TRAIN Omics

The network for omics technologies in
health research in Lower Saxony

TRAIN Omics connects research institutions in Lower Saxony that are deal with so-called ‘omics technologies’. Universities, non-university institutes and companies work together in this network.

OUR MISSION

TRAIN Omics brings together medical professionals, life scientists, data experts and companies. This fosters new ideas and strategies for utilising omics technologies in health research. We connect infrastructure for samples, analyses and data, allowing researchers to access the knowledge they need for their projects. This helps to transfer findings into medical practice more quickly. In light of the rapid development of these technologies, such collaboration is crucial for success in health research in Lower Saxony, Germany and beyond. The network provides scientists with access to modern omics technologies for data analysis and management.

What are omics technologies?

Omics technologies examine the entire spectrum of molecules in living systems. This enables us to better understand biological processes. These include methods such as genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics. They provide important information about how genes, gene products (e.g. RNA), proteins and metabolites work together. These technologies are becoming increasingly important in health research because they help us understand diseases at the molecular level and find new ways to prevent, diagnose and treat them – especially in the field of personalised medicine.

STRATEGY & OBJECTIVES

We promote exchange between omics platforms and improve the networking of infrastructure for data analysis and management.

We ensure that omics technologies and analysis methods are more readily available by developing joint concepts.

We develop and establish new omics technologies in Lower Saxony.

We initiate joint research projects by bringing new partners together.

We define quality standards to ensure that research data can be used sustainably.

We train researchers from the natural sciences, medicine and data sciences to strengthen interdisciplinary expertise.

We intensify the exchange between research, clinics and industry.

Team

Sara Haag

Sara.Haag@translationsallianz.de

+49 511 5350 8385

Dr. Sara Haag

TRAIN Consultant for Omics Technologies and Data Sciences

“TRAIN Omics offers a unique exchange platform for life scientist, data scientists and medical professionals, which helps to ensure that the latest methods and technologies, as well as the knowledge gained from them, reach patient care more quickly.”

Dr. rer. nat. Sara Haag is a TRAIN consultant responsible for the strategic development of the Omics Technologies and Data Sciences division, project management and the coordination of networking events. Previously, she was a project manager at the Hannover Unified Biobank (Hannover Medical School), where she was involved in cross-location projects in the field of structural harmonisation and quality assurance. From 2019 to 2021, she was involved in the development of a database for genome-based microbial diagnostics as part of an industry collaboration at Twincore (Hanover). Prior to that, she worked for several years in the field of RNA biology in Kassel and Göttingen. In addition to her expertise in omics technologies, data processing and project management, she has extensive experience in scientific teaching and public relations.

Bernd.Wollnik@med.uni-goettingen.de

+49 551 39 67589

Prof. Dr. Bernd Wollnik

TRAIN Omics Spokesperson & Göttingen Site Spokesperson

“The number of omics-based methods has multiplied in recent years, so that hardly any one location can offer all methods and technologies. Good networking and strategic coordination across locations are therefore essential to ensure cutting-edge research and give all scientists (and patients) access to the latest procedures. Initiatives such as TRAIN Omics make a lasting contribution to cross-location communication.”

Prof. Dr. med. Bernd Wollnik is Director of the Institute of Human Genetics at the University Medical Centre Göttingen and researches the molecular mechanisms of ageing, in particular genomic instability, which is both a cause and a result of cell ageing. His research group is developing novel strategies in genomics and transcriptomics to identify genetic variants responsible for diseases associated with accelerated ageing or age-related diseases, for example at the single-cell level or in mitochondrial DNA. His team has developed its own automated pipelines for the complex bioinformatic analysis of the data obtained. The aim of his research is to identify new diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers and to establish molecular therapies using gene-specific approaches.

Nina.Boegershausen@med.uni-goettingen.de

+49 551 39 69016

Dr. Nina Bögershausen

Deputy TRAIN Omics Site Spokesperson Göttingen

“In times of rapid technological developments in the field of OMICs technologies, the interdisciplinary and cross-location exchange within TRAIN Omics enables excellent research conditions at the participating sites through the transfer of knowledge and expertise as well as through the improved availability of technological platforms and data analysis pipelines. The shared use of platforms and knowledge transfer also enable standardised application and evaluation, which leads to an increase in scientific data quality.”

