Table 1 a table summarising the key information from the databases identified as containing information on genetic association studies. Further information is available in the Supplementary information section. No of entries refers to the approximate number of different study reports contained within the specified database.

Alzgene

http://www.alzforum.org/res/com/gen/alzgene/

Regularly updated collection of published genetic association studies performed on Alzheimer Disease phenotypes, from database searches and journals' contents lists. Case and control data presented. Performs crude meta-analysis of odds ratios on request.

Various

>1000

Mar 2006

5

Freely available

[14, 20]

Asthma and Allergy Gene Database*

http://cooke.gsf.de/

Database of published studies for phenotypes related to asthmatic disease. Databases of linkage and mutation information include results extracted from peer-reviewed publications

Institut für Epidemiologie, Munchen

>20,000

Dec 2003

3

Registered access only

[21, 22]

Cytokine Gene Polymorphism in Human Disease

http://www.bristol.ac.uk/cellmolmed/services/GAI/cytokine4.htm

Regularly updated database with Medline-based records from a systematic review of cytokine gene polymorphisms associated with human disease. Data extracted from two publications about the study

University of Bristol/Genes and Immunity

>100

Mar 2002

2

Freely available

[23-25]

GDPinfo†

http://apps.nccd.cdc.gov/genomics/GDPQueryTool

Extensive information system including large published literature database (currently only Medline records), HuGE reviews, books and various types of reports.

CDC

>15,000

Mar 2006

4

Freely available

[13, 26]

GenAtlas

http://www.genatlas.org

Regularly updated database of genes, phenotypes and references. Among numerous databases are brief sections on disorders associated with genes, with lists of citations. May be biased towards statistically significant results

Université René Descartes, Paris

>60,000

Feb 2006

2

Freely available

[27]

GeneCanvas

http://genecanvas.idf.inserm.fr

Database of cardiovascular candidate genes and their polymorphisms investigated at INSERM (Paris, France). Data include gene frequencies and linkage disequilibrium statistics

Inserm

>750

Oct 2005

4

Freely available

Genetic Association Database

http://geneticassociationdb.nih.gov

Database of human genetic association studies of complex diseases and disorders, based on Medline records. Data Extracted from publications.

NIH/National Institute on Aging and Center for Information Technology

>8000

-

2

Freely available

[28]

Human Obesity Gene Map Database

http://obesitygene.pbrc.edu

Database of obesity-related genes, including P values for association and references. Biased in favour of statistically significant results.

Pennington Biomedical Research Centre, Louisiana State University

>100

Mar 2005

2

Freely available

[29-34]

Infevers

http://fmf.igh.cnrs.fr/infevers

Database of genetic associations in hereditary inflammatory disorders, with voluntarily submitted entries. Submissions are validated by an editorial board member,

Institut de Génétique Humaine, CNRS/European Union 5^th framework

>400

Aug 2005

4

Freely available

[35]

MedGene

http://hipseq.med.harvard.edu/MEDGENE

Automated database of gene-disease association studies in Medline.

Havard Medical School

Unknown

Apr 2005

1

Registered access only

[36]

OMIM

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/omim/

Database of human genes and genetic disorders, containing textual information with links to MEDLINE and sequence records in the Entrez system, and links to additional related resources at NCBI and elsewhere.

Johns Hopkins University

>16000

Mar2006

2

Freely available

[37-39]

PharmGKB

http://www.pharmgkb.org

Database of genomic data and clinical information from participants in pharmacogenetics research studies. Welcomes submission of primary data.

Stanford University/NIH

>700

-

5

Registered access only

[40]

T1DBase

http://t1dbase.org/

Database of type 1 diabetes data, including information from collaborating laboratories. Some indication given of unpublished data

Institute for Systems Biology/JDRF International/JDRF/WT Diabetes and Inflammation laboratory

>200

Mar2006

4

Freely available

[41]