Complex diseases, such as alcohol dependence, are influenced by genetic susceptibility, environmental factors, and by interactions among genes and between genes and environment. The Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism (COGA) has utilized a multidisciplinary approach, bringing together expertise in many domains to study this complex and important health problem. COGA has been committed to sharing data with researchers in this field to expedite progress in understanding alcoholism and related phenotypes. COGA has also provided data to Genetic Analysis Workshop 11 (GAW11) [1], and has created an archival database of these families, with both phenotypic data and immortalized cell lines; these data are accessible to investigators for further study through NIAAA .
