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Study Description

GWAS have successfully identified genetic loci associated with a variety of conditions such as type 2 diabetes and coronary disease. The large number of statistical tests required in GWAS has posed a special challenge because few studies that have DNA and high-quality phenotype data are sufficiently large to provide adequate statistical power for detecting small to modest effect sizes. Even before the era of GWAS, the requirement for large sample sizes and the importance of replication have served as powerful incentives for collaboration. Meta-analyses combining summary data from multiple sources have improved the ability to detect new loci. The Cohorts for Heart and Aging Research in Genomic Epidemiology (CHARGE) Consortium was formed to facilitate GWAS meta-analyses and replication among multiple large and well-phenotyped cohort studies. The design of the CHARGE Consortium was formed initially from 5 prospective cohort studies from the United States and Europe: the Age, Gene/Environment Susceptibility (AGES) - Reykjavik Study, the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study, the Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS), the Framingham Heart Study (FHS), and the Rotterdam Study (RS). Additional studies have expanded the CHARGE consortium based upon the phenotypes and willingness to share information across the research community.

In order to facilitate investigators across the world to examine relationships between phenotypes and genetic markers within CHARGE published reports, an open site is made available on dbGaP that provides the rsID and the p-value for inspection. Access to detailed summary statistics (including minor allele frequency, odds ratio/effect size) requires approval of a Data Access Request (DAR).

  • Study Weblinks:
  • Study Design:
    • Prospective Longitudinal Cohort
  • Study Type:
    • Cohort
    • Nested Case-Control
    • Family
    • Longitudinal
Authorized Access
Publicly Available Data
  Link to other NCBI resources related to this study
Study Inclusion/Exclusion Criteria

To be included in a CHARGE study, a cohort has to provide summary statistics for meta-analyses according to the specifications of the CHARGE Working Group. The summary statistics are based upon an agreed-upon analytic plan that provides guidance for all protocols and software.

Study History

A major goal of the CHARGE Consortium is to collaboratively produce a series of jointly coordinated, high-impact publications that describes the collaborative results of genome-wide association scans (GWAS) for a number of cardiovascular, lung, blood and aging phenotypes. The focal point of the design, analysis, interpretation and publication of research results for each specific phenotype is one of several collaborative phenotype Working Groups (WGs) that have been convened by the CHARGE Research Steering Committee (RSC). One analytic strategy that is being undertaken by many of the CHARGE WGs is to conduct a meta-analysis of GWAS results for single phenotypes common to multiple CHARGE cohorts. The actions of members of CHARGE WGs from each of the individual CHARGE cohorts and other collaborating cohorts should support this research goal. The principles are meant to encourage collaborating investigators to conduct their research in the spirit of collaboration and trust and with transparency regarding potentially sensitive issues about the use of shared data prior to publication.

Selected Publications
Diseases/Traits Related to Study (MeSH terms)
Authorized Data Access Requests
See articles in PMC citing this study accession
Study Attribution
  • Principal Investigator
    • Bruce Psaty, PhD. University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
  • Funding Source
    • 5R01HL105756-03. National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.