{"doi":"10.1093/nar/gkaa831","title":"tRFtarget: a database for transfer RNA-derived fragment targets","abstract":"Transfer RNA-derived fragments (tRFs) are a new class of small non-coding RNAs and play important roles in biological and physiological processes. Prediction of tRF target genes and binding sites is crucial in understanding the biological functions of tRFs in the molecular mechanisms of human diseases. We developed a publicly accessible web-based database, tRFtarget (http://trftarget.net), for tRF target prediction. It contains the computationally predicted interactions between tRFs and mRNA transcripts using the two state-of-the-art prediction tools RNAhybrid and IntaRNA, including location of the binding sites on the target, the binding region, and free energy of the binding stability with graphic illustration. tRFtarget covers 936 tRFs and 135 thousand predicted targets in eight species. It allows researchers to search either target genes by tRF IDs or tRFs by gene symbols/transcript names. We also integrated the manually curated experimental evidence of the predicted interactions into the database. Furthermore, we provided a convenient link to the DAVID® web server to perform downstream functional pathway analysis and gene ontology annotation on the predicted target genes. This database provides useful information for the scientific community to experimentally validate tRF target genes and facilitate the investigation of the molecular functions and mechanisms of tRFs.","journal":"Nucleic Acids Research","year":2020,"id":61233,"datarank":2.1614872115189065,"base_score":4.07753744390572,"endowment":4.07753744390572,"self_citation_contribution":0.611630616585858,"citation_network_contribution":1.5498565949330485,"self_endowment_contribution":0.611630616585858,"citer_contribution":1.5498565949330485,"corpus_percentile":90.18333720120678,"corpus_rank":1270,"citation_count":58,"citer_count":57,"citers_with_citation_signal":47,"citers_with_endowment":47,"datacite_reuse_total":0,"is_dataset":true,"is_dataset_confidence":0.9268,"is_data_producer":false,"deposit_databanks":null,"is_oa":true,"file_count":0,"downloads":0,"has_version_chain":false,"published_date":"2020-01-01","fair_score":50.0,"fair_percentile":62.702537450321,"algorithm_id":"datarank_citation_only_1hop_v6","ranking_scope":"data_only","authors":[{"id":324741,"name":"Nayang Shan","orcid":null,"position":1,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":305544,"name":"Lingeng Lu","orcid":"0000-0001-9871-0809","position":2,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":323455,"name":"Zuoheng Wang","orcid":"0000-0002-7251-3687","position":3,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":323454,"name":"Ningshan Li","orcid":"0000-0003-1916-2563","position":0,"is_corresponding":true}],"reference_count":39,"raw_metadata":null,"created_at":"2026-07-18T21:09:27.985420Z","pmid":"33035346","pmcid":"PMC7779015","fwci":null,"citation_percentile":null,"influential_citations":0,"oa_status":null,"license":null,"views":0,"total_file_size_bytes":0,"version_count":0,"fair_f":61.1111,"fair_a":75.0,"fair_i":60.0,"fair_r":25.0,"fair_zscore":0.6155,"fair_rationale":{"fair_score":50.0,"has_llm":true,"taxonomy_version":"fair_taxonomy_v5","dimensions":{"F":{"name":"Findable","score":61.11,"criteria":[{"key":"f_dataset_pid","label":"Persistent identifier for the data","kind":"llm","weight":2.0,"fraction":0.5,"verdict":"partial","evidence":"All data in tRFtarget are freely accessible at http://trftarget.net","grounded":true,"rationale":"The data are identified by a URL, not a persistent identifier scheme.","anchors":["RDA-F1-01D — FAIR Data Maturity Model: 'Data is identified by a persistent identifier' (priorit","RDA-F1-02D — FAIR Data Maturity Model: 'Data is identified by a globally unique identifier'","FsF-F1-02D — F-UJI/FAIRsFAIR: 'Data is assigned a persistent identifier'"],"scored":true,"signal":null},{"key":"f_repository_named","label":"Named repository","kind":"llm","weight":2.0,"fraction":0.5,"verdict":"partial","evidence":"All