CHOP will help build Abu Dhabi’s gene-editing expertise in new partnership
Under a five-year agreement signed last month, CHOP will train scientists from the UAE in gene therapy development. This partnership builds on CHOP’s longstanding relationship with Abu Dhabi.
CHOP is partnering with Abu Dhabi to train scientists from the United Arab Emirates’ capital in its pioneering gene-editing treatments.
This marks CHOP’s first overseas partnership specific to gene-editing. The Philadelphia hospital has received global recognition for its work in the field, from a landmark therapy for inherited blindness approved in 2017 to last year’s first-of-its-kind personalized treatment for Philadelphia-area infant “Baby KJ.”
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Under a five-year agreement signed last month between Children’s Hospital and the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi, CHOP will train scientists from the UAE on all aspects of gene therapy development.
The collaboration will focus on building local expertise in base-editing therapies for liver metabolic disorders, genetic clotting disorders, urea cycle disorders, and central nervous system conditions.
This latest partnership builds on CHOP’s longstanding relationship with Abu Dhabi, which in recent years has included a partnership to advance research in pediatric oncology.
Since founding its Global Health Center in 2007, CHOP has also collaborated with Brazil to build a CAR-T cell production center and with Botswana to advance clinical care and research.
CHOP declined to comment on the finances of the new partnership.
Five CHOP labs will host the UAE trainees, who will each spend 18 months to two years in West Philadelphia. Their training will span the bench to bedside — including learning how to design and manufacture the therapies, test their efficacy, and meet regulatory guidelines.
The first cohort is expected to start in early 2027.
“It’s hard to convey 25 years of knowledge in a few years of training,” Beverly Davidson, CHOP’s chief scientific officer said. “But by bringing multiple individuals with different areas of focus together at the same time, we can help accelerate that.”
She learned of UAE leaders’ interest in expanding their personalized medicine efforts at the Abu Dhabi Future Health Summit in April 2025. That discussion inspired her and CHOP scientist Lindsey George, who was also in attendance, to devise the training program.
“Our ambition is to ensure these innovations are developed responsibly and become more accessible to patients in Abu Dhabi, the region and beyond,” Noura Khamis Al Ghaithi, undersecretary of the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi, said in a statement.
Prioritizing key disorders
Part of the agreement involves working with Abu Dhabi scientists to identify and prioritize key disorders, Davidson said.
The Emirati Genome Program has sequenced nearly one million genomes — making it one of the world’s largest DNA databases — in hopes of capturing the genetic diversity of UAE citizens.
The UAE has a relatively high frequency of genetic disorders and ranks sixth in the world for the prevalence of congenital anomalies.
Starting in January 2025, the UAE now requires couples to undergo genetic screening prior to marriage.
“Both the Department of Health and the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia believe this to be a long-term commitment to providing improved healthcare for UAE citizens,” Davidson said.