Areas of strength and opportunities for growth in translational science education and training: Results of a scoping review from the NCATS Education Branch.

Translational science education and training (E&T) aims to prepare the translational workforce to accelerate progress along the translational pipeline toward solutions that improve human health. In 2020-2021, the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) Education Branch conducted a scoping review of the E&T literature with this focus. The review used the methodological framework proposed by Arksey and O'Malley.

DEIA is essential to advance the goals of translational science: Perspectives from NCATS.

The National Center for Advancing Translational Science (NCATS) seeks to improve upon the translational process to advance research and treatment across all diseases and conditions and bring these interventions to all who need them. Addressing the racial/ethnic health disparities and health inequities that persist in screening, diagnosis, treatment, and health outcomes (e.g.

Advancing translational science education.

In this communication, the authors offer considerations for how the scientific community can capitalize on decades of translational science advances and experiential knowledge to develop new education opportunities for a diverse and highly skilled translational science workforce. Continued advancement of the field of translational science will require new education approaches that distill key concepts in translational science from past and ongoing research initiatives and teach this foundational knowledge to current and future translational scientists. These key concepts include generalizable scientific and operational principles to guide translational science, as well as evidence-informed practices.

Evaluation of an online case study-based course in translational science for a broad scientific audience: Impacts on students' knowledge, attitudes, planned scientific activities, and career goals.

Purpose: There is a need for education activities in translational science (TS) that focus on teaching key principles, concepts, and approaches to effectively overcome common scientific and operational bottlenecks in the translational process. Delivering this content to the broad range of individuals interested in advancing translation will help to both expand and develop the TS workforce. Rigorous evaluations will build the evidence base for effective educational approaches for varied audiences.

Teaching principles of translational science to a broad scientific audience using a case study approach: A pilot course from the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences.

There are numerous examples of translational science innovations addressing challenges in the translational process, accelerating progress along the translational spectrum, and generating solutions relevant to a wide range of human health needs. Examining these successes through an education lens can identify core principles and effective practices that lead to successful translational outcomes. The National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) is identifying and teaching these core principles and practices to a broad audience via online courses in translational science which teach from case studies of NCATS-led or supported research initiatives.

A systems approach to enable effective team science from the internal research program of the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences.

The internal research program of the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) at the National Institutes of Health aims to fundamentally transform the preclinical translational research process to get more treatments to more people more quickly. The program develops and implements innovative scientific and operational approaches that accelerate and enhance translation across many diverse projects. Cross-disciplinary team science is a defining feature of our organization, with scientists at all levels engaged in multiple research teams.

Conceptual models for implementing solution-oriented team science in large research consortia.

Large translational research initiatives can strengthen efficiencies and support science with enhanced impact when practical conceptual models guide their design, implementation, and evaluation. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) program brings together data from 72 ongoing maternal-child cohort studies - involving more than 50,000 children and over 1200 investigators - to conduct transdisciplinary solution-oriented research that addresses how early environmental exposures influence child health. ECHO uses a multi-team system approach to consortium-wide data collection and analysis to generate original research that informs programs, policies, and practices to enhance children's health.

Subsequent Cancer Prevention and Control Activities Among Low- and Middle-Income Country Participants in the US National Cancer Institute's Summer Curriculum in Cancer Prevention.

Purpose: A dramatic shift in the burden of cancer from high-income countries to low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) is predicted to occur over the next few decades. An effective response requires a range of approaches to capacity building in cancer prevention and control in LMICs, including training of cancer prevention and control professionals. Toward this end, the US National Cancer Institute includes LMIC-based participants in its Summer Curriculum in Cancer Prevention, which is an annual, short-term in-person training program.

Understanding the Value of International Research Networks: An Evaluation of the International Cancer Screening Network of the US National Cancer Institute.

Purpose: International research networks have the potential to accelerate scientific progress via knowledge sharing and collaboration. In 2018, the US National Cancer Institute evaluated the International Cancer Screening Network (ICSN), in operation since 1988.

Methods: ICSN hosts a biennial scientific meeting and scientific working groups.

Assessing Knowledge Sharing in Cancer Screening Among High-, Middle-, and Low-Income Countries: Insights From the International Cancer Screening Network.