data in tRFtarget are freely accessible at http://trftarget.net","grounded":true,"rationale":"The data are held in tRFtarget, a custom database, not a standard repository. [majority verdict 'partial' (4/5 passes agreed)]","anchors":["RDA-F4-01M — FAIR Data Maturity Model: metadata is offered so it can be harvested and indexed (","NIH DMS Policy Element 4 (NOT-OD-21-014) — name the repository where data will be archived","NSTC Desirable Characteristics of Data Repositories (2022) — 'Long-Term Sustainability', 'Reten"],"scored":true,"signal":null},{"key":"f_data_availability_statement","label":"Data-availability statement","kind":"llm","weight":2.0,"fraction":0.5,"verdict":"partial","evidence":"All data in tRFtarget are freely accessible at http://trftarget.net","grounded":true,"rationale":"The data-availability statement points to a URL, not a repository record. [majority verdict 'partial' (4/5 passes agreed)]","anchors":["Colavizza, Hrynaszkiewicz, Staden, Whitaker & McGillivray (2020), 'The citation advantage of li","Springer Nature research data policy — Data Availability Statements: standard statement templat","RDA-F3-01M — metadata clearly and explicitly includes the identifier of the data it describes"],"scored":false,"signal":null},{"key":"f_discovery_metadata","label":"Description of the dataset as an object","kind":"llm","weight":2.0,"fraction":1.0,"verdict":"yes","evidence":"Table 1. Summary statistics of tRFtarget database","grounded":true,"rationale":"An itemised inventory of the dataset is provided in the form of a table. [majority verdict 'yes' (4/5 passes agreed)]","anchors":["RDA-F2-01M — 'Rich metadata is provided to allow discovery' (priority Essential)","FsF-F2-01M — F-UJI: 'Metadata includes descriptive core elements to support data findability'","FsF-R1-01MD — F-UJI: 'Metadata specifies the content of the data'"],"scored":false,"signal":null},{"key":"f_dataset_cited","label":"Dataset formally cited","kind":"llm","weight":1.0,"fraction":0.5,"verdict":"partial","evidence":"All data in tRFtarget are freely accessible at http://trftarget.net","grounded":true,"rationale":"The dataset identifier (URL) appears only in body text, not in the reference list. [majority verdict 'partial' (4/5 passes agreed)]","anchors":["FORCE11 Joint Declaration of Data Citation Principles (2014) — data should be cited as a first-","RDA-F3-01M — metadata clearly and explicitly includes the identifier of the data it describes","FsF-F3-01M — F-UJI: 'Metadata includes the identifier of the data it describes'"],"scored":true,"signal":null}]},"A":{"name":"Accessible","score":75.0,"criteria":[{"key":"a_data_openly_accessible","label":"Access route free of preconditions","kind":"llm","weight":2.0,"fraction":1.0,"verdict":"yes","evidence":"All data in tRFtarget are freely accessible at http://trftarget.net","grounded":true,"rationale":"The statement declares free access with no stated precondition. [majority verdict 'yes' (4/5 passes agreed)]","anchors":["RDA-A1.1-01D — 'Data is accessible through a free access protocol'","FsF-A1-01M — F-UJI: 'Metadata contains access level and access conditions of the data'","NSTC Desirable Characteristics of Data Repositories (2022) — 'Free and Easy Access'"],"scored":true,"signal":null},{"key":"a_access_conditions_stated","label":"Access level labelled","kind":"llm","weight":1.0,"fraction":1.0,"verdict":"yes","evidence":"All data in tRFtarget are freely accessible at http://trftarget.net","grounded":true,"rationale":"The paper uses the label 'freely accessible' which is a natural-language equivalent of 'open access'. [majority verdict 'yes' (4/5 passes agreed)]","anchors":["FsF-A1-01M — F-UJI: 'Metadata contains access level and access conditions of the data'","RDA-A1-01M — metadata contains information to enable the user to get access to the data","COAR Controlled Vocabularies — Access Rights v1.0 (open / embargoed / restricted / metadata-onl"],"scored":false,"signal":null},{"key":"a_controlled_access_for_sensitive","label":"Gatekeeper for sensitive