Genetics of multifactorial disorders: proceedings of the 6th Pan Arab Human Genetics Conference

Abstract

The 6th Pan Arab Human Genetics Conference (PAHGC), “Genetics of Multifactorial Disorders” was organized by the Center for Arab Genomic Studies (http://www.cags.org.ae) in Dubai, United Arab Emirates from 21 to 23 January, 2016. The PAHGCs are held biennially to provide a common platform to bring together regional and international geneticists to share their knowledge and to discuss common issues. Over 800 delegates attended the first 2 days of the conference and these came from various medical and scientific backgrounds. They consisted of geneticists, molecular biologists, medical practitioners, postdoctoral researchers, technical staff (e.g., nurses and lab technicians) and medical students from 35 countries around the world. On the 3rd day, a one-day workshop on “Genetic Counseling” was delivered to 26 participants. The conference focused on four major topics, namely, diabetes, genetics of neurodevelopmental disorders, congenital anomalies and cancer genetics. Personalized medicine was a recurrent theme in most of the research presented at the conference, as was the application of novel molecular findings in clinical settings. This report discusses a summary of the presentations from the meeting.

Mapping genetic research in non-communicable disease publications in selected Arab countries: first step towards a guided research agenda

“…In Saudi Arabia, the Saudi Human Genome Program was set up as a research centre to identify the genetic basis of inherited diseases in the Saudi population [14]. In the United Arab Emirates, a biannual conference takes place (Pan Arab Human Genetics Conference) in order to provide a platform for regional and international genetics researchers to meet and discuss genetics-related topics [15]. Data from the ‘Catalogue for Transmission Genetics in Arabs’ database, curated by the Center for Arab Genomic Studies, identified more than 60 recessive genes in the region [16, 17].…”