Purpose: As the global burden of cancer rises, global knowledge sharing of effective cancer control practices will be critical. The International Cancer Screening Network (ICSN) of the US National Cancer Institute facilitates knowledge sharing to advance cancer screening research and practice. Our analysis assessed perceptions of ICSN's value and knowledge sharing in cancer screening among participants working in high-income countries (HICs) and low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).

Advancing Cancer Research in Africa Through Early-Career Awards: The BIG Cat Initiative.

Purpose: The burden of cancer in Africa is growing rapidly, and increased cancer research on the continent is a critical component of an effective response. In 2010, the US National Cancer Institute, in partnership with the African Organization for Research and Training in Cancer, launched the Beginning Investigator Grant for Catalytic Research (BIG Cat) initiative to support cancer research projects conducted by early-career African investigators.

Methods: To date, BIG Cat has provided 18 awards of up to $50,000 to support 2-year cancer research projects.

Knowledge Summaries for Comprehensive Breast Cancer Control: Feedback From Target Audiences in Kenya.

Purpose: Comprehensive breast cancer control programs are needed to decrease breast cancer mortality, but few tools exist to assist stakeholders in limited-resource settings. The Knowledge Summaries for Comprehensive Breast Cancer Control (KSBCs) are a series of evidence-based publications intended to support cancer control planning at various resource levels. The goals of this evaluation research study were to learn about the extent to which the KSBCs could be useful to policymakers, health care providers, and breast cancer advocates in Kenya, and whether introducing the KSBCs led to their uptake, and if so, how they were used.

The science of team science: A review of the empirical evidence and research gaps on collaboration in science.

Collaborations among researchers and across disciplinary, organizational, and cultural boundaries are vital to address increasingly complex challenges and opportunities in science and society. In addition, unprecedented technological advances create new opportunities to capitalize on a broader range of expertise and information in scientific collaborations. Yet rapid increases in the demand for scientific collaborations have outpaced changes in the factors needed to support teams in science, such as institutional structures and policies, scientific culture, and funding opportunities.

Integrating knowledge across domains to advance the science of health behavior: overcoming challenges and facilitating success.

Health behaviors often co-occur and have common determinants at multiple levels (e.g., individual, relational, environmental).

Pioneering the Transdisciplinary Team Science Approach: Lessons Learned from National Cancer Institute Grantees.

The National Cancer Institute has been a leader in supporting transdisciplinary (TD) team science. From 2005-2010, the NCI supported Transdisciplinary Research on Energetic and Cancer I (TREC I), a center initiative fostering the TD integration of social, behavioral, and biological sciences to examine the relationships among obesity, nutrition, physical activity and cancer. In the final year of TREC I, we conducted qualitative in-depth-interviews with 31 participating investigators and trainees to learn more about their experiences with TD team science, including challenges, facilitating factors, strategies for success, and impacts.

Influence of a National Cancer Institute transdisciplinary research and training initiative on trainees' transdisciplinary research competencies and scholarly productivity.

Over the past several decades, there has been burgeoning interest and investment in large transdisciplinary (TD) team science initiatives that aim to address complex societal problems. Despite this trend, TD training opportunities in the health sciences remain limited, and evaluations of these opportunities are even more uncommon due to funding constraints. We had the unique opportunity to conduct an exploratory study to examine the potential outcomes and impacts of TD training in a National Cancer Institute-supported initiative for TD research and training-the Transdisciplinary Research on Energetics and Cancer I (TREC I) initiative.

A Four-Phase Model of Transdisciplinary Team-Based Research: Goals, Team Processes, and Strategies.

The complexity of social and public health challenges has led to burgeoning interest and investments in cross-disciplinary team-based research, and particularly in transdisciplinary (TD) team-based research. TD research aims to integrate and ultimately extend beyond discipline-specific concepts, approaches, and methods to accelerate innovations and progress toward solving complex real-world problems. While TD research offers the promise of novel, wide-reaching and important discoveries, it also introduces unique challenges.

Assessing the value of team science: a study comparing center- and investigator-initiated grants.

Background: Large cross-disciplinary scientific teams are becoming increasingly prominent in the conduct of research.

Purpose: This paper reports on a quasi-experimental longitudinal study conducted to compare bibliometric indicators of scientific collaboration, productivity, and impact of center-based transdisciplinary team science initiatives and traditional investigator-initiated grants in the same field.

Methods: All grants began between 1994 and 2004 and up to 10 years of publication data were collected for each grant.