Translational research in Chagas disease: perspectives in nutritional therapy emerging from selenium supplementation studies as a complementary treatment

ABSTRACT

Translational research (TR) is an interdisciplinary branch of the biomedical field that seeks to connect its three supporting pillars basic research on the bench, the hospital beds and other health system services, and the delivery of products for the well-being and health of the community. Here, we review the five transition stages of the TR spectrum, registering the lessons learned during > 20 years leading to the first clinical trial designed and performed in Brazil for testing a complementary treatment for Chagas disease (CD) the selenium trial (STCC). Lessons learned were (1) to consider all the TR spectrum since the beginning of the project; (2) to start simultaneously animal studies and translation to humans; (3) to ensure a harmonious interaction between clinical and basic research teams; (4) to include MSc and PhD students only in pre-clinical and basic studies (TR0) or vertical clinical studies using retrospective samples and data (TR1); (5) to identify potential suppliers in the national commercial market for a future final treatment since the pre-clinical stage; (6) to keep an international network of experts as permanent advisers on the project. In the whole process, some perspectives were created a complementary clinical trial for the opened questions and the construction of a Brazilian clinical CD platform.