Translational research (also called translation research, translational science, or, when the context is clear, simply translation) [1] [2] is research aimed at translating (converting) results in basic research into results that directly benefit humans. The term is used in science and technology, especially in biology and medical science. As such, translational research forms a subset of applied research.
The term has been used most commonly in life sciences and biotechnology, but applies across the spectrum of science and humanities. In the context of biomedicine, translational research is also known as bench to bedside. [3] In the field of education, it is defined as research which translates concepts to classroom practice.
Critics of translational medical research (to the exclusion of more basic research) point to examples of important drugs that arose from fortuitous discoveries in the course of basic research such as penicillin and benzodiazepines. Other problems have stemmed from the widespread irreproducibility thought to exist in translational research literature.
Although translational research is relatively new, there are now several major research centers focused on it. In the U.S., the National Institutes of Health has implemented a major national initiative to leverage existing academic health center infrastructure through the Clinical and Translational Science Awards. Furthermore, some universities acknowledge translational research as its own field to study for a PhD or graduate certificate in.
Translational research is aimed at solving particular problems; the term has been used most commonly in life sciences and biotechnology, but applies across the spectrum of science and humanities.[ citation needed ]
In the field of education, it is defined for school-based education by the Education Futures Collaboration (www.meshguides.org) as research which translates concepts to classroom practice. [4] Examples of translational research are commonly found in education subject association journals and in the MESHGuides which have been designed for this purpose. [5]
In bioscience, translational research is a term often used interchangeably with translational medicine or translational science or bench to bedside. The adjective "translational" refers to the "translation" (the term derives from the Latin for "carrying over") of basic scientific findings in a laboratory setting into potential treatments for disease. [6] [7] [8] [9]
Biomedical translational research adopts a scientific investigation/enquiry into a given problem facing medical/health practices: [10] it aims to "translate" findings in fundamental research into practice. In the field of biomedicine, it is often called "translational medicine", defined by the European Society for Translational Medicine (EUSTM) as "an interdisciplinary branch of the biomedical field supported by three main pillars: benchside, bedside and community", [11] from laboratory experiments through clinical trials, to therapies, [12] to point-of-care patient applications. [13] The end point of translational research in medicine is the production of a promising new treatment that can be used clinically. [6] Translational research is conceived due to the elongated time often taken to bring to bear discovered medical idea in practical terms in a health system.[ citation needed ] It is for these reasons that translational research is more effective in dedicated university science departments or isolated, dedicated research centers. [14] Since 2009, the field has had specialized journals, the American Journal of Translational Research and Translational Research dedicated to translational research and its findings.
Translational research in biomedicine is broken down into different stages. In a two-stage model, T1 research, refers to the "bench-to-bedside" enterprise of translating knowledge from the basic sciences into the development of new treatments and T2 research refers to translating the findings from clinical trials into everyday practice, although this model is actually referring to the 2 "roadblocks" T1 and T2. [6] Waldman et al. [15] propose a scheme going from T0 to T5. T0 is laboratory (before human) research. In T1-translation, new laboratory discoveries are first translated to human application, which includes phase I & II clinical trials. In T2-translation, candidate health applications progress through clinical development to engender the evidence base for integration into clinical practice guidelines. This includes phase III clinical trials. In T3-translation, dissemination into community practices happens. T4-translation seeks to (1) advance scientific knowledge to paradigms of disease prevention, and (2) move health practices established in T3 into population health impact. Finally, T5-translation focuses on improving the wellness of populations by reforming suboptimal social structures
Basic research is the systematic study directed toward greater knowledge or understanding of the fundamental aspects of phenomena and is performed without thought of practical ends. It results in general knowledge and understanding of nature and its laws. [16] For instance, basic biomedical research focuses on studies of disease processes using, for example, cell cultures or animal models without consideration of the potential utility of that information. [11]
Applied research is a form of systematic inquiry involving the practical application of science. It accesses and uses the research communities' accumulated theories, knowledge, methods, and techniques, for a specific, often state, business, or client-driven purpose. [17] Translational research forms a subset of applied research. In life-sciences, this was evidenced by a citation pattern between the applied and basic sides in cancer research that appeared around 2000. [18]
Critics of translational medical research (to the exclusion of more basic research) point to examples of important drugs that arose from fortuitous discoveries in the course of basic research such as penicillin and benzodiazepines, [19] and the importance of basic research in improving our understanding of basic biological facts (e.g. the function and structure of DNA) that go on to transform applied medical research. [20] Examples of failed translational research in the pharmaceutical industry include the failure of anti-aβ therapeutics in Alzheimer's disease. [21] Other problems have stemmed from the widespread irreproducibility thought to exist in translational research literature. [22]
In U.S., the National Institutes of Health has implemented a major national initiative to leverage existing academic health center infrastructure through the Clinical and Translational Science Awards. The National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) was established on December 23, 2011. [23]
Although translational research is relatively new, it is being recognized and embraced globally. Some major centers for translational research include:
Additionally, translational research is now acknowledged by some universities as a dedicated field to study a PhD or graduate certificate in, in a medical context. These institutes currently include Monash University in Victoria, Australia, [33] the University of Queensland, Diamantina Institute in Brisbane, Australia, [34] at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, America, [35] at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska [36] at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, [37] and at [38] The George Washington University in Washington, D.C. The industry and academic interactions to promote translational science initiatives has been carried out by various global centers such as European Commission, GlaxoSmithKline and Novartis Institute for Biomedical Research. [39]
Evidence-based medicine (EBM) is "the conscientious, explicit and judicious use of current best evidence in making decisions about the care of individual patients." The aim of EBM is to integrate the experience of the clinician, the values of the patient, and the best available scientific information to guide decision-making about clinical management. The term was originally used to describe an approach to teaching the practice of medicine and improving decisions by individual physicians about individual patients.
