Junior Research Groups at HIGHmed – an overview
The HIGHmed initiative brings together several junior research groups that advance data-driven medicine by developing innovative methods for integrating, analysing, and applying complex biomedical data. Their shared goal is to improve clinical decision-making, patient care, and medical research through interoperable systems and intelligent algorithms.
iXplain_CDS
The iXplain_CDS group focuses on developing interoperable clinical decision support systems that can be used across different hospitals. A key emphasis lies on explainability and interpretability to ensure that predictions are transparent, trustworthy, and clinically reliable. Their work includes use cases such as supporting paediatric neuroradiologists in assessing brain maturation from MRI scans and predicting the severity of COVID-19 infections.
Medical Omics
The Medical Omics group develops AI-based tools for analysing large-scale biomedical datasets from both clinical practice and basic research. By integrating multiple data modalities such as single-cell RNA sequencing, DNA methylation, and medical imaging they aim to better capture the complexity of biological systems. In close collaboration with clinicians, they build systems to support tumour diagnosis and treatment planning, as well as automate routine tasks such as image annotation. Feedback mechanisms are also explored to continuously improve AI model performance.
MoveGroup
The MoveGroup develops a multimodal sensing platform to monitor motor, cognitive, and sensory functions. By combining near-body and ambient sensing technologies, the group aims to better understand functional abilities and their interactions in both healthy ageing and disease. This research supports improved diagnosis and therapy for conditions such as Parkinson’s disease, Tourette’s syndrome, and dementia.
IMPETUS
IMPETUS focuses on integrating medical multimedia data such as imaging, signals (e.g. ECG, EEG), and audio into clinical data integration centres. A major challenge addressed is the heterogeneity of formats, including non-DICOM data. By enabling comprehensive integration of these diverse data types, the group supports improved clinical workflows and research capabilities.
Spatial Omics
Novel imaging technologies enable detailed cellular profiling by measuring tens of antibodies and hundreds to thousands of transcripts with subcellular resolution. In the near future, these technologies could help to discover new features for the stratification, diagnosis and treatment of diseases.
The junior research group (JRG) SpatialOmics is focusing on the application and analysis of these emerging technologies with a focus on oncology, immunology, and cardiology.
FAIRRMeDIC
Real-world data is particularly sensitive and requires intensive protection, which must be a top priority, especially in MeDICs. The Junior Research Groups focuses on the following goals: Training of young scientists in the context of scientific method development and evaluation in a MeDIC, expansion of the "FAIR" principles to include „Reliability“ with regard to MeDIC data and metadata, quantification of the re-identification risk, e.g. in the context of applications for data sharing, integration of extended change control processes for data security and implementation of a multimodal user platform.
Together, these junior research groups contribute to a unified vision: leveraging diverse and complex health data to create intelligent, interoperable, and trustworthy systems that enhance patient care and advance medical knowledge.
