Network-based gene set enrichment analysis

Network-based gene set enrichment analysis (network GSEA) extends classical GSEA by incorporating biological interaction networks — such as protein-protein interaction (PPI) or co-expression graphs — into the enrichment test. Instead of treating each gene independently, the method propagates differential expression signals across network edges, allowing genes that are co-regulated or functionally connected to jointly support the significance of a gene set. The result is a biologically coherent enrichment score that accounts for pathway topology and gene-gene dependencies.