Health informatics is the study and implementation of computer structures and algorithms to improve communication, understanding, and management of medical information. It can be viewed as branch of engineering and applied science.
The Perelman School of Medicine, commonly known as Penn Med, is the medical school of the University of Pennsylvania, one of seven Ivy League medical schools in the United States. The medical school is based in Philadelphia. Founded in 1765, it was the first medical school in the United States.
Medical research, also known as health research, refers to the process of using scientific methods with the aim to produce knowledge about human diseases, the prevention and treatment of illness, and the promotion of health.
Translational medicine develops the clinical practice applications of the basic science aspects of the biomedical sciences; that is, it translates basic science to applied science in medical practice. It is defined by the European Society for Translational Medicine as "an interdisciplinary branch of the biomedical field supported by three main pillars: benchside, bedside, and community". The goal of translational medicine is to combine disciplines, resources, expertise, and techniques within these pillars to promote enhancements in prevention, diagnosis, and therapies. Accordingly, translational medicine is a highly interdisciplinary field, the primary goal of which is to coalesce assets of various natures within the individual pillars in order to improve the global healthcare system significantly.
Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine (UMMSM) is the University of Miami's graduate medical school in Miami, Florida. Founded in 1952, it is the oldest medical school in the state of Florida.
Wake Forest University School of Medicine is the medical school of Wake Forest University, with two campuses located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. It is affiliated with Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist, the academic medical center whose clinical arm is Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist. In 2021, U.S. News & World Report ranked Wake Forest School of Medicine 48th best for research in the nation and 80th best for primary care. The School of Medicine also ranks in the top third of U.S. medical schools in funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
David Lawrence Sackett was an American-Canadian physician and a pioneer in evidence-based medicine. He is known as one of the fathers of Evidence-Based Medicine. He founded the first department of clinical epidemiology in Canada at McMaster University, and the Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine. He is well known for his textbooks Clinical Epidemiology and Evidence-Based Medicine.
Narrative Medicine is the discipline of applying the skills used in analyzing literature to interviewing patients. The premise of narrative medicine is that how a patient speaks about his or her illness or complaint is analogous to how literature offers a plot with characters and is filled with metaphors, and that becoming conversant with the elements of literature facilitates understanding the stories that patients bring. Narrative Medicine is a diagnostic and comprehensive approach that utilizes patients' narratives in clinical practice, research, and education to promote healing. Beyond attempts to reach accurate diagnoses, it aims to address the relational and psychological dimensions that occur in tandem with physical illness. Narrative medicine aims not only to validate the experience of the patient, it also encourages creativity and self-reflection in the physician.
Eric Jeffrey Topol is an American cardiologist, scientist, and author. He is the founder and director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute, a professor of Molecular Medicine and Executive Vice-President at Scripps Research Institute, and a senior consultant at the Division of Cardiovascular Diseases at Scripps Clinic in La Jolla, California. He has published three bestseller books on the future of medicine: The Creative Destruction of Medicine (2010), The Patient Will See You Now (2015), and Deep Medicine: How Artificial Intelligence Can Make Healthcare Human Again (2019). He was commissioned by the UK from 2018–2019 to lead planning for the National Health Service's future workforce, integrating genomics, digital medicine, and artificial intelligence.
