diffloop: a computational framework for identifying and analyzing differential DNA loops from sequencing data

SUMMARY: The 3D architecture of DNA within the nucleus is a key determinant of interactions between genes, regulatory elements, and transcriptional machinery. As a result, differences in DNA looping structure are associated with variation in gene expression and cell state. To systematically assess changes in DNA looping architecture between samples, we introduce diffloop, an R/Bioconductor package that provides a suite of functions for the quality control, statistical testing, annotation, and visualization of DNA loops. We demonstrate this functionality by detecting differences between ENCODE ChIA-PET samples and relate looping to variability in epigenetic state. AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION: Diffloop is implemented as an R/Bioconductor package available at https://bioconductor.org/packages/release/bioc/html/diffloop.html SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.