Region’s first Blood Transfusion Medicine conference held at Medlab Exhibition & Congress in Dubai

Dubai, UAE - 7 February 2017: A leading expert in blood transfusion services today praised Dubai for being a backbone in the creation of services set up to improve blood transfusion safety globally.

Speaking today at the Medlab Exhibition and Congress in Dubai, Dr Jean-Claude Faber, President of the Luxembourg Haemophilia Association in Luxembourg City, said the UAE can be considered the “capital” in haemovigilance globally, which is the procedure of reporting undesirable effects of transfusion to ensure the safety, efficiency and efficacy of blood transfusion.

This morning, Dr Faber explained to a room full of delegates that the UAE has been home to many “important events” relating to haemovigilance, and key outcomes from the WHO Global Consultation on Haemovigilance, held in Dubai in 2012, include the establishment of a global agreement to establish national haemovigilance systems.

According to Dr. Faber, haemovigilance is “a must” when ensuring high quality patient care, and lauded the UAE’s efforts in establishing an effective system to reduce risks and ensure top safety standards in blood transfusion services. 

Led by Dr May Yassin Raouf, Head and Medical Director, Dubai Blood Donation Centre, the Blood Transfusion Medicine conference, which is being held for the first time in the region saw a number of leading international industry figures discuss a host of pertinent topics in blood transfusion.

During this talk, which took place this morning, Dr Faber emphasized the importance of blood donation, stating that, while globally, “there are still challenges and risks when it comes to blood transfusion practices”, the “real risk for patients is a lack of blood”.

The four-day Medlab Exhibition & Congress, which continues on the 8-9 February, offers 11 CME-accredited multi-disciplinary conference tracks featuring topics such as laboratory management, molecular diagnostics and clinical chemistry.

The past two days has seen the introduction of cutting edge products to the UAE market, including a protein system that can process complex protein assays (a test that measures the amount of protein in a solution) 40% faster than other systems of its kind, and a new line of products designed for experiments with different cells when they are grown in an artificial environment.

During the congress, a spotlight has been put on a number of topical issues such as the use of cardiac markers - biomarkers measured to evaluate heart function - in acute coronary syndrome, chronic heart failure and non-cardiac conditions. With three in 10 deaths in the UAE attributed to heart disease, having access to the latest research in the field of cardiac care will help assist the authorities in creating future strategies and plan effective initiatives to non-communicable health issues such as this.

Spanning over six exhibition halls at the Dubai International Convention & Exhibition Centre, the event accommodates more than 700 local and international exhibitors, over 400 ground-breaking medical laboratory products and services, and is expected to welcome over 30,000 laboratory and trade professionals.

Simon Page, Managing Director, Informa Life Sciences Exhibition, Organisers of Medlab, said: “Following 15 years of success alongside Arab Health, which concluded last week, Medlab is now a stand-alone event generating substantial value for our customers and partners by driving further product innovation and deeper engagement in the regional markets. The Middle East healthcare market is a first-choice market for medical laboratory manufacturers, services providers, and dealers and distributors from across the globe.”

Supported by the UAE Ministry of Health & Prevention, Health Authority Abu Dhabi, Dubai Health Authority, Dubai Healthcare City Authority, Jebel Ali Free Zone, College of American Pathologists, Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute and the Saudi Society for Clinical Chemistry, Medlab aims to further collaboration between the laboratory and clinicians to bridge the gap towards better holistic patient care in the region.

For more information about Medlab Exhibition & Congress 2017, please visit www.medlabme.com

Delegates at the Medlab Exhibition & Congress, the world’s leading event for laboratory management and diagnostics, which continues until 9^th February at the Dubai International Convention & Exhibition Centre, today heard from Dr PK Menon, Director, Laboratory Services, GMC Diagnostics, Ajman, UAE, about the immense potential of 4^th generation DNA sequencing to cure genetically inherited diseases, among others.

To understand genes, we need to study the sequence of nucleic acids which comprise the gene. This is called DNA sequencing. Today, with 4^th generation sequencing, itbecomes easy to read large amounts of genetic material in a short span of time. The 4^th generation sequencers are very small, the size of a matchbox, and they work with a laptop and do their data analyses in the cloud. According to Dr Menon, this new disruptive technology will, in the next couple of years, change how we understand genes and enable us to actually take genomics from the laboratory to the patient’s bedside.

“For example, during the Ebola outbreak in Africa, under field conditions, using the 4^thgeneration sequencer, scientists could, within one and a half hours of the sample being isolated, obtain the sequences of the Ebola virus in the African countryside. Hence, this is going to change the way diagnostics are going to happen,” explained Dr Menon. “Similarly, in microbiology, bacteria’s genes can be rapidly identified for bacterial resistance factors to antibiotics and thus help make quick decisions on appropriate therapy for the patient.”

As in much of the rest of the world, there are many labs in the UAE that carry out 1^st and 2^ndgeneration sequencing, generating massive amounts of data over a longer period of time. However, the Centre for Biomedical Research and Innovation at the Gulf Medical University in Ajman has acquired the first 4^th generation sequencer in the region where they are hoping to innovate and bring in newer diagnostic capabilities allowing patients to get their results much faster.

