardo Guzmán-Muñoz, Edgar Vásquez-Carrasco, Tomás Herrera-Valenzuela, Pablo Valdés-Badilla","doi":"10.3389/fphys.2026.1827385","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2026.1827385","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>To evaluate the effects of the conventional warm-up (CC) compared to warm-ups that included static (SSC), dynamic (DSC), or ballistic (BSC) stretching on jump performance (CMJ, SJ, DJ), curve sprint speed, agility (ICODT), and ball kicking speed in male children soccer players.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Eighteen male soccer players (mean age: 11.2 ± 2.4 years) experiencing four warm-up conditions: CC, SSC, DSC, and BSC. They were performed in a random sequence with a 72-hour recovery period in between. After each warm-up, physical performance was measured through the CMJ, SJ, DJ, curved sprint speed, ICODT, and ball kicking speed.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Significant improvements were observed in the ICODT for SSC and DSC compared to CC (p < 0.001). In the CC and SSC conditions, better performance was obtained in curved sprint speed (p = 0.003) compared to DSC, in ball kicking speed with the dominant foot for all stretching conditions (SSC, DSC, and BSC) compared to CC (p < 0.001), and in ball kicking speed with the non-dominant foot for DSC and BSC compared to CC (p = 0.002).</p><p><strong>Discussion: </strong>In conclusion, that warm-ups incorporating SSC and DSC enhance ICODT in children's soccer players, while all stretching modalities improve ball kicking speed with the dominant foot compared to a CC. For curve sprint speed, the CC and SSC were more effective than DSC.</p>","PeriodicalId":12477,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Physiology","volume":"17 ","pages":"1827385"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-04-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13147161/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147836157","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Exercise-induced oxidative and hematological responses in adolescent female swimmers during the luteal phase.","authors":"Justyna Cichoń-Woźniak, Hanna Dziewiecka, Joanna Ostapiuk-Karolczuk, Marta Mydłowska, Małgorzata Szymańczuk, Anna Skarpańska-Stejnborn","doi":"10.3389/fphys.2026.1705876","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2026.1705876","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Physiological response to exercise in young female athletes is understudied, especially regarding how the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle influences performance in demanding sports such as swimming. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the post-exercise cortisol response, oxidative stress markers, and hematological parameters following a moderate-intensity exercise test in trained adolescent female swimmers.</p><p><strong>Materials and methods: </strong>Eighteen swimmers (aged 12-16 years) performed a swimming test (800m + 200m + 50m) during their rigorously verified luteal phase. Blood samples were collected before exercise, immediately after exercise, and after 3 hours of recovery. It was registered retrospectively on clinicaltrials.gov under NCT06903195 (March 17, 2025).</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Moderate-intensity exercise significantly increased 8-isoprostane levels (100.70 (40.50-131.00) vs 145.10 (99.16-190.40), p<0.05), while cortisol and 4-hydroxynonenal levels decreased after 3 hours. Microscopic blood smear analysis showed erythrocyte anisocytosis and poikilocytosis, toxic granulation in granulocytes, and activated lymphocytes.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The evaluation of young female swimmers during the luteal phase of their menstrual cycle revealed stable and subsequently decreasing cortisol levels, indicating that the exercise did not elicit a significant endocrine stress response. In contrast, the same protocol resulted in elevated levels of 8-isoprostanes. This latter finding demonstrates that the moderate-intensity exercise was sufficient to induce exercise-induced oxidative stress in this specific group of athletes.</p>","PeriodicalId":12477,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Physiology","volume":"17 ","pages":"1705876"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-04-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13143766/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147836164","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Analysis of potential categories of sleep problems in non-dialysis patients with chronic kidney disease.","authors":"Jie Zhou, Xiaoke Zhu, Jiamei Xu, Chunxiang Huang, Dan Liu","doi":"10.3389/fphys.2026.1744485","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2026.1744485","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Sleep disturbances are highly prevalent among patients with non-dialysis chronic kidney disease (CKD) and are associated with adverse clinical outcomes. However, current research predominantly relies on aggregate scale scores, which may overlook the heterogeneity of sleep symptoms. This study aims to identify distinct latent categories of sleep problems and their influencing factors among patients with non-dialysis CKD using latent class analysis, thereby providing an evidence base for phenotype-specific interventions.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>From June to July 2023, a convenience sampling was used to select 405 patients from the Nephrology Department of a tertiary hospital in Hangzhou. Data were collected using a general information questionnaire, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), the International Restless Legs Syndrome Assessment Scale (IRLS), and a Visual Analog Scale (VAS). Mplus 8.0 was used for latent class analysis, and unordered multinomial logistic regression analysis was performed to evaluate factors associated with the different latent classes.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Three latent classes were identified: \"inefficient sleep and short sleep duration\" (34.6%), \"good sleep\" (50.4%), and \"low sleep quality with long sleep duration\" (15.0%). Multinomial logistic regression analysis revealed that, compared with the good sleep group, age ≥45 years, skin pruritus, edema, early CKD stage, glucocorticoid or hypnotic use, anxiety and depression, and a history of COVID-19 infection were significant factors associated with sleep problem classification (<i>P</i> < 0.05).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Sleep problems among patients with non-dialysis CKD are heterogeneous. Targeted, class-specific interventions should be developed to improve sleep quality for different patient subgroups.</p>","PeriodicalId":12477,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Physiology","volume":"17 ","pages":"1744485"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-04-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13143577/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147836041","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Peak external game demands are impacted by season phase but not match outcome or a mid-season coaching change in semi-professional, male basketball players.","authors":"Abel Ruiz-Álvarez, Enrique Alonso-Pérez-Chao, Álvaro Bustamante-Sánchez, Aaron T Scanlan, Miguel-Angel Gómez-Ruano","doi":"10.3389/fphys.2026.1778157","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2026.1778157","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Basketball competition imposes high physical demands on players. Quantifying the peak demands (PD) encountered is useful to identify the most intense passages of play, with more research needed to better understand factors that may impact PD. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the effects of season phase, match outcome, and a mid-season coaching change on PD in semi-professional, male basketball players.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Eleven players from a single team competing in the Spanish fourth division were monitored across 33 official matches during the 2021-2022 season. PlayerLoad™ (PL) was measured using a validated local positioning system and analyzed across 30-s, 60-s, and 180-s rolling windows. Contextual variables included season phase (preseason, first half, second half, and promotion), match outcome (win and loss), and coaching change (before and after a mid-season change in head coach). Friedman and Wilcoxon tests were used to compare PD between conditions.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Season phase significantly (p <0.05) influenced PD across all time windows (30 s, 60 s, and 180 s), with higher values observed during the pre-season and promotion phases compared to both halves of the regular season. PD over 180 s was also higher in the pre-season than in the promotion phase. Regarding match outcome, PD over 30 s was significantly greater in losses than in wins (p = 0.0049, large effect), while 60 s and 180 s windows showed non-significant, large trends in the same direction. No significant differences were found in PD before versus after the mid-season coaching change, suggesting no meaningful impact on these external demands.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>These findings may help inform player training prescriptions and preparatory plans aligning with fluctuations in match demands across season phases.</p>","PeriodicalId":12477,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Physiology","volume":"17 ","pages":"1778157"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-04-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13143541/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147836214","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Comparative associative and discriminative value of inflammatory, coagulation, hypoxia-perfusion, and electrolyte-metabolic indices for early respiratory physiological decompensation in acute pancreatitis.","authors":"Xiangyin Lv, Jiejun Hu, Jiao Bao","doi":"10.3389/fphys.2026.1775368","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2026.1775368","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Respiratory failure is a significant determinant of early mortality in cases of acute pancreatitis; however, the relative contributions of various pathophysiological processes remain ambiguous. Comparing the associative and discriminative values of inflammatory, coagulation, hypoxia-perfusion, and electrolyte-metabolic indices for respiratory failure holds substantial clinical implications.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We conducted a retrospective cohort study involving adult patients hospitalized with acute pancreatitis from 2019 to 2023. Four composite indices, which reflect systemic inflammation, coagulation activation, hypoxia-perfusion impairment, and electrolyte-metabolic disturbance, were constructed from routine laboratory measurements obtained within 24 hours of admission. The primary outcome was defined as respiratory failure occurring within 3 to 7 days of hospital admission, or respiratory-related death. Associations, dose-response relationships, and discriminative performance were evaluated using multivariable logistic regression, restricted cubic splines, and receiver operating characteristic analyses.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Among 438 eligible patients, 54 (12.33%) developed respiratory failure or died within 3 to 7 days of admission. All four indices were associated with the primary outcome in univariable analyses. After mutual adjustment, electrolyte-metabolic disturbance emerged as the only dimension independently associated with the primary outcome, with an adjusted odds ratio of 1.32 per 1-SD increase (95% CI 1.16-1.51). This index demonstrated a near-linear dose-response relationship and outperformed the inflammatory, coagulation, and hypoxia-perfusion indices in terms of discrimination (AUC = 0.699). A combined four-dimension model achieved the highest overall discrimination (AUC = 0.744) but provided limited incremental value over electrolyte-metabolic disturbance alone.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Early electrolyte-metabolic disturbance exhibits the strongest and most consistent association with respiratory failure in acute pancreatitis during the first week of hospitalization, underscoring its potential utility for early risk stratification using routinely available laboratory data.</p>","PeriodicalId":12477,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Physiology","volume":"17 ","pages":"1775368"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-04-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13143626/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147835997","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A systematic evaluation of explainable AI methods for high-dimensional transcriptome-based cancer survival prediction.","authors":"Yiyi Zuo, Shuting Yang, Wenxue Zhao","doi":"10.3389/fphys.2026.1830956","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2026.1830956","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Explainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI) holds the promise to compensate for the \"black-box\" nature of deep learning which impedes transcriptome-based cancer survival prediction. However, there is a lack of systematic benchmarking XAI frameworks tailored for high-dimensional survival data. To bridge this gap, we systematically evaluated six representative XAI methods in three main categories: gradient-based, propagation-based, and perturbation-based approaches by using a Self-Normalizing Neural Network (SNN) as the baseline survival model. 6,248 samples across 15 cancer types from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) was analysed in this evaluation with a unified framework we developed. The evaluation metrics encompassed three key dimensions: prognostic factor enrichment (univariate Cox regression significance), biological consistency (supported by four authoritative databases, including OpenTargets), and explanation stability (Kuncheva Index). Among the six XAI methods, we find that DeepSHAP achieved the best overall performance, identifying the highest number of statistically significant prognostic factors while maintaining superior explanation stability; LRP (Layer-wise Relevance Propagation) showed slightly lower prognostic specificity but the highest consensus with biological databases in capturing general cancer genes, making it suitable for validating biological plausibility. In contrast, the perturbation-based method, PFI (Permutation Feature Importance) exhibited systematic failure and extremely low stability due to its inability to handle feature collinearity in high-dimensional transcriptomic data. Furthermore, we identified explanation stability as a robust proxy for the biological validity of the XAI. Collectively, <b>t</b>his study establishes an empirical framework for selecting trustworthy AI explanation tools for precision medicine.</p>","PeriodicalId":12477,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Physiology","volume":"17 ","pages":"1830956"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-04-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13143651/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147836045","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}