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Agenda of Meeting with PNU Students prepared by Prof Omar Hasan Kasule MB ChB (MUK), MPH (Harvard), DrPH (Harvard).
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Time |
Sunday Jan 5, 2025 |
Monday Jan 6, 2025 |
Tuesday Jan 7, 2025 |
Wednesday Jan 8, 2025 |
Thursday Jan 9, 2025 |
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7.00pm – 7.55pm |
Group 1 |
Group 4 |
Group 7 |
Group 10 |
Group 13 |
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8.00pm – 8.55pm |
Group 2 |
Group 5 |
Group 8 |
Group 11 |
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9.00pm – 9.55pm |
Group 3 |
Group 6 |
Group 9 |
Group 12 |
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AGENDA
- Know one another: self-introductions – 5 minutes
- The way forward – 5 minutes
- Presentation of the proposed research program -5 minutes
- Q&A and open discussion – 30 minutes
WAY FORWARD
- Vision: publish at least 2 papers; the first a review within 6 months and the second based on laboratory or data analysis within 1-3 years.
- First step: We shall start by brainstorming about the assigned topic then the group will review the literature to narrow down the topic and develop key words.
- Second step: Systematic literature review within the group and 1-hour presentation to Prof Omar once a week or once every two weeks.
- Third step: familiarization with available laboratory equipment and procedures to prepare one or more research proposal from each group. Faculty will be appointed as supervisors or principal investigators. Students will be co-authors.
- Some of the research will be new and innovative. Some of it will be attempts at validating research carried outside the Kingdom.
- Surveillance of viral mutations in camels, domestic animals, and humans using portable sequencing techniques and data analysis by artificial intelligence to build disease transmission models leading to the prediction of epidemic/pandemic conditions.
- Testing local natural medicinal products in vitro and in silico for effects on viral reproduction and growth to identify candidates for animal trials on farms or human trials in institutions like schools, followed by development of preventive/therapeutic products that are easy to use, such as pills.
- Developing specialized surfaces than can adsorb and preserve free floating viruses and bacteria in the air of places of mass gathering places during the hajj or Ramadhan umrah seasons at Jeddah airport, Makkah, Madinah, Mina, and Arafat followed by quick field-based sequencing to identify organisms and study their mutations and patterns of spread to guide public health interventions.
- Use of molecular docking with computational simulation methods to study the interactions of various molecules extracted from dates and their products with surface molecules of viruses and bacteria common in Saudi Arabia and develop theories on new therapeutic and preventive approaches to common infectious diseases
- Repurposing drugs approved and used widely in Saudi Arabia for out-patient treatment of common conditions for use in treating emerging viral infections by use of docking or other approaches.
- Exploration of the development of anti-viral vaccines in plants using biotechnology and testing them for various conditions in vitro.
- Development of new influenza vaccines
- Development of wide spectrum vaccines that confer general immunity against a wide range of viral or epidemic infections that can turn into epidemics or pandemics. These must target a component that is common /similar among many organisms.
- Development of biologics / vaccines that can be given orally, nasally or as food supplements against pandemic viral infections. Methods must be developed to protect from digestion in the GIT and ensure absorption into the systemic circulation. Nanotechnology may be involved.
- Development of monoclonal antibodies against pandemic organisms