Clinical and Translational Science Awardees Join the iBridge Network to Enhance Research Collaboration and Drive Medical Innovation

Ten CTSA Organizations Have Already Posted More Than 3,700 Innovations

KANSAS CITY, Mo., June 1 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The iBridge(SM) Network, a program of the not-for-profit Kauffman Innovation Network, Inc., today announced its collaboration with recipients of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA), a consortium of 46 medical research institutions dedicated to enhancing the efficiency and quality of clinical and translational research. Under terms of the agreement, users of CTSA's CTSA-IP initiative (www.ctsaip.org) can seamlessly join more than 100 other research institutions around the world to connect, collaborate and license their work using the iBridge Network (www.ibridgenetwork.org).  

"The iBridge Network and CTSA share the common goal of connecting researchers in order to make their innovations as useful and productive as possible," stated Scott Steele, coordinator of the CTSA-IP initiative and director of research alliances at the University of Rochester.  "With more than 3,700 innovations from CTSA member institutions already on the iBridge Network, we're garnering worldwide exposure for the breakthroughs our researchers are accomplishing while moving toward our goal of increasing human health through clinical and translational research."

CTSA-IP was founded as a means of collecting licensing and technology transfer information in an easily searchable format at a single website.  Interactive features allow users searching for specific technologies or areas of research to have alerts automatically sent to them when a new posting appears. The site exchanges information with other efforts, including those of the CTSA Consortium, to aggregate information about research resources lying inside and outside of the technology transfer domain.

"CTSA shares our ambition of providing transparency and the opportunity for collaboration for researchers and innovation seekers around the world," said Lesa Mitchell, director of the iBridge Network. "They are already the most active community on the Network and we couldn't be happier to highlight the cutting-edge research that their members are conducting every day."  

With more than 100 organizations contributing nearly 13,000 innovations on the site, the iBridge Network is the destination of choice for university researchers, entrepreneurs and industry members to share and discover best practices and research across a variety of topic areas. The iBridge Network Web site is designed to encourage open and efficient communities with unique profiles, advanced navigation, search capabilities and personalized services such as the iBNewsfeed, which notifies users of new developments tailored to their interests. Presently, five of the top six and 15 of the top 25 research universities in the United States utilize the iBridge Network.

Universities and non-profits use the iBridge Web site to distribute and license a variety of items, including software, research tools, databases, teaching materials, surveys, reference materials and patent-protected technologies.

The current CTSA member institutions on the iBridge Network include:

• Columbia Technology Ventures
• New York University
• The Rockefeller University
• Tufts Medical Center
• Tufts University
• University of Michigan
• University of Pennsylvania
• University of Pittsburgh
• University of Rochester
• Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation

About the Clinical and Translational Science Awards

Drawing from experience of the NIH Roadmap for Medical Research and extensive community input, the Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSAs) program creates a definable academic home for clinical and translational research. CTSA institutions work to transform the local, regional, and national environment to increase the efficiency and speed of clinical and translational research across the country.  This consortium includes 46 medical research institutions located throughout the nation. When fully implemented by 2012, about 60 institutions will be linked together to energize the discipline of clinical and translational science. The CTSA consortium is funded by the National Center for Research Resources (NCRR), a part of the NIH.  To learn more, please visit http://www.ctsaweb.org.  

About the iBridge(SM) Network

The iBridge(SM) Network is an innovation catalyst with a vibrant, online community enabling universities, companies and entrepreneurs to connect, collaborate and license tomorrow's research, products and services. Many of the nation's leading research institutions utilize the iBridge(SM) Network regularly to promote, share and advance their innovations and identify appropriate partners. The iBridge(SM) Network is a program of the Kauffman Innovation Network, Inc., an initiative of the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. To learn more, please visit www.iBridgeNetwork.org, e-mail us at [email protected], or call 800-573-5136.

SOURCE iBridge Network