Abu Dhabi is gathering the DNA of Emirati newborns in a significant expansion of a national genomic sequencing project that aims to put the UAE on the cutting-edge of health care.
The UAE capital has so far mapped the genomes of 68% of Emirati citizens, a spokesperson for M42, the firm running the program, told Semafor, while at-birth sequencing is being offered to parents on a voluntary basis across several hospitals, and aims to detect over 800 treatable childhood genetic conditions.
Only around 1% of the world’s mapped genomes are of Arab descent. The UAE is looking to address the gap while tackling public health issues and expanding personalized health care offerings. M42 — a unit of state-backed AI firm G42 — is now courting other countries to gather genetic data as well as major pharmaceutical companies to tap into its growing dataset.