data","kind":"llm","weight":0.5,"fraction":0.0,"verdict":"no","evidence":null,"grounded":false,"rationale":"The data are computational predictions and not human-subject, and no gatekeeper is named.","anchors":["NIH Genomic Data Sharing Policy (NOT-OD-14-124) — controlled-access via a Data Access Committee","RDA-A1.2-01D — 'Data is accessible through an access protocol that supports authentication and ","NIH DMS Policy Element 5 (NOT-OD-21-014) — Access, Distribution, or Reuse Considerations (conse"],"scored":false,"signal":null},{"key":"a_timeline_retention","label":"Availability timing & retention","kind":"llm","weight":0.5,"fraction":0.0,"verdict":"no","evidence":null,"grounded":false,"rationale":"No retention period or availability timing is stated for the data. [majority verdict 'no' (3/5 passes agreed)]","anchors":["NIH DMS Plan Element 4 (NOT-OD-21-014) — Data Preservation, Access, and Associated Timelines","NSTC Desirable Characteristics (2022), Organizational Infrastructure: 'Retention Policy'","RDA-A2-01M — 'Metadata is guaranteed to remain available after data is no longer available'"],"scored":false,"signal":null}]},"I":{"name":"Interoperable","score":60.0,"criteria":[{"key":"i_open_nonproprietary_format","label":"Open file format","kind":"llm","weight":1.0,"fraction":1.0,"verdict":"yes","evidence":"Results are displayed in a tabular form and can be downloaded as a CSV file","grounded":true,"rationale":"CSV is an open, non-proprietary format. [majority verdict 'yes' (4/5 passes agreed)]","anchors":["FsF-R1.3-02D — F-UJI: 'Data is available in a file format recommended by the target research co","RDA-R1.3-02D — data is expressed in a machine-understandable community standard","RDA-I1-01D — data uses a knowledge representation expressed in a standardised format"],"scored":true,"signal":null},{"key":"i_community_standard_vocabulary","label":"Community standard / vocabulary","kind":"llm","weight":1.0,"fraction":0.0,"verdict":"no","evidence":null,"grounded":false,"rationale":"No data or metadata community standard is named. [majority verdict 'no' (4/5 passes agreed)]","anchors":["RDA-R1.3-01M — 'Metadata complies with a community standard' (priority Essential)","RDA-R1.3-01D — 'Data complies with a community standard'","RDA-I2-01M — '(Meta)data use vocabularies that follow FAIR principles'"],"scored":false,"signal":null},{"key":"i_qualified_references","label":"Identifiers for the resources the data depend on","kind":"llm","weight":0.5,"fraction":1.0,"verdict":"yes","evidence":"downloaded from GENCODE (version GRCh38.p13 for human and version GRCm38.p6 for mouse, https://www.gencodegenes.org/ )","grounded":true,"rationale":"A reference assembly identifier (GRCh38.p13) is provided for a resource other than the study's own data. [majority verdict 'yes' (4/5 passes agreed)]","anchors":["RDA-I3-01M — '(meta)data include references to other (meta)data'","RDA-I3-03M — 'metadata includes qualified references to other metadata'","FsF-I3-01M — F-UJI: 'Metadata includes links between the data and its related entities'"],"scored":false,"signal":null}]},"R":{"name":"Reusable","score":25.0,"criteria":[{"key":"r_reuse_license","label":"Reuse licence","kind":"llm","weight":2.0,"fraction":0.0,"verdict":"no","evidence":null,"grounded":false,"rationale":"No license is stated for the data; the CC BY-NC license applies to the article, not the data.","anchors":["RDA-R1.1-01M — 'Metadata includes information about the licence under which the data can be reu","RDA-R1.1-02M — 'Metadata refers to a standard reuse licence'","RDA-R1.1-03M — 'Metadata refers to a machine-understandable reuse licence'"],"scored":true,"signal":null},{"key":"r_provenance_methods","label":"Provenance of the data","kind":"llm","weight":1.0,"fraction":1.0,"verdict":"yes","evidence":"RNAhybrid (version 2.1.2, https://bibiserv.cebitec.uni-bielefeld.de/rnahybrid )","grounded":true,"rationale":"The paper names specific tools and versions used to produce the data. [majority verdict 'yes' (3/5 passes agreed)]","anchors":["RDA-R1.2-01M — 'Metadata includes provenance information