Biomedical Informatics

PROJECT SUMMARY (See instructions): The mission of the OSUCCC Biomedical Informatics Shared Resource (BISR) is to advance cancer research throughout the OSUCCC by providing end-users with advanced biomedical informatics services and expertise. End-users include OSUCCC leadership, investigators, research staff, trainees, and other shared resources (SRs) and scientific programs (SPs). In the last CCSG award cycle, the BISR was a developing shared resource and in this cycle will serve as a full shared resource. The BISR accomplishes its mission through a number of mechanisms, including the following specific services: 1) customization, deployment, and management of caBIG technologies and platforms in support of clinical and bio-molecular data management and integration requirements; 2) the execution of complex data analyses that require bioinformatics and computational-biology expertise; and 3) biomedical informatics consulting, project planning, and training. The BISR is organized into two complementary arms, focusing on Computational Biology Services (CBS) and Data Management Services (DMS). The CBS arm of the BISR provides end-users with services, including the planning and execution of SP- or SR-specific data management applications and analytical workflows, with an emphasis on the utilization of high throughput biological data, such as that generated by OSUCCC instrumentation SRs. The DMS arm of the BISR provides technical services and expertise in support of the adoption, customization, and use of caBIG technologies and platforms to facilitate SP- and SR-specific data management requirements, with an emphasis on the provision of data-analytic pipelines that enable end-users to identify, integrate, exchange, and analyze heterogeneous and distributed data sets/sources. In addition, the DMS arm facilitates OSUCCC end-user access to enterprise-wide clinical informatics tools and data sources, such as the Medical Center's Information Warehouse (a comprehensive enterprise-wide data warehouse), as well as the data management tools and resources being developed by the CTSA-funded OSU Center for Clinical and Translational Science (CCTS). The BISR serves as a catalyst throughout the OSUCCC to integrate and rapidly translate discoveries from the lab to cancer treatment and prevention.