Research funders are increasingly requesting that grant applicants address the need to advance Translational Science alongside their research goals. CTSC pilot applicants are now asked to explore innovative directions and less traditional approaches to break down barriers and improve efficiencies. An investigator must thus embody two roles: Translational Researcher and Translational Scientist.
The resources below were curated from variety of federal and institutional sources to help researchers understand and address Translational Science in their research and funding requests.
Read the contents of this page to learn:
To understand Translational Science, it’s important to define Translational Research. The UAMS Translational Research Institute provides a working definition:
Translational Research is the process of moving, or translating research discoveries into practice. Translational Research seeks to produce more meaningful, applicable results that directly benefit human health.
Translational Research can be distinguished from basic research, which the National Science Foundation defines as “performed without thought of practical ends.” A 2011 paper emphasizes that Translational Research involves movement between defined phases which lead towards specific benefits.
Translational Research fosters the multidirectional integration of basic research, patient-oriented research, and population-based research, with the long-term aim of improving the health of the public.
The National Center for Advancing Translational Science (NCATS) states that Translational Science is the field that speeds up the movement of Translational Research:
Translational Science is the field that generates innovations that overcome longstanding challenges along the Translational Research pipeline. These include scientific, operational, financial and administrative innovations that transform the way that research is done, making it faster, more efficient, and more impactful.
Translational Research and Translational Science both occur within the milieu of human health sciences, but they differ in fundamental ways relating to their goals and outcomes.
Translational Research relies on investigators with aptitude in specific educational competencies related to scientific concepts, experimental design and analysis, communication, and leadership.
The Institute of Translational Health Sciences at the University of Washington groups these competencies under the following thematic areas.
Translational Science requires the creative application of broad principles described by NCATS.
These broad principles do not contain specific skills and are not usually taught in higher education.
An investigator capable of applying these principles can break down complex problems and find innovative solutions which speed up their own Translational Research and can speed up the Translational Research of others.
Understanding the Principles
Translational Science Principles
The NCATS Translational Science Principles stem in part from in-depth case studies of three highly successful NCATS-led or -supported initiatives that span the translational continuum and pursue varied scientific goals. These initiatives use diverse scientific and operational strategies to advance translational progress. The case studies identified underlying principles that characterized the strategies used across these initiatives.
The Fundamental Characteristics of a Translational Scientist
The members of Translation Together, a newly launched international collaborative effort to advance translational innovation, present here a consensus representation of the fundamental characteristics of a translational scientist.
Divining the Venn Diagram of Translational Research versus Translational Science
In this brief blog post, Dr. Michael Kurilla, then NCATS Director of the Division of Clinical Innovation, shares his foundational perspectives on the interaction between Translational Research and Translational Science.
Dr. Christopher Austin, NCATS director shares valuable perspectives on the distinctions between Translational Research and Translational Science in this short paper.
Case Studies in Translational Science
This brief video playlist from NCATS discusses how the Translational Science principles shaped research in three different 3 case studies,
UNM Translational Science Panel
This one-hour panel discussion includes researchers from the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center discussing:
Watch the video or download the slides for this discussion.
What is Translational Science?
The Tufts Clinical and Translational Science Institute provides an in-depth description of how Translational Science is applied in their research programs.
Recommendations for planning pilot studies in clinical and translational research
This article offers valuable recommendations for planning pilot studies in translational research.
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Cite the Grant: This project is supported by an award from the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, National Institutes of Health under grant number UL1TR001449. Link the Grant: To your publication in NCBI My Bibliography (Pandhi & Campen, PIs) |