Volcano Plot: How to Read & Interpret | RNA-Seq Guide
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Volcano Plot
A volcano plot is a type of scatter plot widely used in microarray and RNA-Seq data analysis. Its name comes from its characteristic volcano-like shape.
It displays the fold change in gene expression alongside statistical significance, as determined by differential expression analysis (DEG analysis). The x-axis represents the log fold change, the y-axis represents the negative log of the p-value (statistical significance), and each point corresponds to a single gene.
How to Read a Volcano Plot
On the x-axis, points to the right represent upregulated genes and points to the left represent downregulated genes. On the y-axis, points higher up have greater statistical significance.
Genes with both a large fold change and high statistical significance appear in the upper-left or upper-right corners of the plot -- these are typically the most biologically interesting candidates.
While volcano plots are a powerful way to visualize gene expression data, they are best used in combination with other analytical and statistical approaches rather than in isolation.
Example of Volcano Plot
RNA-Seq Data Analysis Software
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Users can perform gene expression quantification, identification of differentially expressed genes, gene ontology(GO) analysis, pathway analysis, as well as drawing volcano plots, MA plots, and heatmaps.
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We provide tools and information to support life science research, with a focus on RNA-Seq analysis.