A team of Qatar-based researchers is developing an artificial intelligence system that could tell doctors, before a single dose is administered, whether a patient will respond to a given antibiotic or suffer harmful side-effects from it, Gulf Times has learnt.
The three-year project, co-led by Dr Jithesh Puthenveetil, professor at HBKU's College of Health and Life Sciences and associate dean for Education and Student Affairs, brings together Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU), Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC), and the Qatar Precision Health Institute (QPHI), with funding from the Qatar Research, Development and Innovation Council.
"By combining artificial intelligence, genomics, and precision medicine, we are working to predict how patients respond to life-saving antibiotics," Puthenveetil said in an exclusive interview. "Two patients may receive the same medicine, but one benefits while the other may experience little improvement or even serious side effects."
The variation, he explained, is often written into a patient's genes. "Pharmacogenomics helps us understand these genetic differences so treatments can be tailored to individual patients."
The project builds on the first phase of the Qatar Genome Programme Research Consortium, where Puthenveetil led the pharmacogenomics research. This phase goes further, fusing genomic data with clinical records and AI tools to sharpen the predictions.
Rather than attempt to cover the vast landscape of infectious disease, the study narrows its focus to antibiotics routinely prescribed in Qatari hospitals for conditions such as pneumonia, sepsis, and skin and soft tissue infections.
Around 600 patients will be recruited, with researchers collecting blood, urine and stool samples for genome sequencing, metabolomic analysis and microbiome profiling — data that will then be cross-referenced against electronic medical records tracking medication histories, treatment responses and adverse reactions.
It is this fusion of biological and clinical data that Puthenveetil considers the project's most innovative element.
"We are generating massive amounts of biological and clinical data. Artificial intelligence allows us to integrate these different data layers and identify patterns that would otherwise remain hidden," he noted.
The ultimate goal is a predictive model precise enough to flag, ahead of treatment, whether a patient is likely to respond well to a specific antibiotic or react badly to it. "If successfully validated, the technology could become part of routine clinical practice," Puthenveetil said. "Doctors could perform a genetic test before prescribing medication, enabling them to choose the most effective antibiotic, adjust the dosage, or prescribe an alternative treatment tailored to the patient's genetic profile."
The implications extend beyond individual patients. As Qatar deepens its investment in genomics, AI and biomedical research, projects of this kind could reshape antibiotic stewardship nationally, cutting adverse drug reactions while reinforcing the country's ambitions as a regional hub for precision medicine.
"This is precision medicine in action," Puthenveetil said. "Our goal is to prevent unnecessary side effects while ensuring patients receive the medication that is most likely to work for them."
The study remains in its preparatory phase, with ethical approvals underway ahead of patient recruitment, and Puthenveetil cautioned that further laboratory validation will be needed before any hospital rollout, even once the three-year funding period concludes.
The project also carries a teaching dimension: three PhD students and two master's students at HBKU are working directly on the research. "Our students are actively contributing to this work while learning through real-world research," Puthenveetil said. "These projects provide invaluable opportunities to train the next generation of scientists who will drive precision medicine forward."