HSCI forms collaboration with Qatar Biomedical Research Institute

October 8, 2018

HSCI has signed a collaborative research and training agreement with Qatar Biomedical Research Institute (QBRI), a research institute under Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU). The five-year initiative includes technical training and research in stem cell biology, with the goal of working toward viable treatments for diabetes.

The prevalence of type 1 and 2 diabetes is a rising global healthcare challenge. Recent advances in stem cell research, led by HSCI scientists, have the potential to help both type 1 and type 2 diabetes patients cope with their condition by making new insulin-producing cells.

In this new collaboration, HSCI and QBRI scientists will work closely together to exchange knowledge and best practices, engage in joint research projects, and accelerate the translation of discoveries into clinical applications and trials.

Brock Reeve, executive director of HSCI, said: "Qatar has been proactive in building scientific capacity in the Middle East, and its current focus on stem cell biology shows its commitment to supporting progress in personalized medicine. Partnering with QBRI allows us to share knowledge and expertise efficiently through advanced training, and to conduct meaningful research with a focus on translation. We are really looking forward to working together, and to seeing what new opportunities for discovery arise as a result."

Omar El Agnaf, acting executive director at QBRI, said: "This partnership with HSCI is another step towards our primary goal of conducting research that has tangible, meaningful impact on the wider community. Innovation and entrepreneurial vision are at the core of QBRI's activities. This partnership with leading stem cell researchers at Harvard is a crucial step in spurring progress towards our strategic vision, to solve some of the critical challenges facing Qatar and the region. Thanks to this agreement, newly recruited investigators at QBRI will be engaging in ground-breaking research within the largest collaborative network of stem-cell researchers in the world."

QBRI aims to address major health challenges over the long term by supporting scientific research into the molecular basis of various diseases, and biomedical research that seeks to translate those insights into solutions for diabetes, neurological disorders, and cancer. The partnership with HSCI will facilitate progress in these areas.

Read the original version of the press release from QBRI