An international consortium consisting of Saudi Biosciences, Beijing Genomics Institute Shenzhen, and CLC Bio has performed an initial sequencing and analysis of the first Arab human genome.
The analysis forms part of a project to sequence 100 Arab human genomes to map the genetic variations of the Arab population.
After Saudi Biosciences launched the project early 2008, an international joint collaboration with Beijing Genomics Institute and CLC Bio was organised.
A high quality sequencing of this genome was generated using Illumina's Genome Analyser platform.
Afterwards the data was assembled and analysed using CLC Bio's CLC Genomics Workbench.
The results, including analysis and identification of the unique variants of the Arab genome compared to African, European and Asian genomes, have been accumulated.
The data are currently confidential but will be released following publication.
One of the most important goals of modern medicine and genetic research is that of tailoring medical care to an individual's needs, based on information from the individual's genotype or gene expression profile - so-called personalised medicine.
Personalised medicine can offer huge advances in medical care but can only succeed if the genetic variation of humans can be accurately mapped.
The advent of a new generation of experimental techniques, has now given biomedical researchers the opportunity to map the complete genetic variation of large numbers of humans via full genome sequencing.
The data produced from such efforts will provide information that can be used to distinguish the unique groups within the human race, and help tailor medical care that targets the specific needs of different populations and individuals.
However, the projects scheduled so far have aimed at characterising mainly three populations - Africans, Europeans and Asians.
This means that an accurate characterisation and discovery of genetic variation in the Arab people can not be immediately expected and that the Arab populations may receive less of the benefits that will follow the advancement of personalised medicine.
This is why Saudi Arabia has started building an Arab human genomics database now, in order to scientifically explore the unique genetic composition in the Arab world.
The database is fundamental in the process of analysing and recognising the distinct genetic makeup of Arabs, which in turn can provide knowledge to help stratify disease status, select between different medications and tailor their dosage, provide a specific therapy for an individual's disease, or initiate a preventative measure that is particularly suited to that patient at the time of administration.
