NCoEDG has access to some of the world's largest and best phenotyped family collections for three selected broad entities and their numerous trait components. Before all the information of phenotypes can be maximally utilized in genetic studies, we need harmonization of the collected phenotype information as well as their novel statistical analyses addressing the clustering and variance of QTL traits. By utilizing the collected expertise of clinicians collaborating with our groups, the medical core aims to accomplish this demanding task for genetically loaded families collected within the NCoEDG.

The core will collect information for the three selected traits at the highest clinical standards for reliable diagnosis and if possible for disease progress or severity. The funding is targeted to arrange workshops bringing together experts of clinical phenotypes and experts on relevant farm animal and rodent traits. They will make every effort to design novel strategies to address the complexity of the broad phenotypes and to utilize the correspondence between human families and animal models.

The core will arrange workshops for the broad diagnostic entities that are targets of this proposal (metabolic syndrome, autoimmunity/inflammation and colon cancer to bring together the expert clinicians, epidemiologists and statisticians to agree on the best QTL traits to be addressed in the data pooling efforts of the NCoEDG. These workshops will also have an educational component for students and junior scientists ( a special education day following each workshop meeting).

(Leader Leif Groop)