Translational Science Overview

Translational science involves the translation of science to clinical practice. In common use, the term has been applied to everything from drug discovery, to preclinical (e.g. allometric scaling), to medical treatment (patient individualization of dosing), and so clearly has different meanings to different people. Shared among all definitions is the need for better access to all data throughout the drug development process by cross-disciplinary teams, coupled with the need for predictive science that can help scientists better manage attrition.

Key translational science initiatives are currently being driven by notable government institutions, such as the Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA) program created in the United States by the National Institutes of Health, where awards are focused on medical innovation, discovery acceleration and community engagement to build and expand clinical research. Additional focus on translational science is demonstrated by the proposed creation of a new NIH center, the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS).

The Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) is Europe's largest public-private initiative aiming to speed up the development of better and safer medicines for patients, with stated goals of removing research bottlenecks in the current drug development process.

Many companies have reorganized along translational lines, bringing together members from discovery, preclinical, and clinical, but lack the IT infrastructure to carry out the vision for the organization. People need to collaborate, share data, and leverage data into knowledge.

Translational Science Imperative

The Translational Science Imperative is to improve prediction of the efficacy and safety attributes of a therapeutic agent as early as possible. This may be achieved by jointly improving:

• Discovery, preclinical and clinical experimental methods and materials
• Collaboration to facilitate integration and joint analysis of discovery, preclinical and clinical data

The world of drug development is changing, and translational science is leading the way. Translational science provides many benefits, and Certara is uniquely qualified to support translational approaches to research through products such as D360 and PredictFX. Let Certara assist you with your translational science needs.