Application and Comparison of Deep Learning Methods in the Prediction of RNA Sequence Degradation and Stability
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mRNA vaccines are receiving increased interest as potential alternatives to conventional methods for the prevention of several diseases, including Covid-19. This paper proposes and evaluates three deep learning models (Long Short Term Memory networks, Gated Recurrent Unit networks, and Graph Convolutional Networks) as a method to predict the stability/reactivity and risk of degradation of sequences of RNA. Reasonably accurate results were able to be generated, with the Graph Convolutional Network being the best predictor of reactivity (RMSE = 0.249) while the Gated Recurrent Unit Network was the best at predicting risks of degradation under various circumstances (RMSE = 0.266). Results suggest feasibility of applying such methods in mRNA vaccine research in the near future.
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