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Usage Conditions and Limitations 
Data sets that have been incorporated in the GeneNetwork belong to several research groups listed in the Status and Contacts page. Many data sets are still being generated and analyzed, and these researchers have agreed to remove protection and let academic investigators view, share, and analyze data. We request that those of you preparing publications do your best of acknowledge data sources and the GeneNetwork either in the form of citations or directly in the acknowledgement section.
If your work relies heavily on the GeneNetwork please consider acknowledging the grant that provides substantial support for this project (NIH P20-MH 62009; see bottom of all pages). Please review the annotated References for relevant citations. For further details on use and citation of data in papers please read the section below on Academic, educational, and not-for-profit institutional use.
Commercial Use of The GeneNetwork and data sets is prohibited without prior written permission (email is fine). If you are working for a company or corporation (a for-profit) and you would like to make use of The GeneNetwork, WebQTL, and its data resources, then we request that you initially contact Robert Williams or by telephone at (901) 448-7050. We welcome and solicit corporate support. If it is useful to you and your company then we would like to provide you a commercial use license and enlist you as a corporate sponsor for this project and for the groups generating large data sets. Any license to use the GeneNetwork and WebQTL does not include a license to any patent rights that any of the data providers may have that are independent of the database itself.
Large data sets. Data sets that have not been used in full publications will generally not be available for bulk downloading, redistribution, or analysis by other groups or in other databases without prior written agreement of those who generated the data. It is often possible to obtain access to entire unpublished data sets or large subsets of data on a collaborative basis. Please contact the data owner.
This restriction on bulk analysis is removed after component databases have led to full publications. For example, all data generated using the Affymetrix U74Av2 platform (Brain and Hematopoeitic Stem Cells) are now available in toto for downloading in multiple formats, including DAT and CEL files, as well as the individual transforms (e.g., RMA transform, scroll down to the section labeled "How to download these data"). Citation of one of these publications would be appropriate.
Bystrykh L, Weersing E, Dontje B, Sutton S, Pletcher MT, Wiltshire T, Su AI, Vellenga E, Wang J, Manly KF, Lu L, Chesler EJ, Alberts R, Jansen RC, Williams RW, Cooke M, de Haan G (2005) Uncovering regulatory pathways affecting hematopoietic stem cell function using “genetical genomics.” Nature Genetics 37:225-232. [Please cite this article if you have used the GNF-Groningen hematopoietic stem cell data set.]
Chesler EJ, Lu L, Shou S, Qu Y, Gu J, Wang J, Hsu HC, Mountz JD, Baldwin N, Langston MA, Threadgill DW, Manly KF, Williams RW (2005) Genetic dissection of gene expression reveals polygenic and pleiotropic networks modulating brain structure and function. Nature Genetics 37:233-242. [Please cite this article if you have used one of the UTHSC brain data sets.]
Academic, educational, and not-for-profit institutional use.
Any of the data in the GeneNetwork are currently available for specific analyses by investigators at non-profit organizations, but with the expectation that the particular data sources will be acknowledged and cited appropriately in works or publications. Since these data are still being generated, revised, expanded, and error-checked, we strongly recommend contacting the different groups who are generating these data. They will be able to help you analyze, interpret, and confirm results. Unlike other genomic data sets that you may use (GenBank, ENSEMBL, etc.), data available on the GeneNetwork are the products of intense and costly efforts by relatively small teams of researchers who have often used private funds to generate and process these data. They have opened their laboratory notebooks for your perusal.
Acknowledgement is appropriate when (1) data taken from The GeneNetwork play a minor or supporting role in a study or work, and (2) when you do not need assistance with the interpretation or analysis of the data, and (3) when data are used for research or educational purposes only. Data contributors make every effort to annotate the data sets (see the INFO pages associated with each data submission or "freeze"), but some of these experiments are complex, for example, protocols used to purify hematopoietic stem cells. We recommend contacting the scientists who generated these data sources in advance of submission.
Co-authorship is appropriate to consider when data taken from The GeneNetwork play a pivotal role in a study or when the interpretation or findings require insight into experimental details and statistical design (the metadata). The contributors to The GeneNetwork can provide you much useful insight into use and interpretation and can also let you know about impending new data releases and new research directions that could impact your research.
Disclaimer. The data providers make no guarantees or warranties as to the accuracy or completeness of or results to be obtained from accessing and using information from The GeneNetwork. We will not be liable to any user or anyone else for any inaccuracy, error or omission, regardless of cause, in the data contained in The GeneNetwork databases or any resulting damages. In addition, the data providers do not warrant that the databases will meet your requirements, be uninterrupted, or error-free. Data providers expressly exclude and disclaim all expressed and implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. Data providers shall not be responsible for any damage or loss of any kind arising out of or related to your use of the databases, including without limitation data loss or corruption, regardless of whether such liability is based in tort, contract, or otherwise.
Information about this text file:
This text file originally generated by RWW, March 2004. Updated by RWW, Nov 12, 2004; Dec 4, 2004; April 27, 2005; Sept 1, 2005.
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