Biology subjects

Rodwell, T. C.

Publications and source records attributed to Rodwell, T. C..

2 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2025

Facilitating User Interaction with the Tuberculosis Mutation Catalogue using AI Tools

The World Health Organization (WHO) 2023 Mutation Catalogue for Mycobacterium tuberculosis is a crucial knowledgebase and tool for clinical interpretation of mutations associated with drug-resistant TB. However, the documents complexity and size pose challenges for many users. This study evaluated the potential of generative artificial intelligence (AI) models to facilitate natural language user interaction with the catalogue. Four prominent AI models--Google Gemini 2.5 Pro, OpenAI ChatGPT 4.1, Perplexity AI, and DeepSeek R1--were assessed through general test questions, mutation search and retrieval tasks using both full catalogue queries and antibiotic-specific tables, and the application of additional grading rules to score novel mutations. Performance was measured based on accuracy, completeness, clarity, source citation, and the presence of hallucinations. Google Gemini 2.5 Pro consistently demonstrated superior performance in accuracy, completeness, and avoidance of hallucinations across most evaluations, especially in general queries and large dataset searches. DeepSeek R1 excelled in applying grading rules to novel mutations and showed high accuracy in focused datasets, but exhibited some hallucinations. ChatGPT 4.1 was strong in clarity but lacked proper citations, and Perplexity AI showed variable performance with a higher frequency of hallucinations. The findings highlight the potential of AI tools to enhance accessibility and utility of complex knowledgebases like the WHO Mutation Catalogue, while emphasizing the critical need for careful model selection and rigorous benchmarking to ensure accuracy and reliability. The results suggest that Google Gemini 2.5 Pro and DeepSeek R1 are strong candidates for developing a custom clinical AI agent to assist all levels of healthcare users in navigating and interpreting the complex information within the catalogue, ultimately contributing to improved TB control efforts.

bioinformatics↗

bioRxiv2024

The use of vocal coordination in male African elephant group departures: evidence of active leadership and consensus

Group-living animals engage in coordinated vocalizations to depart from a location as a group, and often, to come to a consensus about the direction of movement. Here, we document for the first time, the use of coordinated vocalizations, the "lets go" rumble, in wild male African elephant group departures from a waterhole. We recorded vocalizations and collected behavioral data as known individuals engaged in these vocal bouts during June-July field seasons in 2005, 2007, 2011, and 2017 at Mushara waterhole within Etosha National Park, Namibia. During departure events, we documented which individuals were involved in the calls, the signature structure of each individuals calls, as well as the ordering of callers, the social status of the callers, and those who initiated departure. The "lets go" rumble was previously described in tight-knit family groups to keep the family together during coordinated departures. Male elephants are described as living in loose social groups, making this finding particularly striking. We found that this vocal coordination occurs in groups of closely associated, highly bonded individuals and rarely occurs between looser associates. The three individuals most likely to initiate the "lets go" rumble bouts were all highly socially integrated, and one of these individuals was also the most dominant overall. This suggests that more socially integrated individuals might be more likely to initiate, or lead, a close group of associates in the context of leaving the waterhole, just as a dominant female would do in a family group. The fact that many individuals were often involved in the vocal bouts, and that departure periods could be shorter, longer, or the same amount of time as pre-departure periods, all suggest that there is consensus with regard to the act of leaving, even though the event was triggered by a lead individual.

animal behavior and cognition↗