Prime Highlights
- UAE launched its first genomics-driven Alzheimer’s prevention trial, using genetic data to identify high-risk individuals before symptoms develop.
- The study will evaluate HT-4253 in APOE4 gene carriers, advancing precision medicine and preventive healthcare.
Key Facts
- The Emirati Genome Programme has sequenced 900,000+ genomes, supporting one of the world’s largest national genomics initiatives.
- Halia Therapeutics has opened an Abu Dhabi office, strengthening the UAE’s genomics and biotechnology ecosystem.
Background
The UAE has launched its first genomics-driven clinical trial to catch Alzheimer’s disease before symptoms appear, pushing the country’s healthcare ambitions firmly into prevention territory.
M42’s Insights Research Organisation and Solutions is leading the study in partnership with the Department of Health Abu Dhabi and US biotechnology firm Halia Therapeutics.
The trial draws on data from the Emirati Genome Programme to identify participants who carry the APOE4 gene variant, one of the strongest known genetic risk factors for late-onset Alzheimer’s disease.
The Department of Health will invite eligible individuals to undergo screening and genetic counselling before joining the trial. Researchers will then evaluate HT-4253, an investigational therapy developed by Halia Therapeutics, in people who carry the gene but show no symptoms yet. The goal is to slow or stop the disease before it takes hold.
Health officials say this is the first time data from the Emirati Genome Programme has been used to drive a genomics-led clinical trial. The programme has now sequenced more than 900,000 genomes, placing it among the largest national genomics initiatives in the world.
Researchers say its scale helps identify high-risk individuals more accurately while giving Arab populations better representation in global medical research.
Noura Al Ghaithi, Undersecretary of the Department of Health Abu Dhabi, said the trial shows how genomic data can predict disease risk earlier, speed up research and support more personalised care.
The trial will run in Abu Dhabi using M42’s clinical research infrastructure and Malaffi, the emirate’s health information exchange. Halia Therapeutics has also opened a new office in Abu Dhabi, adding further weight to the emirate’s growing reputation as a precision medicine hub.
