Data use under the NIH GWAS Data Sharing Policy and future directions

Abstract
Dina Paltoo, Laura Lyman Rodriguez, Michael Feolo and colleagues present their analysis of the usefulness and impact of the first seven years of data sharing via the dbGaP repository and announce the extension of data-sharing provisions to other types of research funded by the NIH. In 2007, the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) introduced the Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS) Policy and the database of Genotypes and Phenotypes (dbGaP) to facilitate 'controlled' access to GWAS data based on participants' informed consent. dbGaP has provided 2,221 investigators access to 304 studies, resulting in 924 publications and significant scientific advances. Following on this success, the 2014 Genomic Data Sharing Policy will extend the GWAS Policy to additional data types.