Engaging African Communities for the HapMap Project

The Haplotype Map (HapMap) Project is an international collaborative project to produce a haplotype map of the human genome. The HapMap is expected to be a key resource for more efficient genome-wide scans associating genetic variation with phenotypic variation, particularly in disease risk and drug response. The overall project will include a number of components, including community engagement, collection of blood samples from various populations, genotyping of these samples, and analysis of the resulting data. Several specific domestic and international populations have been identified for participation in the HapMap project, and will be involved in relevant community engagement and sample collection procedures. Current international sampling plans include populations in three geographic regions in Africa. Since one of the major objectives of the National Human Genome Center (NHGC) at Howard University is characterization of DNA sequence variation in African populations [the 'Genomic Research in the African Diaspora (GRAD)' Initiative], the Center is providing leadership for the engagement of African people in the HapMap Project. Thus, the NHGC's participation in the HapMap project will provide the opportunity to address the characterization of common variants, as a component of the total profile of variation in African populations. It will also facilitate increased understanding of the political, economic, religious, and cultural factors that influence perspectives on and decision-making about genetics/genome research in these populations. The goal of this proposal is to engage communities in west, east, and southern Africa in order to obtain appropriate approval and consent for participation in the HapMap Project and Phase I GRAD. Specific aims include:
-design a culturally appropriate process of community engagement in Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa for considering the risks, benefits, and relevance of the development of a haplotype map of the human genome and the implementation of GRAD;
-collect biological samples from community members in Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa for the HapMap and GRAD projects; and
-develop mechanisms for ongoing community feedback regarding the haplotype mapping initiative and GRAD.