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Documents authored by López Sánchez, Alitzel

Document
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.STACS.2025.64
Cluster Editing on Cographs and Related Classes

Authors: Manuel Lafond, Alitzel López Sánchez, and Weidong Luo

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 327, 42nd International Symposium on Theoretical Aspects of Computer Science (STACS 2025)

Abstract
In the Cluster Editing problem, sometimes known as (unweighted) Correlation Clustering, we must insert and delete a minimum number of edges to achieve a graph in which every connected component is a clique. Owing to its applications in computational biology, social network analysis, machine learning, and others, this problem has been widely studied for decades and is still undergoing active research. There exist several parameterized algorithms for general graphs, but little is known about the complexity of the problem on specific classes of graphs. Among the few important results in this direction, if only deletions are allowed, the problem can be solved in polynomial time on cographs, which are the P₄-free graphs. However, the complexity of the broader editing problem on cographs is still open. We show that even on a very restricted subclass of cographs, the problem is NP-hard, W[1]-hard when parameterized by the number p of desired clusters, and that time n^o(p/log p) is forbidden under the ETH. This shows that the editing variant is substantially harder than the deletion-only case, and that hardness holds for the many superclasses of cographs (including graphs of clique-width at most 2, perfect graphs, circle graphs, permutation graphs). On the other hand, we provide an almost tight upper bound of time n^O(p), which is a consequence of a more general n^O(cw⋅p) time algorithm, where cw is the clique-width. Given that forbidding P₄s maintains NP-hardness, we look at {P₄, C₄}-free graphs, also known as trivially perfect graphs, and provide a cubic-time algorithm for this class.
Cite as

Manuel Lafond, Alitzel López Sánchez, and Weidong Luo. Cluster Editing on Cographs and Related Classes. In 42nd International Symposium on Theoretical Aspects of Computer Science (STACS 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 327, pp. 64:1-64:21, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)

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@InProceedings{lafond_et_al:LIPIcs.STACS.2025.64,
  author =	{Lafond, Manuel and L\'{o}pez S\'{a}nchez, Alitzel and Luo, Weidong},
  title =	{{Cluster Editing on Cographs and Related Classes}},
  booktitle =	{42nd International Symposium on Theoretical Aspects of Computer Science (STACS 2025)},
  pages =	{64:1--64:21},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-365-2},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{327},
  editor =	{Beyersdorff, Olaf and Pilipczuk, Micha{\l} and Pimentel, Elaine and Thắng, Nguy\~{ê}n Kim},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.STACS.2025.64},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-228895},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.STACS.2025.64},
  annote =	{Keywords: Cluster editing, cographs, parameterized algorithms, clique-width, trivially perfect graphs}
}
Document
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.WABI.2024.20
The Path-Label Reconciliation (PLR) Dissimilarity Measure for Gene Trees

Authors: Alitzel López Sánchez, José Antonio Ramírez-Rafael, Alejandro Flores-Lamas, Maribel Hernández-Rosales, and Manuel Lafond

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 312, 24th International Workshop on Algorithms in Bioinformatics (WABI 2024)

Abstract
In this study, we investigate the problem of comparing gene trees reconciled with the same species tree using a novel semi-metric, called the Path-Label Reconciliation (PLR) dissimilarity measure. This approach not only quantifies differences in the topology of reconciled gene trees, but also considers discrepancies in predicted ancestral gene-species maps and speciation/duplication events, offering a refinement of existing metrics such as Robinson-Foulds (RF) and their labeled extensions LRF and ELRF. A tunable parameter α also allows users to adjust the balance between its species map and event labeling components. We show that PLR can be computed in linear time and that it is a semi-metric. We also discuss the diameters of reconciled gene tree measures, which are important in practice for normalization, and provide initial bounds on PLR, LRF, and ELRF. To validate PLR, we simulate reconciliations and perform comparisons with LRF and ELRF. The results show that PLR provides a more evenly distributed range of distances, making it less susceptible to overestimating differences in the presence of small topological changes, while at the same time being computationally efficient. Our findings suggest that the theoretical diameter is rarely reached in practice. The PLR measure advances phylogenetic reconciliation by combining theoretical rigor with practical applicability. Future research will refine its mathematical properties, explore its performance on different tree types, and integrate it with existing bioinformatics tools for large-scale evolutionary analyses. The open source code is available at: https://pypi.org/project/parle/.
Cite as

