We describe the informatics requirements of translational biomedical research projects and how e-Science tools can be used to address them. We use pattern templates to describe the common characteristics and components of translational research projects and to motivate the design of e-Science tools. Using examples from cancer research, we illustrate three pattern templates that model 1) prospective clinical research studies, 2) multiscale investigations that encompass genomics, epigenetics, (micro)-anatomic structure and function, and 3) deep integrative clinical analyses. We present two e-Science software systems, caGrid and caIntegrator, motivated by the requirements of basic, clinical, and translational biomedical research, and discuss how these tools can be used to implement the three translational research templates.
Joel H. Saltz, Tahsin M. Kurç, Shannon Hast