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Complex Disease Network

The Complex Disease Network coordinates the complex arm of GP2, comprised of the Cohort Integration and Data Analysis Working Groups.

About the Complex Disease Network

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a complex neurodegenerative disease with a variety of genetic and environmental factors contributing to this disease. In the past decade, great progress has been made in identifying genetic risk for complex PD (or sporadic/idiopathic PD). Using genome-wide association studies (GWAS), around 90 independent risk factors have been identified, including widely known variants in gene regions from GBA, LRRK2, and SNCA.

We aim to dramatically expand this work and identify and dissect the genetic risk underlying PD by genotyping >150,000 DNA samples with a specific focus on underrepresented populations. By forming a large network of researchers across the globe that will provide data and DNA samples and by allowing open and democratic access to data, we hope to accelerate scientific discovery in PD. Our main mission is coordinating and organizing the complex arm of GP2, comprised of the groups Cohort Integration and Data Analysis.

Meet the leads & co-leads

Lead

Andrew B Singleton, PhD

National Institute on Aging | Bethesda, MD, USA

Co-Lead

Cornelis Blauwendraat, PhD

National Institutes of Health | USA

Meet the participants

Member

Caroline B. Pantazis, PhD

National Institutes of Health | USA

Member

Huw Morris, MD, PhD

University College London | London, UK

Member

Mike A. Nalls, PhD

National Institutes of Health | USA

Member

Laurel Screven, PhD

National Institute on Aging | Bethesda, MD, USA

Member

Kristin Levine, MSc

Data Tecnica International | USA

Member

Eleanor (Ellie) Stafford, MSc

University College London | London, UK

Member

Alejandro Martínez-Carrasco, MSc

University College London | London, UK

Member

Simona Jasaityte, MSc

University College London, University College London | UK

Member

Hampton Leonard

National Institute on Aging/National Institutes of Health | USA

Member

Zih-Hua Fang, PhD

The German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases | Germany

Member

Manuela Tan

Oslo University Hospital | Norway

Member

Dan Vitale

National Institutes of Health | USA

Member

Hirotaka Iwaki, MD, PhD

Data Tecnica International | USA

Member

Dena Hernandez

National Institutes of Health | USA

Member

Raquel Real, MD, PhD

Unknown, University College London | UK

Member

Tatiana Georgiades, MSc

UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology | UK

Member

Kate Andersh, PhD

NIH | Bethesda, MD, USA

Milestones

Completed

  • Custom genotyping cluster file
  • Establish cohort onboarding process
  • Establish processes for genotyping and QC
  • Establish process for return of data

Active

  • Genotype 100,000 samples