What is basic research?

You might have heard terms like animal testing and animal research used interchangeably, but they’re very different. Even animal research isn’t a one size fits all descriptor, within ‘animal research’ are different types of research.

This includes:

Basic research

Applied research

Translational research

At Replacing Animal Research, we focus the majority of our work on basic and applied research, rather than animal testing… But what does basic research actually mean?

What type of research is ‘basic research’?

Basic research is a type of ‘discovery research’ as it’s about generating new knowledge.

How do we learn about diseases like cancer and how our bodies work? A lot of it starts with something called basic research. Think of it as scientists exploring the fundamental building blocks of life, whether in humans or animals, to understand how they function.

Essentially, basic research is how researchers build our fundamental understanding of health issues like cancer. The main goal is to improve our knowledge of biology and how the body, human or animal, works.

Basic research is also sometimes known as exploratory research, fundamental research, or pure research.

In Great Britain, there is no legal obligation to use animals in basic or applied research, so researchers have much more scope to explore non-animal methods, like in vitro or organ-on-a-chip technology.

Why Basic Research Matters

You might wonder why basic research is so important if it’s not focusing on immediate cures or without a concrete purpose outside of gaining the knowledge itself. This curiosity, and the researchers behind it, are essential to lay the groundwork for future breakthroughs and practical applications.

Vaccines, antibiotics, and even cancer therapies all started with scientists asking “why?”

By understanding the fundamental building blocks of living organisms and their pathways and processes, we can begin to build on this knowledge and ask more specific questions with practical solutions in mind.

Often, the discoveries made in basic research are unexpected and can lead to entirely new fields of understanding and treatment that weren’t even imagined at the outset.

Are basic and applied research the same?

Not quite. While basic research is about building our overall understanding of how things work, applied research focuses more on using that knowledge to solve specific problems. Think of it this way: basic research might explore how a virus attacks a cell, while applied research would use that knowledge to develop a vaccine to prevent it.

The UK Home Office defines basic research as aiming to expand knowledge of structure, functioning and behaviour of living organisms and the environment. The top subject areas within this were the nervous system, immune system and oncology.

Applied research is defined as attempting to address diseases through prevention and development of treatments, with the top subject areas being animal diseases and disorders, human cancer, and human nervous and mental disorders.

Translational research is a term often used alongside or instead of applied research. It is a more systematic approach to creating practical applications, which may involve a multi-disciplinary approach. In medical research, it’s often used to refer to the translation of basic research into benefits for human health.

Basic research is curiosity-driven and aims to help us expand our overall knowledge on a subject. Meanwhile, applied and translational research are focused on finding solutions using knowledge we already have.

Applied research vs translational research

Applied research is a broad term and focuses on solving practical problems using existing knowledge and methods. Translational research is a specific type of applied research and focuses on translating new discoveries into practical applications.

The key difference is that applied research focuses on solving existing problems or meeting practical needs using established knowledge or existing technologies, or by optimising current processes.

For example: Developing a new way to use an existing MRI machine to detect a type of tumour more clearly.

Whereas translational research focuses on systematically taking new discoveries or insights and translating them to practical, real-world applications.

For example: Discovering a new biomarker for early cancer detection and then developing a diagnostic test based on that biomarker for clinical use.