Financed by NIH and biotechnology companies, a new  
database will be developed to provide free, publicly 
available information relating to the genetic causes of 
common illnesses. Known as GAIN (Genetic Association 
Information network), the database represents a unique 
partnership in public-private medical research. The 
database, managed by the National Library of Medicine, will 
contain genetic data from thousands of patients with 
particular diseases. Research will initially focus on such 
diseases as arthritis, asthma, cancer, heart disease and 
Alzheimers. Users of the data will be asked to wait 9 
months before publishing papers based on data they did not 
contribute themselves - a policy meant to prevent 
scientists who deposit data from being scooped by 
competitors.