ArticlePLoS clinical trials2006
Evolution and translation of research findings: from bench to where?
Article in PLoS clinical trials, 2006. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 46 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
46 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Research-evidence gap analysis of hypofractionated radiotherapy for breast cancer: a bibliometric knowledge graph study.Frontiers in oncology · 2026Pooled it
- A retrospective analysis of dissemination biases in the brief alcohol intervention literature.Psychology of addictive behaviors : journal of the Society of Psychologists in Addictive Behaviors · 2015Pooled it
- 'You feel part of something bigger': Stakeholders' experiences of a long-term community-academic participatory research partnership.Autism : the international journal of research and practice · 2025Article
- From Research to Impact: Factors Shaping Translational Mindset.Research square · 2025Article
- A bespoke water T-maze apparatus and protocol: an optimized, reliable, and repeatable method for screening learning, memory, and executive functioning in laboratory mice.Frontiers in behavioral neuroscience · 2024Article
- Biomarkers for Psychosis: Are We There Yet? Umbrella Review of 1478 Biomarkers.Schizophrenia bulletin open · 2024Article
- The horizontal ladder test (HLT) protocol: a novel, optimized, and reliable means of assessing motor coordination inFrontiers in behavioral neuroscience · 2024Article
- The Horizontal Ladder Test (HLT) protocol: A novel, optimized, and reliable means of assessing motor coordination inbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2023Article
- An overview of methodological approaches in systematic reviews.Journal of evidence-based medicine · 2022Article
- Island Study Linking Aging and Neurodegenerative Disease (ISLAND) Targeting Dementia Risk Reduction: Protocol for a Prospective Web-Based Cohort Study.JMIR research protocols · 2022Article
- Finding common (research) ground between general practitioners and neuroscientists: the vital role of knowledge circulation in closing the evidence-to-practice gap.BMC family practice · 2021Article
- Upregulation of circular and linear METTL3 and USP3 in colorectal cancer.Oncology letters · 2021Article
- Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices among Dental Practitioners Regarding Antibiotic Prescriptions for Pregnant and Breastfeeding Women in the Dominican Republic.Antibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Article
- Designing deep learning studies in cancer diagnostics.Nature reviews. Cancer · 2021Review
- Transdiagnostic individualized clinically-based risk calculator for the automatic detection of individuals at-risk and the prediction of psychosis: external replication in 2,430,333 US patients.Translational psychiatry · 2020Article
- Scoping Reviews, Systematic Reviews, and Meta-Analysis: Applications in Veterinary Medicine.Frontiers in veterinary science · 2020Article
- Crossing Death Valley: Bringing Neurotechnology to Psychiatric Clinics in Alberta, Canada.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2020Article
- Health psychology at the age of Anthropocene.Health psychology and behavioral medicine · 2019Article
- Transdiagnostic Risk Calculator for the Automatic Detection of Individuals at Risk and the Prediction of Psychosis: Second Replication in an Independent National Health Service Trust.Schizophrenia bulletin · 2019Article
- Ten simple rules for conducting umbrella reviews.Evidence-based mental health · 2018Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
1 author.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The credibility and replication of research findings evolve over time, as data accumulate. However, translation of postulated research promises to real-life biomedical applications is uncommon. In some fields of research, we may observe diminishing effects for the strength of research findings and rapid alternations of exaggerated claims and extreme contradictions--the "Proteus Phenomenon." While these phenomena are probably more prominent in the basic sciences, similar manifestations have been documented even in clinical trials and they may undermine the credibility of clinical research. Significance-chasing bias may be in part responsible, but the greatest threat may come from the poor relevance and scientific rationale and thus low pre-study odds of success of research efforts. Given that we currently have too many research findings, often with low credibility, replication and rigorous evaluation become as important as or even more important than discovery. Credibility, replication, and translation are all desirable properties of research findings, but are only modestly correlated. In this essay, I discuss some of the evidence (or lack thereof) for the process of evolution and translation of research findings, with emphasis on the biomedical sciences.
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.