A data bank of human genetic polymorphisms, mostly protein and blood groups polymorphisms, including HLA, was generated by the PI and colleagues as part of the analyses required in the production of the volume, History and Geography of Human Genes. This database contains allele frequencies obtained from the available literature on human genetic polymorphisms. The current project aims to make these data available to research workers on the internet via the World-Wide Web, together with the set of methods of historical and geographic analysis already available or currently being developed in the PIs laboratory. This is especially worthwhile and timely because the Web makes it easier for researchers to employ existing, sophisticated programs for data retrieval and analysis without porting them to their own computers. The data to be made available on the Web will be stored and managed by an object-oriented database system based on a prototype already in place. This system accepts arbitrary queries and delivers the results over the Web. The available classical polymorphism data are identified by geographic and linguistic relationships, and all data will eventually be accompanied by geographical and linguistic information in order to facilitate further study the roles of culture and language in the distribution of contemporary genetic variation. Additionally, the Web accessible database ultimately will be augmented with new data on classical marker frequencies, new data on DNA polymorphisms, and unpublished analytical methods being developed in the PIs laboratory. Updating and maintenance of the database and Web-site will be ongoing.
