What is translational research?

To improve the diagnosis and treatment of diseases, scientific discoveries have to be “translated” into practical, clinical applications. Such discoveries are typically made during basic laboratory research (“at the bench”) where scientists search for new discoveries at the molecular or cellular level. This knowledge then has to be transferred to the clinical level (“the patient's bedside”).
Scientists have become increasingly aware that this approach should really be a two-way-approach – “bench to bedside” as well as “bedside to bench”. Laboratory scientists provide clinicians with new tools or treatments for use in patients, and novel observations about the nature or progression of a disease made by clinical researchers are passed back to inspire new approaches in basic research. This “two-way-street” is called “translational research”, which in EATRIS, is always employed with the aim to improve the bedside diagnostics and treatments.
 

What are the challenges in translational research and how will EATRIS improve the output of translational research?

The translation of basic discoveries from the lab to commercially viable clinical applications is a complex and lengthy process. A major obstacle in translational research is the fragmented nature of research along the development chain. There is a lack of exchange between various disciplines, especially the physical separation between clinical and basic research. The availability of platform technologies and testing facilities such as compound screening, laboratories and tools for validation and optimisation of targets is limited. EATRIS aims to gather all aspects of a clinical environment (e.g. access to patients), technology platforms and translational expert knowledge necessary to achieve successful product development. The aim of EATRIS is to make this innovative research environment available to all basic and clinical researchers in Europe.