I am using the Combat module on the Gene Pattern platform to analyse qPCR data and correct for batch variations. I keep getting the following error that I cannot interpret :
Error in matrix(0, length(vec), nlevels(vec) - start + 1) :
invalid 'ncol' value (< 0)
Calls: parseCmdLine ... gp.combat.R -> ComBat -> design.mat -> build.design -> matrix
Execution halted
I would appreciate any help in figuring out what this means and how to avoid the error.
It'd help if you included the command you ran. Also, at a long shot, how many columns are in your input matrix? Also, what's the scale of your input matrix? log2?
I didn't run any command. I am using Combat on Gene Pattern and I don't have to write any code. All I did was upload my data file in a .gct format and the sample info file in a .txt format. I have 47 columns , It has just Ct values.
It might be better to email gp-help@broadinstitute.org, as the bioconductor implementation of ComBat in the SVA package may well be slightly different. From the error you've shown, there seems to be a problem with the number of columns, but without more detail, I can't determine what matrix that error stems from.
Will it help if I sent the .gct file with the columns and details ?
Sorry but I'm not familiar with Gene Pattern, I'd strongly recommend you use the above email address to contact the Broad, as it's their software. This forum is designed for Bioconductor support, and while the ComBat method is in a Bioconductor package, the Gene Pattern implementation is not. The error message you've provided doesn't really give any clues to the problem, other than checking the number of columns in your inputs, but a Gene Pattern maintainer may be able to give you more support.
Thanks for providing the email address . I already contacted them . Hopefully they can help me figure it out.