Research Faculty

Infectious Disease Epidemiology Group
Epidemiological factors and population processes shaping infectious disease spread in human and animal populations.

Dopamine, glutamate, and cytokines interactions in the neuropsychiatric syndromes like chronic pain and schizophrenia. Translation and cultural adaptation of clinical psychiatric scales to Arabic. Metabolic syndrome in patients receiving antipsychotics in Qatar.

Clinical investigation of cardiovascular disease, cardiovascular complications of diabetes and cardiovascular genetics.

Genetic Studies of Rheumatoid arthritis, and Behcet’s disease

Büsselberg Lab
(Neuro-) physiology/(neuro-) pharmacology and cell signalling, using molecular and electrophysiological approaches.

Epidemiology and transmission dynamics of infectious diseases in human populations, with a focus on sexually transmitted infections, and more recently coronavirus disease 2019. 

Genetics and immunology of multi-factorial diseases, including cancer.

Dr. Courjaret studies intracellular calcium signaling using a combination of imaging, electrophysiology and animal models. 
Interested in understanding the mechanisms leading to specific and localized calcium changes in response to various physiological and pathological situations.

Ding Lab
Effects of high glucose on endothelium tissue and cells' ability to regulate calcium and nitric oxide.

Metabolomics and complex diseases, cancer and type 2 diabetes. Clinical applications of metabolomics.

Clinical, population, and genetic-epidemiological studies of blood pressure salt sensitivity, hypertension, severe obesity, dyslipidemia, cardiovascular disease, and other common diseases.

Medical education and faculty development such as professionalism in medicine, learning methods, etc. Curriculum design and development of teaching modules in a multicultural context related to professionalism, different level of learners, problem learners, etc. Obesity in children and adolescents in Qatar. Patients' assessment of healthcare providers and systems in a multicultural context.

Mood changes associated with the use of interferon treatment in patients with hepatitis C and changes in plasma levels of interleukin-6 in association with the stress of major cardiac surgery.

Understanding how HSP70 molecular chaperones and their cochaperones help cells cope with stress in general, be it physical, chemical or physiological.

Machaca Lab
Regulation of calcium signaling pathways during cellular development and differentiation, including during oocyte maturation and hypertension. Regulation of cell cycle transitions, including the role of transition metals and a focus on meiotic arrest.

Cross Cultural Experiences of Women's Experiences with pregnancy and pregnancy loss

Genomics Lab
Development, application, and data analysis of genomic technologies.

Early Neuropathy Assessment Group
Pathogenesis, assessment and treatment of diabetic and other peripheral neuropathies and central neurodegenerative disorders.

Our clinical population health and preventive medicine research interests focus on a) preventing the occurrence of commonly occurring diseases such as obesity, diabetes and unintentional injuries, and b) identifying and promoting evidence-based new preventive and therapeutic approaches with a view to improving the overall quality of life and reduce premature mortality in the State of Qatar. Our research efforts are also directed at lifestyle health, environmental, genetic and related factors to address the healthcare needs of various communities in the country and the region.

Institute for Population Health, Weill Cornell Medicine- Qatar

Molecular mechanisms of DNA repair pathways and maintenance of genomic integrity; critical factors in preventing cancer and age-related disorders.

Role of endoplasmic reticulum in development of cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

Determining the effectiveness of mPRs activation in combating diabetes progression and reversing established diabetes symptoms and studying the implication of mPRs signaling in various animal models and tissues, healthy and diseased.

Function of small non-coding RNAs (microRNAs) in regulating lipid/cholesterol metabolism and homeostasis.

Role of microRNA in diagnosis of rejection in kidney transplantation, liver tumors, surgical simulation and use of robotics.

Development and validation of corneal confocal microscopy as an imaging biomarker of peripheral and central neurodegeneration.

Genetics of Mendelian diseases in Qatar, skeletal dysplasia and bone diseases in families in Qatar, genetics of male infertility, effect of shisha smoking, and use of endothelial microparticles as a biomarker for the diagnosis and prognosis in early sepsis. High-throughput screening of variants linked to Mendelian disorders, pharmacogenetics and type-2 diabetes.

Identification and quantification of proteins using mass spectrometry. Post-analysis of complex mass spectrometry data.

Medical risk factors for perinatal depression. Public policy issues related to population health.

Karsten Suhre Lab
Bioinformatics Core
Virtual Metabolomics Core
Bioinformatics, metabolomics, genome-wide association studies, gene-environment interaction.

Epidemiology and molecular pathology of infectious diseases using genomic and proteomics tools; in particular, the geographic distribution of HPV infection in Arab countries, and the epidemiological impact of HPV vaccines; risk associated with food-borne pathogens and its potential relation to inflammatory bowel diseases in Qatar; malaria parasite stage-specific immune responses and population dynamics during seasonal and year-round transmission in geographically confined endemic regions.

Triggle Lab
Glucose toxicity, diabetes and microvascular disease.

Women’s health, patient-centered care, vaccinations and preventative health, visual health and treatment of preventable blindness, glaucoma, thyroid disorders, inflammatory bowel disorders, communications skills, pediatric surveillance, community obstetrics and gynecology, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and sports medicine.

Works on investigating biological pathways by performing single omic (as genome-wide, metabolome-wide, proteome-wide and epigenome-wide) associations with phenotypes and multi-omics association studies in health and disease states. 
Current projects include type-2 diabetes and obesity phenotypes 

Regulation of Ca²+ signaling during the cell cycle. The molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying primary immune deficiencies.