Infectious Disease and Anti-Infective Therapy

Infectious diseases continue to be among the most serious public health problems around the world and UAE mainly because of (i) There is no updated surveillance systems maintained in large parts of the world in particular the developing countries, (ii) International travel and migration in the Gulf region, and (iii) Numerous outbreaks of drug- resistant microbes were documented around the world. Therefore, our group has been established in 2017 to provide the community with accurate data and complimentary information in relation to infectious diseases with special focus on the UAE.

As a research group, our major objectives are:

1. Accurate epidemiological and statistical analysis to improve the process of detection and analysis of changes in the frequency and distribution of common, newly emerging, and re-emerging infectious diseases and to implement proper prevention and control activities. 

2. Investigation of pathogenesis mechanisms to accurately investigate and discover new pathogenesis and resistance mechanisms used by the pathogens in particular those mediated by virulent factors and toxins and to evaluate the changes in the immunity/ inflammatory responses in the infected patients. 

3. To develop cost-effective measures to prevent and control infectious diseases that can be applied as future diagnostic kits.

4. To develop and discover effective antimicrobials including chemical therapeutics (natural or synthetic) and/ or antibodies and vaccines to target specific virulence factors that enables the microbe to become pathogenic, in addition to proposing optimal antimicrobial dosing protocols to achieve precise and targeted therapy. 

Internal

1. Discovery of promising anti-Candida from plants growing in the UAE. Seed grant (AED 36,000) to SS

2. Discovery and design of effective and safe anti-Candida and anti-fungal drugs. Collaborative grant (AED 190,000) to SS

3. Helicobacter pylori Infection in United Arab Emirates: Prevalence and Risk Factors. Seed grant (39 000) to GK.

4. Molecular and Cellular impact of probiotics on gastric ulcer. UOS competitive research grant (80 000 AED) to GK.

5. Seed grant; 40,000 to RAO.

6. Collaborative (AED 200,000.00) To AN

7. Targeted (AED 200,000.00) to GK

External

1. Discovery of novel anti-candida from natural sources. (Boehringer Ingelheim), UAE (AED 11,000), 2016 to SS

2. Bio-prospecting of novel anticancer substances from endophytes isolated from Calligonum comosum plant growing in UAE . (LABCO), UAE (AED 15, 000), 2017 to SS

3. Prevalence and relationship between H. pylori infection and diabetes in the United Arab Emirates population. (Boehringer Ingelheim), (AED 11,000), 2016 to GK

4. Hamdan Award; 162000 to RAO

• Bacteriology (Helicobacter pylori, probiotics, and gastric-related diseases).

• Discovery and design of novel, effective and safe antimicrobials.

• Identification of novel toxin, virulent factors, and resistance mechanisms.

• Prevalence and surveillance studies.

• Correlation between microbiota and other diseases.

• Design of diagnostic tools.

• ESCM 2nd Annual Conference, 2nd Place Winner (Professional category), December 2022

• ESCM 2nd Annual Conference, 1st Place Winner (Student category), December 2022

• Incentive Research Award, UOS, September 2021

• Sharjah Islamic bank Award (Student), UOS, September 2021

• Rashid bin Humaid Award, November 17th, 2021

• First Place Winner in AlOwais national research competition award- June 2019

• Incentive Teaching Award, UOS, April 2019

• First place winner in the 13th University of Sharjah Research Competition (Pi), April 2019

• First place winner in the 7th UAE Undergraduate Research GCC Competition (Pi), April 2019

• First place winner in Think sciences national competition (Pi), April 2019