Officials at Abu Dhabi University (ADU) will launch the first ever biotechnology incubation initiative in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in an effort to support biotechnology jobs and advanced Arab patents into commercial products.
The plans were announced following an agreement between the university and medical researchers at the product development company AccuVis Bio, which is supported by the Arab Science and Technology Foundation and one of the first regional businesses to develop and make diagnostic kits and medical products, according to the Gulf News.
“ADU is building a full eco-system for innovation and entrepreneurship through ADU Enterprise, Dr. Nabil Ebrahim, chancellor of ADU, told the news agency. “Its objective is to incubate and commercialize research outcomes and establish technology based enterprises.”
The announcement from ADU came as Dubai-based Eastern Biotech & Life Sciences was honored as one of the city’s top small- to mid-sized enterprises (SMEs).
Founded in 2005, Eastern Biotech specializes in genetic testing screening services for the premarital, prenatal and neonatal community. The company said that based on its testing, it has been able to help reduce the incidences of genetic disorders common to the region.