According to Dr Menon, “Our genes decide what a person is going to be like, what metabolic diseases they could suffer from and the possible cancers which may develop if the individual does not lead a healthy life. DNA-based testing is gaining importance in the region and, in the times to come, more and more individuals will use DNA sequencing as a tool in precision medicine to guide themselves into predictive positive health.”

Carlo Kaabar CEO of Futurelab Medical Laboratories and Co-Chair of the Laboratory Management conference at the congress, explained how reduced pricing in technology is making advanced genetic testing accessible to the region:

“Technology has now come down in price from millions 20 years ago, to literally being able to do a genome (gene) test for $1,000. Rather than laboratories simply reporting a test’s result and value, they will now be able to actually tell people their genetic make-up. That is no doubt influencing what the future laboratory is going to look like and it was exciting to hear the conversations at this conference, particularly from the local laboratory community who are introducing this testing which will obviously benefit patients in the UAE”, he said.

Over the four-day show, Medlab Congress offers over 11 CME-accredited multi-disciplinary conference tracks featuring topics such as laboratory management, molecular diagnostics and clinical chemistry. Tomorrow’s programme will feature the much-awaited topics such as the impact of expanding Point-of-Care Testing (POCT) from a hospital-based setting to the community, as well as the role of the lab in clinical information and the question of whether patients should have access to their laboratory test results.  

The exhibition will also continue to see ground-breaking products on show, such as innovative diapers that help screen the presence of ketons and glucose in the baby’s urine from home, as well as a macro digital imaging system that allows pathologists to quickly and accurately document specimens from surgeries while reducing specimen description time and improving productivity and workflow. Additionally, visitors will also be given the opportunity to receive a hands-on training on some of the latest technologies by exhibitors.

Simon Page, Managing Director of Informa Life Sciences Exhibitions, the organisers of Medlab said: “The scientific programme at Medlab has been carefully designed to shed light on the exciting new technologies utilised in today’s medical laboratories that can have a real impact on improving the health and wellbeing of patients across the region. We are pleased to be able to bring together some of the world’s brightest minds in the field to work together to introduce some of the pioneering solutions to this part of the world.”

As a platform for the pioneers in the laboratory industry to showcase their latest updates and innovation, Medlab also hosts more than 700 of the world’s leading laboratory management and diagnostics brands such as Abbott, Siemens Healthineers, Snibe Diagnostic, Beckman Coulter and many more.

For more information about Medlab Middle East: visit www.medlabme.com

Part of collaboration between Thermo Fisher Scientific and Amerispec Diagnostics

 Attendees at Medlab 2017 this week will have the opportunity to see a powerful fully-integrated liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) workflow designed to offer accurate and consistent analysis of the most challenging and complex sample matrices for clinical researchers. Medlab will be held at the Dubai International Conventional Centre, Dubai from February 6-9, Thermo Fisher booth (#Z6.D40).

This workflow is part of a research collaboration with Amerispec Diagnostics, a Dubai-based reference laboratory focused on offering cutting-edge technologies based on mass spectrometry to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and the Middle East. The LC-MS workflow is designed to provide a comprehensive solution for clinical research laboratories evaluating how to improve separation, low-limit detection and quantification of molecules in biological matrices such as steroids, vitamin D and its metabolites, immunosuppressants, anti-epileptics and amino acids. In addition, the workflow is designed to facilitate drug monitoring research of prescribed and illicit drugs, while addressing the analytical needs of clinical translational researchers working on transitioning new protein biomarkers toward clinical laboratories.

“We understand the need for established processes designed to offer robust, sensitive and reliable research methods that can lead to high-quality, reproducible data,” said Lisa Thomas, senior director, clinical and forensic markets, chromatography and mass spectrometry, Thermo Fisher. “The collaboration with Amerispec will enhance our customers’ capabilities in these regions – ultimately accelerating their research and enabling them to make meaningful clinical discoveries.”

“We aim to provide scientists and academic research institutions in the UAE and the region access to novel technologies, which will lead to further advancements in clinical research,”said Yasser Ismail, founder and president of Amerispec Diagnostics. “We will be improving patient outcomes by localizing critical assays that are currently sent to the US and Europe – resulting in a drastic reduction in time to result. With adjacency to many prominent global scientific organizations, and the support of the Dubai Creative Cluster Authorities and the Dubai Science Park, we are able to further support our mission.”

Comprised of hardware, software, training application and service support, the new workflow aims to standardize the future analysis of samples and better leverage the strengths of modern, high-throughput systems. Utilizing the sensitivity and speed of a system such as the Thermo Scientific Endura mass spectrometer combined with a multichannel UHPLC system incorporating online sample preparation with turboflow technology for cost-effective sample analysis such as the Thermo Scientific Prelude SPLC, together with advanced software, enables clinical research scientists to obtain the quantitative accuracy of LC-MS with confidence.

For more information on the new workflow, please visit http://www.thermofisher.com/clinicialresearchsolutions.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. is the world leader in serving science, with revenues of $18 billion and more than 55,000 employees globally. Our mission is to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. We help our customers accelerate life sciences research, solve complex analytical challenges, improve patient diagnostics and increase laboratory productivity. Through our premier brands – Thermo Scientific, Applied Biosystems, Invitrogen, Fisher Scientific and Unity Lab Services – we offer an unmatched combination of innovative technologies, purchasing convenience and comprehensive support. For more information, please visit www.thermofisher.com.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – Medlab 2017 – (February 6, 2017)