Splikit /ˈsplaɪ.kɪt/ is a comprehensive R toolkit for analyzing alternative splicing in single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) data. It offers a streamlined workflow for transforming raw junction abundance data from tools such as STARsolo into actionable insights—detecting differential splicing events and enabling rich downstream analyses. Designed for both power and ease of use, Splikit integrates high-performance C++ implementations and memory-efficient data structures to handle large datasets, all through a clean and intuitive R interface.
- R version 4.1.0 or later.
- R libraries: Rcpp, RcppArmadillo, Matrix, data.table, R6
To install the latest version of splikit from GitHub:
# Install devtools if you haven't already
install.packages("devtools")
# Install splikitdevtools::install_github("csglab/splikit")Splikit provides two ways to work with your data: a modern R6 class interface (recommended) and traditional functions (for backward compatibility).
The SplikitObject class provides a clean, chainable interface with built-in validation:
library(splikit)
# Load data and create SplikitObjectjunction_ab<- load_toy_SJ_object()
obj<- splikit(junction_ab=junction_ab, min_counts=1)
# Compute M2 exclusion matrix (uses fast C++ implementation)obj$makeM2(n_threads=4)
# Find highly variable splicing eventsHVE<-obj$findVariableEvents(min_row_sum=50, n_threads=4)
# View object summaryobj$summary()
# Access data directlym1_matrix<-obj$m1m2_matrix<-obj$m2event_data<-obj$eventDataThe original function-based approach remains fully supported:
# Create m1 matrix from a junction abundance objectjunction_abundance_object<- load_toy_SJ_object()
m1_object<- make_m1(
junction_abundance_object,
min_counts=1,
verbose=FALSE
)
# Create m2 matrix from the m1 inclusion matrixm2_matrix<- make_m2(
m1_inclusion_matrix=m1_object$m1_inclusion_matrix,
eventdata=m1_object$eventdata,
n_threads=4# Uses C++ with OpenMP
)
# Perform feature selection for splicing eventsm1_matrix<-m1_object$m1_inclusion_matrixHVE_Info<- find_variable_events(m1_matrix, m2_matrix, n_threads=32)- High-performance C++ backend: Core computations use RcppArmadillo with OpenMP parallelization
- Memory-efficient sparse matrices: Handles large single-cell datasets
- Comprehensive validation: Input checking with informative error messages
- Flexible API: Choose between R6 methods or traditional functions
Full guides, examples, and tutorials are available at the Splikit webpage
This project is licensed under the MIT License – see the LICENSE.md file for details.
The author is aware of the package’s limitations and potential breakpoints. It was developed under limited knowledge, time, and resources, and is provided with the hope that it will be useful. Feedback and contributions from the community are warmly welcomed. If you encounter any issues or have suggestions, please open an issue.
