Empowering Translational Research
Turning Discovery into Clinical Impact
Translational research is the vital bridge between laboratory discoveries and transformative clinical applications. It focuses on turning innovative research into practical solutions that improve patient outcomes, address public health challenges and advance precision medicine.
At Promega, we are committed to empowering scientists and clinicians with the tools and expertise you need to transform ideas into impactful medical solutions. From high-quality reagents to advanced technologies, our comprehensive portfolio supports every step of your translational journey, ensuring reliability, efficiency and scalability. Together, we can drive innovation and make meaningful contributions to human health.
Molecular Solutions for Research and Diagnostics
Molecular diagnostics, especially driven by advancements in next-generation sequencing (NGS) enable researchers to uncover genetic drivers of disease, identify patient-specific biomarkers and advance personalized medicine. High-quality sample preparation and rigorous quality control are crucial to generating reliable sequencing data for clinical decision making. This means extracting nucleic acids cleanly, assessing their integrity and constructing sequencing libraries with consistency.
By providing tools for each step—from extraction to sequencing—we help generate robust genomic data that can be confidently translated into actionable insights (e.g., identifying a mutation that becomes a drug target or diagnostic marker). We offer a suite of products to support NGS workflows, emphasizing sample quality and efficiency.
Cell-Free Protein Synthesis and Target Validation
After identifying a gene or mutation of interest (often via genomics), researchers need to study the corresponding protein—for example, to characterize its function or to screen potential drug molecules against it. Cell-free protein expression systems allow rapid production of target proteins in vitro without the need to establish cell cultures. This speed is a major advantage in translational contexts, where time is critical to validate targets or produce protein for assays. Cell-free systems can synthesize proteins in a few hours, even those that might be toxic or challenging to express in living cells.
These systems provide an open reaction environment where you can easily add components or labels (fluorophores, modified amino acids, etc.) to customize the protein product. In summary, cell-free expression accelerates the “gene-to-protein” phase of research, enabling quick functional studies or reagent generation (such as antigens for antibody development), which are necessary steps between discovering a molecular target and developing a therapy. Notably, cell-free expression has proven its value in important scientific breakthroughs. For example, studies that led to the 2019 Nobel Prize in Medicine (on how cells sense oxygen) used Promega in vitro transcription/translation system to produce and study the hypoxia-related proteins HIF and VHL, mapping their interactions under different conditions. This underscores how robust cell-free tools can drive understanding of disease mechanisms—a key aspect of translational science.
Promega is a leader in cell-free protein expression, offering convenient eukaryotic and prokaryotic systems.
Functional Cell-Based Assays
Once target proteins or potential drug compounds are available, researchers must evaluate their function in a biological context. Cell signaling and functional assays are experiments performed in living cells that read out biochemical or phenotypic changes—for example, measuring cell viability, apoptosis, reporter gene expression or protein phosphorylation. These assays are crucial for translating a molecular finding into a therapeutic strategy: they help answer questions like “Does inhibiting this target kill cancer cells?” or “Does introducing this gene fix the cell’s function?” In drug development (a core part of translational research), cell-based assays are used to screen compound libraries for desired effects and to characterize the mechanism of action of drug candidates. They are also used to validate that a genetic discovery actually has a functional impact on cells (e.g., confirming that knocking down a gene reduces cell proliferation).
By linking molecular interventions to cellular outcomes, signaling assays bridge the gap between in vitro biochemical data and in vivo clinical relevance. We have extensive experience in developing sensitive, easy-to-use cell-based assays—many of which leverage bioluminescence—that provide robust, quantitative readouts. These assays save time and provide confidence in data quality (high signal-to-background), which is vital when making go/no-go decisions on a potential therapeutic agent. Cell-based assays provide functional insights into cellular mechanisms, drug responses and therapeutic efficacy. These assays link molecular discoveries to clinical relevance. We provide a range of products that support cell signaling and functional analysis in a translational context.
Therapeutic Development: Cell and Gene Therapy
Cell and gene therapies represent the frontier of translational medicine—directly using cells or genetic material as treatments. As these therapies move from lab to clinic (e.g., CAR-T cell therapies, gene therapies using viral vectors, CRISPR-based treatments), there is a critical need for robust tools to develop, validate and ensure the quality of these complex products. Unlike small molecules, cell/gene therapies involve living cells or viral vectors, so researchers must address additional challenges: verifying the identity and purity of therapeutic cells, confirming the functionality (potency) of the modified cells or delivered gene and ensuring safety (e.g., no contaminating microbes or residual host DNA in the product).
Translational research in this area often involves refining the manufacturing process for these therapies, developing assays that predict clinical efficacy and meeting regulatory requirements for product characterization. Cell and gene therapies are at the forefront of precision medicine. We provide tools for validating and characterizing cell therapy products, ensuring safety, potency and efficacy.
Proteomics and Mass Spectrometry
Mass spectrometry (MS) is a powerful analytical technique widely used in translational research for proteomics (identifying and quantifying proteins/peptides) and metabolomics, as well as for verifying the molecular structure of drug compounds. In proteomics, MS can identify disease biomarkers (e.g., proteins that change in disease vs. healthy states) or pharmacodynamic markers, and it can characterize post-translational modifications on therapeutic proteins. For example, after a potential biomarker is discovered via basic research, translational scientists might develop an MS-based assay to measure that biomarker in patient samples to validate it. In developing biologic drugs, MS is used to confirm the protein’s structure and purity. To harness MS effectively, sample preparation is key: proteins often need to be digested into peptides, peptides may require cleanup, and instrument performance must be monitored for consistent results.
Our products in this area focus on making sample prep more reliable and helping you get high-quality data faster—which translates to faster verification of hypotheses and progression of biomarker studies toward clinical tests. We provide high-grade reagents for protein analysis, which have become staples in proteomics laboratories.
Success Stories: Translational Research in Action
See how Promega technologies contribute to translational research programs.
Let’s Accelerate Your Translational Research Together
Our suite of translational research solutions accelerates the transition from discovery to clinical applications. By providing reliable tools for genomics, proteomics, cell-based studies and advanced therapeutics, we empower scientists to drive meaningful advancements in healthcare.
Intended use of the products mentioned on this page vary. For specific intended use statements, please refer to the product label.