What to write in the y axis of RNA-Seq plot

Question

[mfc]

Hello everybody!

I am new to the guidelines of RNA-Seq data and I would like to know what do people normally write in the y axis of the plots in papers.

We want to show a comparison of RNA-Seq with qPCR data. For the qPCR we have normalised gene expression data (log2) that was previously normalised to an internal control and to reference genes. For the RNA-Seq we just have FPKM. Is it correct to write Normalised Gene Expression (FPKM)?

Thanks!

[David Westergaard]

You are overthinking it. If what you show for RNA-Seq is the FPKM count, write that. You should always adhere to the KISS principle when creating and labeling plots.

[mfc]

Thanks! I didnt know about the KISS principle ;)

[Irsan]

Keep it short and simple is different between bioinformaticans and Biologists. A bioinformaticIan would want log2(counts per million), a biologist wants Expression by RNAseq