Standard Methods for the Management of Immunogenetic Data
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In this chapter, we outline some basic principles for the consistent management of immunogenetic data. These include the preparation of a single master data file that can serve as the basis for all subsequent analyses, a focus on the quality and homogeneity of the data to be analyzed, the documentation of the coding systems used to represent the data, and the application of nomenclature standards specific for each immunogenetic system being evaluated. The data management principles discussed here are intended to provide a foundation for the data analysis methods detailed in Chaps. 13 and 14 . The relationship between the data management and analysis methods covered in these three chapters is illustrated in Fig. 3.
The application of these data management principles is a first step toward consistent and reproducible data analyses. While it may take extra time and effort to apply them, we feel that it is better to take this approach than to assume that low data quality can be compensated for by large sample sizes.
In addition to their relevance for analytical reproducibility, it is important to consider these data management principles from an ethical perspective. The reliability of the data collected and generated as part of a research study should be as important a component of the ethical review of a research application as the security of those data. Finally, in addition to ensuring the integrity of the data from collection to publication, the application of these data management principles will provide a means to foster research integrity and to improve the potential for collaborative data sharing.
