An XML-based framework for heterogeneous biomedical databases

Objectives: To design a framework model that provides efficient access to heterogeneous biomedical databases. Methods: The extensible markup Language (XML) was used to define the databases. Considered the exchanging ability and expansibility in the future, the metadata structure was designed according to the Dublin Core Metadata Initiatives (DCMI). In. addition, a vocabulary list file was created to normalize the synonyms, abbreviations, and translations before the query processing. The databases recently created in the Biomedical Engineering Department of Peking Union Medical College were taken as testing examples to observe the effectiveness of this framework. A statistics tool based on the framework was developed to show the detail information of the query results. Results: Through this framework, a group of heterogeneous databases can be searched simultaneously in a "click at a time" mode. The statistics of the results can be shown in pie graphs, bar graphs, or charts. Conclusion : The framework proposed here can facilitate the integrating of heterogeneous biomedical databases. Its structured and transparent organization allows users to retrieve data freely and makes programmers maintain databases and develop unified tools easily.