Dr Nina Bögershausen works as a medical assistant and scientist in Prof. Wollnik’s team researching new molecular causes of rare syndromic diseases and retinal dystrophies. By applying state-of-the-art technologies from the fields of genomics and transcriptomics, she has already contributed to the decoding of several new disease genes and pathomechanisms. Another focus is on AI-supported analysis of retinal imaging to establish diagnostic and prognostic markers for hereditary retinal dystrophies, in particular retinitis pigmentosa.

Illig.Thomas@mh-hannover.de

+49 511 5350 8451

Prof. Dr. Thomas Illig

TRAIN Omics location spokesperson, Hanover

“Thanks to declining costs in omics technologies, it is now possible to study larger patient cohorts. However, this also increases the amount of data that needs to be stored and analysed. One of the major challenges of the coming years will be systematically storing and making available large amounts of data for current scientific research, but also for reuse at a later date. TRAIN Omics intends to play a key role in finding a solution to this challenge.”

Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Thomas Illig has been Director of the Hannover Unified Biobank (HUB) at Hannover Medical School (MHH) since 2012 and is a founding member of the German Biobank Alliance (GBA); from 2018 to 2023, he was Deputy Spokesperson for the GBA. From 2016 to 2022, he was also Deputy Director of Human Genetics at MHH. In 2010, he became a professor at Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich. Thomas Illig conducts basic, clinical and translational research in the fields of biobanking, genomics, metabolomics, molecular biology and molecular epidemiology. He has published over 700 scientific articles. He has been cited over 200,000 times, his h-index is over 160 and his i10 index is over 530. In a recent analysis by Thomson & Reuters, Prof. Illig was ranked as one of the world’s most cited scientists in the field of molecular biology and genetics.

HelenaZacharias_copyrightClaudiaZacharias_web

Zacharias.Helena@mh-hannover.de

+49 511 532 30880

Prof. Dr. Helena Zacharias

Deputy TRAIN Omics Site Spokesperson Braunschweig

“Excellent research and development in data science and artificial intelligence are only possible if collaborative access to a sufficient amount of high-quality data is available. TRAIN Omics offers the best platform for this, connecting experimental and data science research groups and enabling the exchange of (multi-)omics, phenomic, and clinical data, as well as the subsequent experimental validation of new AI tools.”

Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Helena Zacharias heads the Clinical Data Science working group at the Peter L. Reichertz Institute for Medical Informatics at Hannover Medical School. After completing her B.Sc. and M.Sc. in physics at the University of Regensburg, she received her Dr. rer. nat. in biology from the Institute for Functional Genomics there. She worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Chemistry at Ohio State University, USA, and at the Helmholtz Center in Munich. Helena Zacharias was Professor of Clinical Metabolomics at Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel from 2021 to 2022 and has been working at MHH since 2022. Since 2019, she has coordinated the e:Med Junior Research Group CKDNapp, which develops clinical decision support software for the personalized treatment of patients with chronic kidney disease. Her research focuses on improving the prediction of adverse events in patients with chronic diseases and investigating the metabolic pathomechanisms underlying such diseases.

Meina.Neumann-Schaal@dsmz.de

+49 531 2616 366

PD Dr. Meina Neumann-Schaal

TRAIN Omics location spokesperson, Braunschweig

“TRAINOmics combines state-of-the-art metabolomics with AI-supported analysis and opens up completely new ways of understanding and optimising microbial metabolic processes. I am particularly fascinated by how precise training data sets improve machine learning and reveal new biological connections. This innovative combination accelerates progress in biotechnology, medicine and environmental research – a real game changer for science!”

PD Dr. rer. nat. Meina Neumann-Schaal has been head of the Metabolomics & Services department at the Leibniz Institute DSMZ since 2020. Previously, she was junior research group leader for Bacterial Metabolomics from 2017. In 2020, she habilitated at the Technical University of Braunschweig on microbial energy metabolism. Her research focuses on metabolic networks, innovative metabolomics approaches and the characterisation of microbial metabolic pathways. She has published over 120 scientific articles. In addition to her research activities, her department contributes to the quality assurance of the microbial collection and offers scientific analyses and services to researchers worldwide.

