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The collaborative effect of scientific meetings: A study of the International Milk Genomics Consortium.

ABSTRACT: Collaboration among scientists has a major influence on scientific progress. Such collaboration often results from scientific meetings, where scientists gather to present and discuss their research and to meet potential collaborators. However, most scientific meetings have inherent biases, such as the availability of research funding or the selection bias of professional societies that make it difficult to study the effect of the meeting per se on scientific productivity. To evaluate the effects of scientific meetings on collaboration and progress independent of these biases, we conducted a study of the annual symposia held by the International Milk Genomics Consortium (IMGC) over a 12-year period. In our study, we conducted permutation testing to analyze the effectiveness of the IMGC in facilitating collaboration and productivity in a community of milk scientists who were meeting attendees relative to non-attendees. Using the number of co-authorships on published papers as a measure of collaboration, our analysis revealed that scientists who attended the symposium were associated with more collaboration than were scientists who did not attend. Furthermore, we evaluated the scientific progress of consortium attendees by analyzing publication rate and article impact. We found that IMGC attendees, in addition to being more collaborative, were also more productive and influential than were non-attendees who published in the same field. The results of our study suggest that the annual symposium encouraged interactions among disparate scientists and increased research productivity, exemplifying the positive effect of scientific meetings on both collaboration and progress.

SUBMITTER: Kwok E

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6104928 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:The CHARGE consortium is an investigator-initiated collaboration to facilitate meta-analyses of genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and genomic analyses based on next generation sequencing (NGS), among multiple large and well-phenotyped population-based cohort studies around the world (http://www.chargeconsortium.com). Within the neuro-CHARGE working group, we are presenting an update of ongoing genomic studies on MRI-markers of cerebrovascular disease. Large population-based studies have shown that the burden of cerebrovascular disease extends far beyond that of clinical stroke. MRI-markers of cerebral small vessel disease, such as white matter hyperintensities (WMH), small subcortical brain infarcts, microbleeds, or dilated perivascular spaces, are particularly frequent in older community persons. These markers portend an increased risk of stroke, dementia, and premature death, and were shown to have a high heritability, especially WMH burden. Interestingly recent work has revealed genetic risk variants between WMH burden and stroke. To account for the major role of high blood pressure in the occurrence of WMH, we are performing a GWAS of WMH burden stratified on hypertension status, as well as a joint meta-analysis to account for gene-environment interaction with hypertension. Moreover, based on prior epidemiologic and histologic data suggesting that the pathogenesis of WMH may differ according to their location, we are running separate GWAS for periventricular and deep WMH burden. A GWAS of cerebral microbleeds is being finalized. We are also exploring the role of vascular risk factors in the occurrence of dementia by examining the relation of genetic risk scores for these factors with MRI-markers of brain aging and cerebrovascular disease. Finally, several NGS projects are being conducted to identify rare variants associated with WMH burden and lacunar brain infarcts. Additional projects are also currently being designed, including GWAS of novel MRI phenotypes, such as composite measures of cerebral small vessel disease, as well as lifetime, and epigenomic approaches.

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The collaborative effect of scientific meetings: A study of the International Milk Genomics Consortium.

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