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Dubai Harvard Medical Foundation established

DUBAI — Harvard and Dubai will mark the launch of the Dubai Harvard Medical Research Foundation with a scientific symposium entitled “Today's Science, Tomorrow's Cures” featuring scientists from Harvard Medical School (HMS) and its affiliated institutions.

By A Staff Reporter

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Published: Sat 25 Mar 2006, 10:07 AM

Last updated: Sat 4 Apr 2015, 7:33 PM

The attendees are experts who intend to help drive biomedical research in a number of critical disease areas, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, and neurological disease.

The symposium's title reflects the role of translational research in taking new knowledge from the laboratory and translating it into drug discovery, clinical trials, and ultimately, clinical practice. The Foundation's focus is to develop scientific leaders who will build a life sciences research infrastructure in the region, in addition to establishing both Dubai Harvard Foundation centres of research and collaborative research programmes that enable scientists in the Gulf region both to build regional programmes and participate in state-of-the-art research at world renowned research institutions, including the HMS.

“Translational research strives to understand the basic mechanisms of disease, and then apply that understanding to the design and development of real-life medical solutions. Current treatments in many disease areas tackle only the symptoms. Today's translational research often seeks cures that strike at the cause of the disease,” said Joseph B. Martin, Dean of HMS and Professor of Neurobiology and Neuroscience.

Among the listed speakers at the symposium are leading scientists whose research seeks to create a paradigm shift in the way a disease is managed such as designing vaccines to prevent a range of cancers. Peter Howley, head of Harvard's Department of Pathology, will speak about recent advances in preventing and treating cancer.

Similarly, Mohammed Sayegh, another of the featured speakers, seeks to capitalise on the study of the body's immune system to improve the success of organ transplantation. Sayegh directs the Transplant Research Centre, a joint collaboration of Brigham and Women's Hospital and Children's Hospital.

Meanwhile, Martin's presentation will focus on how scientists in Harvard's Centre for Neurodegeneration and Repair (HCNR) are utilising molecular approaches to finding new potential treatments for brain disorders such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's, and multiple sclerosis.

Robert L. Thurer, Executive Director of the Foundation and Chief Academic Officer of the Harvard Medical School Dubai Centre (HMSDC) Institute for Postgraduate Education and Research, added, “The scientific research presented at this symposium provides a glimpse of the kinds of collaborative research initiatives that we hope to stimulate and support through the Dubai Harvard Foundation for Medical Research.”

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