Karsten.Hiller@tu-braunschweig.de

+49 531 39155201

Prof. Dr. Karsten Hiller

Deputy TRAIN Omics Site Spokesperson Braunschweig

“Standardisation will play a decisive role in the field of omics technologies in the future, as this is the only way to achieve comparable and reproducible results that enable the sustainable use of the collected data in research and (clinical) applications. TRAIN Omics will make a decisive contribution to the establishment of quality standards in the omics field across locations.”

Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Karsten Hiller is Professor of Biochemistry and Bioinformatics at the Technical University of Braunschweig and Director of the Department of Biochemistry and Bioinformatics. His research focuses on cellular metabolism, particularly in the context of inflammation and immune responses. He gained international recognition for deciphering the biosynthesis pathway of the immune metabolite itaconic acid. With his expertise in stable isotope labelling and metabolic flux analysis, as well as the development of mass spectrometry platforms for high-throughput metabolomics, he is making a significant contribution to the understanding of mitochondrial and macrophage-specific metabolic processes. His work enables the identification of new biomarkers through the use of modern machine learning methods.

Technology and data infrastructure

Background

Omics technologies are divided into four major areas: genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics. Since genomes and transcriptomes are analysed using high-throughput sequencing (next-generation sequencing), while proteome and metabolome analyses are often performed using mass spectrometry (MS), each of the omics technologies presents its own challenges in terms of the laboratory and equipment required, as well as bioinformatic data analysis and data management. Networking between the various experts and research infrastructures is therefore crucial in order to effectively master the different challenges posed by omics technologies and enable the integration of data from the various fields. Only through close cooperation and the exchange of know-how can the complex data from genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics be optimally utilised and prepared for research and clinical application.

Omics technology platforms in the TRAIN network

Within the TRAIN region, there are a number of nationally and internationally competitive omics technology platforms that analyse samples from various scientific fields in the region as well as within clinical diagnostics and are networked across cities and institutions within the TRAIN Omics framework. In addition, there are several working groups that contribute specific expertise in sample collection and preparation for some highly specialised research areas, thereby contributing to the excellence of Lower Saxony as a research region.

Bioinformatics and molecular data sciences

Bioinformatics and (molecular) data sciences are central disciplines for the evaluation of complex omics data from fields such as genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics. These data require not only specialised expertise and advanced analysis tools, but also a deep understanding of the respective research area. In addition, the increasing integration of artificial intelligence (AI) methods is helping to exploit the full potential of this data and gain new insights. One particularly promising approach is the integration of multi-omics data. This involves linking data from different omics fields to enable a holistic analysis of molecular processes. This synergy promotes a deeper understanding of disease mechanisms and will lead to innovative diagnostic tools and targeted therapies. The TRAIN network brings together expert groups from various fields of bioinformatics and data science who contribute their expertise to joint projects and scientific collaborations to support the complex analysis and interpretation of omics data.

Data management

However, the successful use of omics technologies requires not only excellent expertise, but above all a well-networked and powerful infrastructure. In particular, the exchange and integration of large, complex data sets across cross-location research networks represents a key challenge. Initiatives such as the TRAIN network help to ensure the efficient use of omics data by linking bioinformatics and data science working groups. Such cooperative approaches are essential for advancing data integration on a large scale and promoting transdisciplinary exchange between research institutions. Only through the close integration of expertise and infrastructures can the full potential of omics technologies for research and clinical application be realised.

NEWS

20. December 2024

1st TRAIN Omics Days 2024 after movie

With over 80 participants the 1st TRAIN Omics Days 2024 were a big success. You missed it? Here is a little aftermovie. Want to be part of this thriving network? Join the 2nd TRAIN Omics Retreat 2025 March 4th and 5th – get in touch!

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26. November 2024

1st TRAIN Omics Days Lower Saxony

“From current projects to future perspectives of omics-technologies in translational health research and clinical application”!

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24. April 2024

Omics relaunch a success

Last week we were happy to host the first TRAIN Omics retreat. With this kick-off event, we wanted to enable the even closer networking of all areas in the translation triangle of Hannover-Braunschweig-Göttingen.

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