according to community- specific standa","FsF-R1.2-01M — F-UJI: 'Metadata includes provenance information about data creation or generati","W3C PROV-O (W3C Recommendation, 2013) — the entity/activity/agent model of provenance"],"scored":false,"signal":null},{"key":"r_documentation_codebook","label":"Documentation / codebook","kind":"llm","weight":1.0,"fraction":0.0,"verdict":"no","evidence":null,"grounded":false,"rationale":"No documentation object is named as travelling with the data; variable definitions are not provided. [majority verdict 'no' (2/5 passes agreed)]","anchors":["RDA-R1-01M — '(Meta)data are richly described with a plurality of accurate and relevant attribu","FsF-R1-01MD — F-UJI: 'Metadata specifies the content of the data'","NIH DMS Policy Element 3 (NOT-OD-21-014) — Standards (documentation and metadata to accompany t"],"scored":false,"signal":null},{"key":"r_versioning","label":"Snapshot identified","kind":"llm","weight":0.5,"fraction":0.0,"verdict":"no","evidence":null,"grounded":false,"rationale":"No version token or date is given for the database snapshot.","anchors":["DataCite Metadata Schema 4.6 — the 'Version' property","RDA-R1.2-01M — provenance information (which version was used is provenance)","NSTC Desirable Characteristics of Data Repositories (2022) — 'Provenance', 'Retention Policy'"],"scored":true,"signal":null},{"key":"x_code_availability","label":"Analysis code available","kind":"llm","weight":1.0,"fraction":0.0,"verdict":"no","evidence":null,"grounded":false,"rationale":"No code locator is provided for the study's own code.","anchors":["NIH DMS Policy Element 2 (NOT-OD-21-014) — 'Related Tools, Software and/or Code'","FAIR4RS Principles v1.0 (Chue Hong et al., 2022; RDA/FORCE11/ReSA) — FAIR Principles for Resear","FORCE11 Software Citation Principles (Smith, Katz & Niemeyer, 2016, PeerJ CS 2:e86)"],"scored":true,"signal":null},{"key":"x_funding_attribution","label":"Funder and award number","kind":"llm","weight":0.5,"fraction":1.0,"verdict":"yes","evidence":"National Institutes of Health [K01AA023321]; National Science Foundation [DMS1916246]","grounded":true,"rationale":"Award numbers are given for the funding sources.","anchors":["DataCite Metadata Schema 4.6 — 'FundingReference' property (funderName, funderIdentifier, award","Crossref Funder Registry — canonical funder identifiers for funding metadata","RDA-F2-01M — rich metadata provided to allow discovery (funding is part of the descriptive reco"],"scored":true,"signal":null}]}},"actions":[{"key":"r_reuse_license","dimension":"R","label":"Reuse licence","action":"Attach a standard, machine-readable open licence to the deposit — CC0 or CC BY, which is what Horizon Europe and most funders expect — and print the licence identifier in the paper. 'Free to use' is not a licence: it grants nothing a reuser's institution can rely on.","anchors":["yes","partial","no"],"verdict":"no","current":0.0,"evidence":null,"why":"No license is stated for the data; the CC BY-NC license applies to the article, not the data.","gain":16.67,"priority":"essential","scored":true},{"key":"f_dataset_pid","dimension":"F","label":"Persistent identifier for the data","action":"Mint or cite a persistent identifier for the dataset — a repository DOI or an accession from a registered repository — and print it in the paper. A bare URL is not persistent: it is the single most common cause of a dead data link five years after publication. For clinical / human-subjects data, deposit in dbGaP or the European Genome-phenome Archive (EGA).","anchors":["yes","partial","no"],"verdict":"partial","current":0.5,"evidence":"All data in tRFtarget are freely accessible at http://trftarget.net","why":"The data are identified by a URL, not a persistent identifier scheme.","gain":8.33,"priority":"essential","scored":true},{"key":"f_repository_named","dimension":"F","label":"Named repository","action":"Deposit the data in a repository registered in re3data/FAIRsharing (a domain repository such as GEO, SRA, dbGaP, PRIDE, or a generalist such as Zenodo, Dryad, Dataverse) and