MBZUAI launches 25-year deep phenotyping health study in Abu Dhabi

UAE—Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI) has launched a 25-year deep-phenotyping study in Abu Dhabi to investigate how genetic, biological, and lifestyle factors influence health and disease among people living in the UAE.

The study will generate data that researchers can use to improve disease prediction, early detection, and prevention while supporting the development of more personalized healthcare.

Researchers will also examine how the UAE’s diverse population can contribute to research on diseases and health conditions that affect different population groups.

The UAE includes citizens and residents from more than 200 nationalities, giving the study access to a population with considerable genetic and demographic diversity.

Researchers expect this diversity to strengthen the dataset’s value for health research, clinical care, healthcare policy, and drug development.

Combining health and lifestyle data

MBZUAI will follow participants over 25 years and collect information covering their medical history, lifestyle and health status.

The study will also include advanced medical imaging, blood tests, continuous glucose monitoring, and sleep monitoring.

In addition, researchers will analyse multiomics data, including genomics, transcriptomics, metabolomics and metagenomics.

They will use artificial intelligence to analyse these different types of information and identify patterns linked to disease development and progression.

H.E. Dr Fatima Al Kaabi, Director General of the Emirates Drug Establishment and affiliated associate professor of personalized medicine at MBZUAI, said the UAE had strengthened its position in population genomics through the Emirati Genome Programme.

She said the new study would expand this work by bringing clinical, biological, and lifestyle information together and analysing it over an extended period.

According to Al Kaabi, combining these datasets with artificial intelligence could provide researchers with new insights into how diseases develop and progress.

She added that the study would generate evidence that reflects the health characteristics and demographic diversity of the UAE population.

This could support the development of more precise preventive models and improve data-driven healthcare decisions, while creating opportunities for research in precision medicine, preventive healthcare, and pharmaceutical sciences.

Participants to receive research insights

Participants will receive personalized research insights through a secure individual study portal. They can also choose to share these findings with their physicians.

The study team will store biological samples at a secure healthcare facility in the UAE.

Researchers will separate participants’ identifying information from research data before conducting scientific analyses.

The study has received approval from the Department of Health Abu Dhabi’s Health Research and Technology Committee, the MBZUAI Institutional Review Board, and the IHLAD Research Ethics Committee. It complies with UAE federal and Abu Dhabi privacy laws.

Participation is free and voluntary, and participants can withdraw from the study at any time.

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