Join Oxford Nanopore Technologies to explore the future of clinical research. This hands-on workshop will highlight the readiness of nanopore sequencing for clinical applications. Attendees can look forward to engaging expert talks, live demonstrations of the technology, and insightful discussions on bioinformatics workflows. If you are dedicated to advancing diagnostics, genomics, or precision medicine, this session will provide you with the practical knowledge and innovative strategies essential for enhancing your research capabilities.
Learning objectives
Moderator
Walaa Mohamed
Clinical Sales Specialist, EMEAI MEAI
Oxford Nanopore Technologies
Walaa brings over a decade of expertise in genetics and genomics research, with a strong focus on identifying genetic variants linked to rare disorders in the Arab population. She has been with Oxford Nanopore Technologies for over 2 years, initially serving as a Senior Field Scientist within the Genomics Consultant Solution team, and recently transitioning to the Clinical Specialist team. Prior to joining Oxford Nanopore, Walaa played a pivotal role as an R&D Scientist in the validation phase of the Emirati Genome Project.Walaa earned her Ph.D. in Human Genetics from the Autonomous University of Barcelona, where her research centered on novel mutations causing hearing loss. Her extensive professional and academic background highlights her dedication to advancing clinical genomics and her significant contributions to the field.
Speakers
Javier Quilez
Associate Director of Bioinformatics
M42
Javier is an Associate Director of Bioinformatics at M42, where he has worked the last 4+ years driving the Emirati Genome Program as well as other large-scale sequencing projects. His career started with 10+ years in academia for his PhD and post-doctoral studies working on population, evolutionary and structural genomics. Prior to joining M42, Javier worked at Clarivate consulting for pharma and biotech companies on bioinformatics and drug discovery.
Dr Patrick Merel
Senior Director Molecular Biotechnology and Genomics
Technology Innovation Institute (TII)
Dr Patrick Merel is a Molecular biologist PhD with 20 years of academic experience in France and 10 years of entrepreneurship in the USA. He is a founder and co-founder of 2 genomics startups in the US, 2012-2013, one sold $100M to illumina in 2018. Dr Patrick has moved to the UAE in 2021, joining G42 Healthcare, as the Director of Genomics of the largest whole genome sequencing factory in the world. He is now Director of Genomics and Molecular Biotech, at TII, a government driven institute to develop Research for Business Development in the UAE.
Professor Justin O'Grady
Senior Director, Translational Development
Oxford Nanopore Technologies
Professor Justin O'Grady gained his BSc, MSc and PhD in microbiology and infectious diseases at the National University of Ireland Galway (NUIG). He remained at NUIG for his first post-doc, focussing on foodborne pathogens. This was followed by a two-year stint in industry (Beckman Coulter) developing real-time PCR based tests for infectious diseases. Professor O’Grady then returned to academia, taking a post-doc position at University College London on TB diagnostics. In January 2013, he was appointed Assistant Professor in Medical Microbiology at the University of East Anglia (Norwich, UK), was promoted to Associate Professor in August 2016 and promoted to Professor in January 2021. He was seconded to the University of Cambridge during the COVID pandemic as Deputy Director of COG-UK, to help lead the UK’s SARS-CoV-2 sequencing effort. He then joined Oxford Nanopore Technologies as Senior Director of Translational Applications in June 2021. His research continues to focus on the development of rapid diagnostic tests, to maximise community and patient benefit.
Jawahar Swaminathan
Director of Informatics, Strategic Integrations
Oxford Nanopore Technologies
Jawahar Swaminathan is the Director of Informatics in the Strategic Integrations team. His background in primarily in Population Genomics and Germline Rare Disease having previously managed the DECIPHER Rare Disease database at the Sanger Institute and as part of the Population Genomics team at Illumina managing the Genomics England bioinformatics collaboration and many other large-scale genomics programmes.