name it explicitly in the paper. A lab website is not an archive: it has no retention commitment and no accession. For clinical / human-subjects data, deposit in dbGaP or the European Genome-phenome Archive (EGA).","anchors":["yes","partial","no"],"verdict":"partial","current":0.5,"evidence":"All data in tRFtarget are freely accessible at http://trftarget.net","why":"The data are held in tRFtarget, a custom database, not a standard repository. [majority verdict 'partial' (4/5 passes agreed)]","gain":8.33,"priority":"essential","scored":true},{"key":"x_code_availability","dimension":"R","label":"Analysis code available","action":"Publish the analysis code in a public forge, archive a tagged release with a DOI (Zenodo/Software Heritage), and cite that DOI in the paper. NIH DMS Element 2 asks for the tools and code, not only the data — and 'available on request' is not a locator. Archive the analysis code in a versioned repository (GitHub + a Zenodo release DOI).","anchors":["yes","partial","no"],"verdict":"no","current":0.0,"evidence":null,"why":"No code locator is provided for the study's own code.","gain":8.33,"priority":"important","scored":true},{"key":"f_dataset_cited","dimension":"F","label":"Dataset formally cited","action":"Cite the dataset in the reference list like a publication — creator, year, title, repository, DOI/accession — and cite it in-text where it is used. Only a reference- list entry is machine-readable to Crossref/DataCite, and only a citation lets the data earn credit. Cite the clinical / human-subjects repository accession (e.g. from dbGaP or the European Genome-phenome Archive (EGA)) in the reference list.","anchors":["yes","partial","no"],"verdict":"partial","current":0.5,"evidence":"All data in tRFtarget are freely accessible at http://trftarget.net","why":"The dataset identifier (URL) appears only in body text, not in the reference list. [majority verdict 'partial' (4/5 passes agreed)]","gain":4.17,"priority":"important","scored":true},{"key":"r_versioning","dimension":"R","label":"Snapshot identified","action":"Version the deposit and cite the exact version analysed (a version-specific DOI, or an accession with its version suffix). A reader reproducing your work against 'the current release' is reproducing it against a different dataset.","anchors":["yes","partial","no"],"verdict":"no","current":0.0,"evidence":null,"why":"No version token or date is given for the database snapshot.","gain":4.17,"priority":"useful","scored":true},{"key":"f_data_availability_statement","dimension":"F","label":"Data-availability statement","action":"Replace the statement with the repository template: name the repository and give the accession or DOI (Colavizza category 3). This is the only DAS class associated with a measured citation advantage; 'available on reasonable request' and 'within the article' are not.","anchors":["yes","partial","no"],"verdict":"partial","current":0.5,"evidence":"All data in tRFtarget are freely accessible at http://trftarget.net","why":"The data-availability statement points to a URL, not a repository record. [majority verdict 'partial' (4/5 passes agreed)]","gain":0.0,"priority":"essential","scored":false},{"key":"i_community_standard_vocabulary","dimension":"I","label":"Community standard / vocabulary","action":"Adopt and NAME your domain's data standard — the minimum-information checklist, metadata schema, or ontology your community uses (MIAME/MINSEQE, ISA-Tab, BIDS, an OBO ontology, HL7 FHIR/OMOP) — and say which one you followed. A reporting checklist standardises your paper; it does nothing for your data. In clinical / human-subjects, describe the data with OMOP CDM, CDISC SDTM or HL7 FHIR.","anchors":["yes","partial","no"],"verdict":"no","current":0.0,"evidence":null,"why":"No data or metadata community standard is named. [majority verdict 'no' (4/5 passes agreed)]","gain":0.0,"priority":"important","scored":false},{"key":"r_documentation_codebook","dimension":"R","label":"Documentation / codebook","action":"Ship a README and a data dictionary IN the