Msheireb Museums, the cultural destination at Msheireb Downtown Doha (MDD), hosted an introductory seminar conducted by Qatar Genome Programme and Qatar Biobank.
The seminar aims to raise awareness on the importance and role of bio banks and genome science, and encourage the people of Qatar to register in the
programme.
Held at the Education Centre at Bin Jelmood House at Msheireb Museums, the seminar was attended by representatives from the three partners and guests. It is an extension to the existing ‘A Journey to the Heart of Life’ exhibition launched last year at the museum.
The seminar is one of a series promised within a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed recently by Qatar Genome Programme, Qatar Biobank and Msheireb Museums, to strengthen mutual collaboration through the delivery of events, seminars, scientific tours and lectures on bio banks and genome
science.
“We are pleased to sign this partnership with Msheireb Museums, as it will allow us to educate the community on Genome science, and how we can leverage medical sciences to maintain the health of Qatar’s people and residents, today and in the future,” National Genome Committee chairperson and Qatar Bio Bank deputy chairperson Dr Asmaa al-Thani said.
Msheireb Museums director Hafiz Ali said Msheireb Museums is proud to partner with two leading organisations which seek to enhance people’s knowledge on such an
important topic.
Qatar Genome Programme manager Dr Said Ismail said: “This partnership with Msheireb Museums will enable our local community to get better information and knowledge on our programme, and feel great pride in the progressive sciences sector in Qatar, which is one of the few countries in the world that has a fully-fledged genome programme in place”.
During the seminar, Qatar Bio Bank’s communications and participants recruitment head Mohamed al-Dosari presented an overview of the organisation and its mission, calling on the people of Qatar to register for a programme.
He explained that the long-term healthcare initiative aims to provide residents with better opportunities and methods to avoid diseases, and enhance the health of future generations by providing personalised medical
treatment for each patient.
Qatar Genome Programme researcher Dr Mashael al-Shafei, who is also assistant professor at the Department of Health Sciences at Qatar University, introduced the audience to Programme, which seeks to present the first Qatari gene chip for the implementation of precision medicine in Qatar.
She said Qatar is one of a handful of countries that has a national genome project, which is crucial in the journey to improving people’s health.
The educational tours will be carefully tailored to meet the needs of different age groups, and will help students to develop a better understanding of the concept of genome research and introduce them to the different methods that support efforts in the field of genome research both in Qatar and globally.
The tours will also educate the students on the latest scientific explorations that support their academic study, enabling them to consider future careers in this sector.
