Global Ancestry Inference and Assignment (GAIA) Study
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Global Ancestry Inference and Assignment (GAIA) Study
IRAS ID
274694
Contact name
Manjinder S Sandhu
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Omnigen Biodata Ltd
Duration of Study in the UK
5 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
The Global Ancestry Inference and Assignment (GAIA) Study aims to better understand the ancestral composition of individuals and populations globally. As part of this study, we will develop a diverse population genetic resource of up to 10,000 individuals from global populations, including indigenous communities. Through a unique partnership with global collaborators and institutions, we will integrate linked-anonymised demographic data and genetic data created from DNA from existing population study collections with appropriate ethics and consent, to undertake research on population history and ancestry estimation at the individual and population level.
Specifically, this application seeks approval for the use data and samples from two existing sample collections. In future, to meet our target sample size, we intend to include additional existing sample collections in this study.
All samples used in GAIA will be linked-anonymised, and will have appropriate ethical approvals (or equivalent regulatory approvals in instances where a country does not have a research ethics committee) and consent structures to be brought to the UK or other countries for genetic analyses, and for sharing of data through managed access mechanisms. Where the original consent structures for this are not explicit, we request that the REC reviews these studies for use of existing linked-anonymised samples and data.
Where necessary, DNA will be extracted from blood or saliva, by a third-party service provider. The extracted DNA will be sent to third-party service providers, commercial organisations, or research centres for processing, quality assessment, sequencing and genotyping. All data generated will be securely transferred and stored by Omnigen on secure cloud servers. All curated, linked-anonymised genomic and demographic data (and samples, where relevant consents allow) will be available to be shared beyond the end of this study through managed access mechanisms.
REC name
London - Brent Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
19/LO/1982
Date of REC Opinion
2 Jan 2020
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion