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Center represents a major stride for the UAE in becoming a global hub for healthcare research
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The Center has already begun investigations into the cause of a genetic disease in one family
The UAE has launched a first-of-its-kind Center for Genomic Discovery, which will help diagnose and treat patients with genetic disorders, enhance local genomic research, and train the country’s next generation of scientists.
The center is the result of a partnership between Mohammed Bin Rashid University of Medicine and Health Sciences (MBRU) and Al Jalila Children’s Specialty Hospital (AJCH) through its Al Jalila Genomics Center.
It was launched during the University’s participation at Arab Health 2021. The launch coincided with the formation of the Board of Emirati Genome Program.
“The establishment of the Center of Genomic Discovery through an integrated academic health system will allow us to innovate in genomics application and gene discovery,” Dr. Amer Sharif, Vice Chancellor of MBRU and member of the Board of Emirati Genome Program, said.
The Center has already begun investigations into the cause of a genetic disease in one family within the UAE with promising progress, revealed Professor Stefan Du Plessis, Founding Dean of Research and Graduate Studies, MBRU and a member of the Center’s Steering Committee.
“At least one novel gene has been identified by whole-exome sequencing – a complex genomic test which surveys all 20,000+ human genes in search for tiny changes which might be disease causing,” explained Professor Du Plessis.
Research carried out at the Center will be published in high profile journals. It will also raise the profile of Dubai, MBRU and Al Jalila Children’s as leading research centers at the heart of advanced medical science.