The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) is the British government's major funder of clinical, public health, social care and translational research. With a budget of over £1.2 billion in 2020–21, its mission is to "improve the health and wealth of the nation through research". The NIHR was established in 2006 under the government's Best Research for Best Health strategy, and is funded by the Department of Health and Social Care. As a research funder and research partner of the NHS, public health and social care, the NIHR complements the work of the Medical Research Council. NIHR focuses on translational research, clinical research and applied health and social care research.
The National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) was established on December 23, 2011 and is located in Bethesda, Maryland. NCATS is one of 27 institutes and centers of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The mission of NCATS is to transform scientific discoveries into new treatments and cures for disease that can be delivered faster to patients. The budget provided to NCATS for fiscal year 2018 is $557,373,000.
Basic research, also called pure research, fundamental research, basic science, or pure science, is a type of scientific research with the aim of improving scientific theories for better understanding and prediction of natural or other phenomena. In contrast, applied research uses scientific theories to develop technology or techniques, which can be used to intervene and alter natural or other phenomena. Though often driven simply by curiosity, basic research often fuels the technological innovations of applied science. The two aims are often practiced simultaneously in coordinated research and development.
The NIH Clinical Center is a hospital solely dedicated to clinical research at the National Institutes of Health campus in Bethesda, Maryland. The Clinical Center, known as Building 10, consists of the original part of the hospital, the Warren Grant Magnuson Clinical Center, and the newest addition, the Mark O. Hatfield Clinical Research Center. The two parts are connected to form one large building.
Translational bioinformatics (TBI) is a field that emerged in the 2010s to study health informatics, focused on the convergence of molecular bioinformatics, biostatistics, statistical genetics and clinical informatics. Its focus is on applying informatics methodology to the increasing amount of biomedical and genomic data to formulate knowledge and medical tools, which can be utilized by scientists, clinicians, and patients. Furthermore, it involves applying biomedical research to improve human health through the use of computer-based information system. TBI employs data mining and analyzing biomedical informatics in order to generate clinical knowledge for application. Clinical knowledge includes finding similarities in patient populations, interpreting biological information to suggest therapy treatments and predict health outcomes.
Vivian S. Lee is an American radiologist and health care/health technology executive. An Executive Fellow at Harvard Business School and senior lecturer at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, Lee is the author of the book, The Long Fix: Solving America's Health Care Crisis with Strategies That Work for Everyone. Lee is also a senior fellow at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) in Cambridge, Massachusetts. In 2019, she was named No. 11 in Modern Healthcare's 100 Most Influential People in Healthcare and is a frequent speaker at national and international meetings on the applications of big data, AI, and technology in healthcare, leadership and managing change, health equity, and on climate change and health system resilience.
Systems medicine is an interdisciplinary field of study that looks at the systems of the human body as part of an integrated whole, incorporating biochemical, physiological, and environment interactions. Systems medicine draws on systems science and systems biology, and considers complex interactions within the human body in light of a patient's genomics, behavior and environment.
Chlamydia research is the systematic study of the organisms in the taxonomic group of bacteria Chlamydiota, the diagnostic procedures to treat infections, the disease chlamydia, infections caused by the organisms, the epidemiology of infection and the development of vaccines. The process of research can include the participation of many researchers who work in collaboration from separate organizations, governmental entities and universities.
A physician-scientist is traditionally a holder of a medical degree and a doctor of philosophy also known as an MD-PhD. Compared to other clinicians, physician-scientists invest significant time and professional effort in scientific research and spend correspondingly less time in direct clinical practice with ratios of research to clinical time ranging from 50/50 to 80/20. Physician-scientists are often employed by academic or research institutions where they drive innovation across a wide range of medical specialties and may also use their extensive training to focus their clinical practices on specialized patient populations, such as those with rare genetic diseases or cancers. Although they are a minority of both practicing physicians and active research scientists, physician-scientists are often cited as playing a critical role in translational medicine and clinical research by adapting biomedical research findings to health care applications. Over time, the term physician scientist has expanded to holders of other clinical degrees—such as nurses, dentists, and veterinarians— who are also included by the United States National Institutes of Health in its studies of the physician-scientist workforce (PSW).
The Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine is a public medical school of Virginia Tech and located in Roanoke, Virginia. The medical school is associated with the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute. Formed as a public–private partnership with the Carilion Clinic, the medical school grants the Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) degree to its graduates. Initially a private institution from 2008 to 2018, the medical school became an official college of Virginia Tech in 2018.
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