How the Emirati Genome Project could lead to major advances in personalised medicine

Tailoring treatments more precisely to the patient is a vital way in which medicine will improve in coming decades

Researchers hope the Emirati Genome Project will lead to big developments in personalised medicine. Getty Images

Abu Dhabi Global Health Week, which runs from Tuesday to Thursday, will turn the spotlight on the many innovations in personalised medicine, whre health care is tailored to the patient.

Central to this is ensuring that preventive measures and treatments are adapted to a person's genetic make-up, contrasting with the one-size-fits-all approach typical in medicine. The UAE is well placed to roll out developments in personalised medicine thanks to the Emirati Genome Project, one of several such initiatives in the Gulf region.

What is the Emirati Genome Project and why is it necessary?

The aim of the project is to analyse the genomes – the complete set of genetic material – of as many UAE nationals as possible. Habiba Al Safar, dean of the College of Medical and Health Sciences at Khalifa University in Abu Dhabi ‐ a researcher closely involved with the project – said that would “generate a comprehensive reference map of the genetic make-up of the Emirati population”.

Since the initiative was launched in 2020, more than 600,000 Emiratis have provided blood or cheek swabs so that their genomes can be sequenced, making it, Prof Al Safar said, “the largest population-based genetic study in the region”.

“This scale not only highlights the UAE’s commitment to advancing genomic research, but also ensures that the resulting data has exceptional depth and impact,” she added.

Prof Habiba Al Safar, dean of the College of Medical and Health Sciences at Khalifa University in Abu Dhabi, said the project was the largest genetic study in the region. Christopher Pike / The National

Most genomic research has focused on people of European ancestry, said Marc Haber, associate professor in the Department of Cancer and Genomic Studies at the University of Birmingham’s Dubai campus, leaving populations in the Middle East “largely underexplored”.

“A lack of genetic studies in the Middle East has created significant data gaps that hinder progress in healthcare across the region,” he added. The Emirati population has, he said, a unique demographic and genomic history. While some of this is shared with neighbouring communities, Dr Haber said that “a substantial portion” is distinct to Emiratis.

How is the project important for personalised medicine?

Personalised medicine depends on understanding how genetic differences between people govern their susceptibility to disease and responses to treatment. “With the advent of the Emirati Genome Project, health data scientists and bioinformaticians now have the opportunity to investigate disease characteristics and treatment outcomes specific to Emiratis,” Dr Haber said.

Insights from the project are relevant to the emerging field of pharmacogenetics, which concerns how a person’s response to medication is affected by their genes. Prof Al Safar said the initiative enabled the identification of population-specific genetic variants influencing health, disease risk, and response to treatment.

Detailed understanding of these variants leads to more accurate diagnosis of conditions, targeted therapies – treatments that are more effective and have fewer side effects – and improved disease prevention. It should be possible to identify people at higher risk of developing particular conditions.

“Ultimately, this leads to improved patient outcomes, reduced healthcare costs and a more proactive approach to health management,” Prof Al Safar said.

Has the Emirati Genome Project yielded results yet?

In December, a study was released on the Emirati pangenome, which describes both the genetic material shared by members of the population, and the variation that exists between them. Prof Al Safar was the senior author of the research, which was published in bioRxiv.

As well as being useful for personalised medicine, the information should be of value in understanding how human migration contributed to the genetic make-up of the Emirati population. A study published late last year looking at genetic susceptibility among Emiratis to hereditary breast and ovarian cancer highlights the improvements in knowledge that the Emirati Genome Project may bring.

Writing in JCO Global Oncology, researchers said that at present “little is known” about the genetic variants that may contribute to breast cancer among Emirati patients often developing early and being diagnosed at a late stage.

“We predict the rate of variants of uncertain significance in the Emirati population will decrease as more patients are tested, and as one of the benefits of the Emirati Genome Project,” they wrote.

Are other countries mapping the genomes of their citizens?

Many nations have made efforts to better understand the genetic make-up of their populations by sequencing genomes.

“Examples include the UK Biobank, the All of Us Research Programme in the United States, the Qatar Genome Programme, and similar efforts in Japan, China, and Finland. These projects collectively contribute to global understanding of human genetics,” Prof Al Safar said.

The “relatively open access” of the UK Biobank has, Dr Haber said, resulted in more than 10,000 research publications, which he added had significantly advanced “our understanding of diseases and treatments within this population”.