Alitzel López Sánchez, José Antonio Ramírez-Rafael, Alejandro Flores-Lamas, Maribel Hernández-Rosales, and Manuel Lafond. The Path-Label Reconciliation (PLR) Dissimilarity Measure for Gene Trees. In 24th International Workshop on Algorithms in Bioinformatics (WABI 2024). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 312, pp. 20:1-20:21, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2024)

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@InProceedings{lopezsanchez_et_al:LIPIcs.WABI.2024.20,
  author =	{L\'{o}pez S\'{a}nchez, Alitzel and Ram{\'\i}rez-Rafael, Jos\'{e} Antonio and Flores-Lamas, Alejandro and Hern\'{a}ndez-Rosales, Maribel and Lafond, Manuel},
  title =	{{The Path-Label Reconciliation (PLR) Dissimilarity Measure for Gene Trees}},
  booktitle =	{24th International Workshop on Algorithms in Bioinformatics (WABI 2024)},
  pages =	{20:1--20:21},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-340-9},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2024},
  volume =	{312},
  editor =	{Pissis, Solon P. and Sung, Wing-Kin},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.WABI.2024.20},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-206645},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.WABI.2024.20},
  annote =	{Keywords: Reconciliation, gene trees, species trees, evolutionary scenarios}
}
Document
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.WABI.2022.3
Predicting Horizontal Gene Transfers with Perfect Transfer Networks

Authors: Alitzel López Sánchez and Manuel Lafond

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 242, 22nd International Workshop on Algorithms in Bioinformatics (WABI 2022)

Abstract
Horizontal gene transfer inference approaches are usually based on gene sequences: parametric methods search for patterns that deviate from a particular genomic signature, while phylogenetic methods use sequences to reconstruct the gene and species trees. However, it is well-known that sequences have difficulty identifying ancient transfers since mutations have enough time to erase all evidence of such events. In this work, we ask whether character-based methods can predict gene transfers. Their advantage over sequences is that homologous genes can have low DNA similarity, but still have retained enough important common motifs that allow them to have common character traits, for instance the same functional or expression profile. A phylogeny that has two separate clades that acquired the same character independently might indicate the presence of a transfer even in the absence of sequence similarity. We introduce perfect transfer networks, which are phylogenetic networks that can explain the character diversity of a set of taxa. This problem has been studied extensively in the form of ancestral recombination networks, but these only model hybridation events and do not differentiate between direct parents and lateral donors. We focus on tree-based networks, in which edges representing vertical descent are clearly distinguished from those that represent horizontal transmission. Our model is a direct generalization of perfect phylogeny models to such networks. Our goal is to initiate a study on the structural and algorithmic properties of perfect transfer networks. We then show that in polynomial time, one can decide whether a given network is a valid explanation for a set of taxa, and show how, for a given tree, one can add transfer edges to it so that it explains a set of taxa.
Cite as

Alitzel López Sánchez and Manuel Lafond. Predicting Horizontal Gene Transfers with Perfect Transfer Networks. In 22nd International Workshop on Algorithms in Bioinformatics (WABI 2022). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 242, pp. 3:1-3:22, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2022)

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@InProceedings{lopezsanchez_et_al:LIPIcs.WABI.2022.3,
  author =	{L\'{o}pez S\'{a}nchez, Alitzel and Lafond, Manuel},
  title =	{{Predicting Horizontal Gene Transfers with Perfect Transfer Networks}},
  booktitle =	{22nd International Workshop on Algorithms in Bioinformatics (WABI 2022)},
  pages =	{3:1--3:22},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-243-3},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2022},
  volume =	{242},
  editor =	{Boucher, Christina and Rahmann, Sven},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.WABI.2022.3},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-170376},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.WABI.2022.3},
  annote =	{Keywords: Horizontal gene transfer, tree-based networks, perfect phylogenies, character-based, gene-expression, indirect phylogenetic methods}
}
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