The Statistical Center for HIV & AIDS Research and Prevention (SCHARP) at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (Fred Hutch) created the Atlas Science Portal to serve as a data integration and operational hub for multiple HIV research networks. These include the HIV Vaccine Trials Network (HVTN), the Center for AIDS Vaccine Discovery (CAVD), the HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN), and the Microbicide Trials Network (MTN).
Atlas helps these networks gain a wider view of their projects by bringing together disparate sources and types of information, opening the door to novel scientific insights and smoother operations. Teams use Atlas to pre-empt data integration challenges and collect better data from the get-go through data annotation, standardization, QC, and review during data acquisition. The system also facilitates collaboration, helping these networks leverage distributed perspectives and specialized expertise.
The Atlas portal uses LabKey Server SDMS Software sophisticated security model to support multiple research networks on a single server. Organizations and individuals can only see the studies and data they are authorized to view. Permissions can be set at the project, study, dataset, or view level, allowing fine-grained control of data security. Heterogeneous data can be integrated at the study level; at the same time, LabKey Server’s security model ensures cohort blinding when appropriate. The Atlas team has used LabKey Server’s built-in reporting and visualization tools to develop summary dashboards and visualizations. Users can quickly build and share their own custom data views, analyses, and visualizations, as well as download data and reports.
As of early 2014, Atlas included over 1600 active users, contained tens of thousands of assay runs, and recorded over a million specimen vial transfers.
Related Resources
2012 User Conference Presentation
LabKey Server: An open source platform for scientific data integration, analysis and collaboration (BMC Bioinformatics 2011)
LabKey Server NAb: A tool for analyzing, visualizing and sharing results from neutralizing antibody assays (BMC Immunology 2012)
Quality control, analysis and secure sharing of Luminex® immunoassay data using the open source LabKey Server platform (BMC Bioinformatics 2013)