The Department of Biomedical and Translation Sciences (BTS) in the College of Veterinary Medicine was launched in 2026 during the tenure of Dean Lorin Warnick. It began as a merger of the departments of Biomedical Sciences (BMS) and Molecular Medicine (MolMed).

BMS started in 1999 and represented a merger of Anatomy, Physiology, and a part of Pathology. The past Chairs were Michael Kotlikoff (1999-2007), Mark Roberson (2007-2017), Paul Soloway (2017 to 2023), and Praveen Sethupathy (2023-2026). In 2022, the Anatomic Pathology section of the department moved to the department of Population Medicine and Diagnostic Sciences (PMDS).

MolMed also started in 1999 and represented a merger of Pharmacology and a part of Pathology. The past Chairs were Geoff Sharp (1999-2000), Greg Weiland (2000-2009), and Maurine Linder (2009-2024). In 2024, Toshi Kawate was appointed as interim Chair.

Praveen Sethupathy was appointed as the inaugural Chair of BTS in 2026. The new department brought together shared and complementary areas of scientific inquiry across BMS and MolMed, with the goal of promoting collaborative discovery. BTS also enhanced the educational mission of the department through increased coordination within the DVM curriculum, as well as the graduate programs and undergraduate and pre-college offerings.