Collective intelligence for translational medicine: Crowdsourcing insights and innovation from an interdisciplinary biomedical research community

Abstract

Translational medicine bridges the gap between discoveries in biomedical science and their safe and effective clinical application. Despite the gross opportunity afforded by modern research for unparalleled advances in this field, the process of translation remains protracted. Efforts to expedite science translation have included the facilitation of interdisciplinary collaboration within both academic and clinical environments in order to generate integrated working platforms fuelling the sharing of knowledge, expertise, and tools to align biomedical research with clinical need. However, barriers to scientific translation remain, and further progress is urgently required. Collective intelligence and crowdsourcing applications offer the potential for global online networks, allowing connection and collaboration between a wide variety of fields. This would drive the alignment of biomedical science with biotechnology, clinical need, and patient experience, in order to deliver evidence-based innovation which can revolutionize medical care worldwide. Here we discuss the critical steps towards implementing collective intelligence in translational medicine using the experience of those in other fields of science and public health.

Interactive machine learning for health informatics: when do we need the human-in-the-loop?

“…A good example of such an approach is foldit , an experimental game which takes advantage of crowdsourcing for category discovery of new protein structures [ 37 ]. Crowdsourcing and collective intelligence (putting many experts-into-the-loop) would generally offer much potential to foster translational medicine (bridging biomedical sciences and clinical applications) by providing platforms upon which interdisciplinary workforces can communicate and collaborate [ 38 ].…”

The clinical and translational research activities at the INT – IRCCS “Fondazione Pascale” cancer center (Naples, Italy) during the COVID-19 pandemic

“…breast and head and neck cancers) and multidisciplinary and integrated teams (GOM, multispecialty oncological groups, made by oncologists, surgeons, radiotherapist, radiologists, pathologists, biologists and virologists, depending on the cancer type and etiology) accelerated the involvement of the whole Institute also in the COVID-19 emergency. In a contest where research, patient clinical care and health management within a global multidisciplinary philosophy are contributing to improving health programs and outcomes, the COVID-19 pandemic had to be tackled according to an unprecedented knowledge management and innovation approach [ 11 , 12 ], which allows research, clinical science and management to stimulate each other to achieve an institutional synergistic collective intelligence [ 13 ] and even a global collective intelligence [ 14 ].…”

The Clinical and Translational Research Activities at the INT – IRCCS “Fondazione Pascale” Center (Naples, Italy) during the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…breast and head and neck cancers) and multidisciplinary and integrated teams (GOM, multispecialty oncological groups, made by oncologists, surgeons, radiotherapist, radiologists, pathologists, biologists and virologists, depending on the cancer type and etiology) accelerated the involvement of the whole Institute also in the COVID-19 emergency. In a contest where research, patient clinical care and health management within a global multidisciplinary philosophy are contributing to improving health programs and outcomes, the COVID-19 pandemic had to be tackled according to an unprecedented knowledge management and innovation approach [12,13], which allows research, clinical science and management to stimulate each other to achieve a synergistic collective intelligence [14] and even a global collective intelligence [15].…”