April 2025
Issue 2
Letter from the JCTS Editor
I hope you all enjoyed Translational Science 2025 as much as I did. From insightful conversations to empowering keynotes and provocative posters, the science being enabled by our community is incredible. Against a backdrop of uncertainty and weeks of worry, the thoughtful and future-focused engagement was astonishing. Indeed, a first time attendee commented that it was refreshing to go beyond celebrating last year’s science achievements and to spend a lot of time focused on building the next generation of research skills, technologies, methods, and processes. The excitement for science was also palpable on the Hill as hundreds of us went to advocate for clinical and translational research – the passion was clear not only among the visitors, but also among the various government offices with which we met. Clinical and translational research clearly remains a priority. As I was leaving the conference on Thursday afternoon, it was refreshing to overhear people talk about renewed excitement, and the sense that we can lean into change with our eyes open to new possibilities for research that improves the health of all people.
With this spirit of optimism for discovery, we will need to learn from one another how to navigate new priorities, new funding pathways, and new perspectives. Moreover, I expect we will need innovations in how we conduct research. A rigorous, reproducible, and informative evidence base is critical to our health and vitality. I invite you to submit papers describing our new learnings and approaches to the Journal of Clinical and Translational Science, and I look forward to hearing about these innovations and lessons at next year’s meeting.
Chris Lindsell, PhD
Editor-in-Chief, Journal of Clinical and Translational Science
ACTS Updates
Translational Science 2025 in Review
One week on from Translational Science 2025 and the ACTS staff is still buzzing from another successful gathering! For our return to DC, nearly 1,200 attendees learned from over 200 speakers across 53 sessions, viewed over 550 posters, and enjoyed the opportunity to connect with colleagues both new and old.
We'd like to extend special thanks to Dan Hartman, MD and Felicity Enders, PhD for their inspiring keynote presentations, and our partners from Studypages and the Alzheimer's Association for sponsoring the event.
And finally, thank you to the ACTS Board of Directors, the TS25 Planning Committee and to everyone that attended the meeting. Our community is what makes the Translational Science meeting a special event for everyone involved. We hope to see everyone back for Translational Science 2026 from April 20-23, 2026, as ACTS takes our annual get-together to the Baird Center in Milwaukee, WI!
Introducing the First ACTS Digital Badge
ACTS, with the help of Credly, is happy to introduce its first offering in its brand-new collection of digital badges. Take the next step in your translational science career and make your CV stand out with one of these verified credentials. Each badge contains information describing the trainings you took to earn it, as well as the skills you now possess as a holder of the badge.
As announced at TS25, ACTS has teamed up with the Team Science Professionals (TSP) SIG to launch the first pilot digital badge offering, the Team Science Fundamentals badge. This pilot is currently open to TSP SIG members and more information will be provided once it becomes more broadly available. This badge is ideal for both established Team Science Professionals seeking to validate their core skills and those aspiring to deepen their understanding and grow in the field of Team Science.
ACTS is looking forward to rolling out the full collection of Team Science digital badges in the coming years, and we’re actively exploring badges to offer in other disciplines in translational science. Questions? Feel free to email our office at info@actscience.org.
Network, Build, Succeed with ACTS
ACTS is where you build your professional network. It is a balanced home to find like-minded individuals to collaborate with on grants and other projects. Members are part of a community dedicated to advancing clinical and translational research, enhancing professional development, and contributing to improvements in human health through scientific innovation. To this end, ACTS is proud to launch the Network, Build, Succeed campaign for membership engagement.
Network with peers who share similar interests in order to exchange best practices. Build your own career path as well as your cross-institutional networks. Succeed in helping trainees achieve their full potential, implementing solutions for health problems, and achieving healthier communities.
To help us launch this campaign, we invite you to share stories from your institution showing how ACTS has helped you to Network, Build, and Succeed!
Stories from our Members
SC CTSI Organizes Health Screening Event at Newly-Opened Community Resource Center in South L.A.
The Community Engagement (CE) Core of the Southern California Clinical and Translational Science Institute (SC CTSI) held its first health screening event of the year on February 22. This event took place at L.A. Care Health Plan and Blue Shield of California Promise Health Plan’s newly opened Community Resource Center in South L.A.
Following the success of the health screening event coordinated by CE in November 2024 at the Community Resource Center in East Los Angeles, the team replicated their efforts in another part of town.
New research shows how smoking, vaping, and marijuana affect airway health
The interdisciplinary study analyzed metabolites (molecules produced by cellular chemical reactions) from the exhaled breath of participants to analyze how airways responded. The researchers found that tobacco smoke, in particular, increased inflammation and oxidative stress. Their paper was published in Respiratory Research.
“We didn’t measure the chemicals that come out of cigarettes or marijuana, we measured the responses of the airway epithelial cells, as well as some systemic responses,” said pulmonologist Nicholas Kenyon, director of the UC Davis Asthma Network and co-senior author on the study. “The metabolites tell us quite a bit about oxidative stress and inflammation.”
Want to see your institution's stories featured in this section? Head to our new story submission form to share your recent articles!
Engage with ACTS
Special Interest Groups
ACTS offers its members the opportunity to participate in Special Interest Groups (SIGs) related to the field of clinical research and translational science. SIGs connect individuals who share similar goals and interests, providing a channel to network and participate in knowledge and resource sharing among peers.
Learning Library
The ACTS Learning Library is the centralized location for all ACTS educational offerings, including partner webinars and past Translational Science recordings. ACTS members receive complimentary access to webinars and recordings.