deposit — every file, every variable, its units, its allowed values, its missing-value codes. It is the cheapest single thing that makes a dataset usable by someone who was not in the lab, and a table buried in the article does not travel with the data.","anchors":["yes","partial","no"],"verdict":"no","current":0.0,"evidence":null,"why":"No documentation object is named as travelling with the data; variable definitions are not provided. [majority verdict 'no' (2/5 passes agreed)]","gain":0.0,"priority":"important","scored":false},{"key":"a_controlled_access_for_sensitive","dimension":"A","label":"Gatekeeper for sensitive data","action":"Route sensitive data through an institutional gatekeeper — deposit in a controlled- access repository (dbGaP, EGA) with a Data Access Committee and a published DUA — rather than through the corresponding author's inbox. An author-gated dataset dies with the author's email address, and 'on reasonable request' has been shown repeatedly not to yield data. For sensitive/human clinical / human-subjects data, use a controlled-access repository such as dbGaP or EGA.","anchors":["yes","partial","no"],"verdict":"no","current":0.0,"evidence":null,"why":"The data are computational predictions and not human-subject, and no gatekeeper is named.","gain":0.0,"priority":"useful","scored":false},{"key":"a_timeline_retention","dimension":"A","label":"Availability timing & retention","action":"State when the data become available AND how long they will be retained — cite the repository's preservation policy. NIH DMS Element 4 asks for both; most papers give neither.","anchors":["yes","partial","no"],"verdict":"no","current":0.0,"evidence":null,"why":"No retention period or availability timing is stated for the data. [majority verdict 'no' (3/5 passes agreed)]","gain":0.0,"priority":"useful","scored":false}],"suggestions":["Attach a standard, machine-readable open licence to the deposit — CC0 or CC BY, which is what Horizon Europe and most funders expect — and print the licence identifier in the paper. 'Free to use' is not a licence: it grants nothing a reuser's institution can rely on.","Mint or cite a persistent identifier for the dataset — a repository DOI or an accession from a registered repository — and print it in the paper. A bare URL is not persistent: it is the single most common cause of a dead data link five years after publication. For clinical / human-subjects data, deposit in dbGaP or the European Genome-phenome Archive (EGA).","Deposit the data in a repository registered in re3data/FAIRsharing (a domain repository such as GEO, SRA, dbGaP, PRIDE, or a generalist such as Zenodo, Dryad, Dataverse) and name it explicitly in the paper. A lab website is not an archive: it has no retention commitment and no accession. For clinical / human-subjects data, deposit in dbGaP or the European Genome-phenome Archive (EGA).","Publish the analysis code in a public forge, archive a tagged release with a DOI (Zenodo/Software Heritage), and cite that DOI in the paper. NIH DMS Element 2 asks for the tools and code, not only the data — and 'available on request' is not a locator. Archive the analysis code in a versioned repository (GitHub + a Zenodo release DOI).","Cite the dataset in the reference list like a publication — creator, year, title, repository, DOI/accession — and cite it in-text where it is used. Only a reference- list entry is machine-readable to Crossref/DataCite, and only a citation lets the data earn credit. Cite the clinical / human-subjects repository accession (e.g. from dbGaP or the European Genome-phenome Archive (EGA)) in the reference list."],"model":"deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash","agent_version":"fair_agent_v8","fulltext_source":"epmc_xml"},"fair_model":"deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash","fair_agent_version":"fair_agent_v8","fair_fulltext_source":"epmc_xml","fair_has_llm":true,"fair_computed_at":"2026-07-20T11:16:26.132436Z","clinical_trials":[],"software_tools":[],"db_accessions":[],"linked_datasets":[],"topics":[]}