Generated image Laptop with DNA graphic overlay

Clinical Bioinformatics (CiiM Group)

Personalized medicine offers a significant opportunity to enhance public health by accounting for individual variability in genes, environment, and lifestyle. The "Clinical Bioinformatics" research group follows this direction, aiming to unravel the intricate molecular mechanisms underlying infection and aging. Through this pursuit, we strive to develop precise, individualized treatment strategies.

Our research aims to develop and apply "bioinformatics approaches" to pinpoint the genetic and epigenetic factors influencing infection-induced immune responses by integrating multi-omics data from patients and constructing computational models that predict an individual’s risk of infectious diseases. We interact with experimental collaborators and clinical experts to verify our findings and promote their translation into medical treatments or diagnostic procedures. Our ultimate goal is to contribute to the main research focus of CiiM/MHH: the tailored and improved prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of infectious diseases and cancer for individual patients or patient groups.

Within this framework, the team led by Prof. Dr. Cheng-Jian Xu is primarily dedicated to the domains of diagnosis, risk assessment, early detection, and patient stratification.

This group is a research group of Hannover Medical School at the Centre for Individualised Infection Medicine (CiiM) and associated with the HZI.

Prof Dr Cheng-Jian Xu

Head

Prof Dr Cheng-Jian Xu
Research Group Leader

Our research

The Clinical Bioinformatics research group focuses on the development and application of computational approaches to enhance our comprehension of infection and aging. They place emphasis on investigating the role of epigenetic modifications in these pathophysiological conditions. This involves analyzing samples from cohort studies through the utilization of whole-genome epigenetic profiling, single-cell transcriptomics technologies, and systems genetics methodologies. The ultimate goal is to develop tailored therapeutic strategies based on detailed molecular stratification of disease sub-entities. This represents a significant advancement towards the realization of individualized medicine.