Fig. 3: Over-representation analysis of differentially expressed genes (DEG) in unstimulated whole blood samples post-vaccination (contrast A).

Over-representation analysis was performed using DEG identified from samples of two elephants (n = 2). A total of 944 upregulated and 1734 downregulated DEG (adjusted p value ≤0.05) were analysed using the Human Gene Atlas database. The red and blue bars represent the combined scores of gene sets enriched for upregulated and downregulated cell types, respectively. In unstimulated blood samples, CD8+ and CD4+ T cells were significantly over-represented, while monocyte and B cell signatures were downregulated following vaccination. Significantly enriched pathways were identified using a one-sided Fisher’s exact test (H0: no association), with correction for multiple comparisons by applying the Benjamini-Hochberg method, and ranked by the combined score (z-score of the observed and expected means of the DEG and pathways overlap). Pathways with a p value ≤0.05 were considered significant.