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Improved reproducibility by assuring confidence in measurements in biomedical research

Nature Methods volume 11, pages 895–898 (2014)Cite this article

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'Irreproducibility' is symptomatic of a broader challenge in measurement in biomedical research. From the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) perspective of rigorous metrology, reproducibility is only one aspect of establishing confidence in measurements. Appropriate controls, reference materials, statistics and informatics are required for a robust measurement process. Research is required to establish these tools for biological measurements, which will lead to greater confidence in research results.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Anne L. Plant is chief of the Biosystems and Biomaterials Division, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA.,

    Anne L Plant

  2. Laurie E. Locascio is director of the Material Measurement Laboratory, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA.,

    Laurie E Locascio

  3. Willie E. May is the acting director of the US National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA.,

    Willie E May

  4. Patrick D. Gallagher is the former director of the US National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA.,

    Patrick D Gallagher

  5. Patrick D. Gallagher is currently chancellor at the University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.,

    Patrick D Gallagher

Authors
  1. Anne L Plant
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  2. Laurie E Locascio
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  3. Willie E May
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  4. Patrick D Gallagher
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Correspondence to Anne L Plant.

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Plant, A., Locascio, L., May, W. et al. Improved reproducibility by assuring confidence in measurements in biomedical research. Nat Methods 11, 895–898 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1038/nmeth.3076

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