Genetics Program
The Genetics Subcommittee of GEI is administratively led by the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) on behalf of the NIH.
Implementation of GEI by the Genetics Subcommittee began with a Genome-Wide Association (GWA) Study component comprising: 1) genotyping facilities to perform high-throughput genotyping for GWA studies; 2) a coordinating center to provide analytic support, data quality assessment and quality control, and logistical management; and 3) investigative groups that will address scientific questions using existing DNA samples from well-characterized subjects using GWA approaches. Curated data are made available in a central, controlled-access database, the database of Genotype and Phenotype (dbGaP), established by the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) for free and broad research use.
GEI’s genetic component is not limited to the collection of GWA genotype data. Support for data analysis, replication and fine mapping studies, sequencing, functional studies, database development, and clinical translation are all included within GEI. In this way, the GEI genetics component differs from the Genetic Association Information Network (GAIN, described at http://genome.gov/19518664). The NIH-wide GEI Coordinating Committee recognizes, however, that the latter activities are all dependent on the data from high-throughput GWA genotyping, and therefore acquisition and analysis of those data have been the focus of the early years of the GEI Genetics program.
Initiatives related to GEI
People interested in GEI may also be interested in the Genetic Association Information Network, or GAIN. GAIN is a public-private partnership of the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health, Inc. (FNIH) and includes partnerships with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the private sector. GAIN includes studies on Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), bipolar disorder, diabetic nephropathy, major depressive disorder, psoriasis and schizophrenia.
Though the GAIN initiative has officially concluded, the resulting data from the GAIN studies have been deposited into the database of Genotype and Phenotype (dbGaP) within the National Library of Medicine at the NIH for the broad use of the research community. Access is controlled by the GAIN Data Access Committee. Three GAIN Analysis Workshops were held over the course of the project, in November 2006, October 2007, and November, 2008.
More information about GAIN and the Analysis Workshops can be found on the Office of Population Genomics website (http://www.genome.gov/19518660).
