Profile
I am proudly an academic member at King Abdulaziz University - Faculty of science - Biochemistry department, and I am currently the head of my department. I have several experiences in academic and administrative work - mainly within the university - such as working on academic accreditations, educational laboratory management, and also coordinating projects between our department and the private sector. Furthermore, teaching and mentoring undergraduate and postgraduate students is an ongoing activity that I always enjoy.
I am the head of the innovation and knowledge economy unit at the Knowledge economy and technology transfer center (KETT) at KAU, where promoting the culture of innovation and creativity among the university members is my main job, and teaching innovators how to protect their products through intellectual property laws. I am also a member of the Technology and Innovation Support Centers (TISC) recognized by WIPO at KAU.
My scientific specialty is in molecular biology - insulin signaling and insulin resistance (cell signaling), kidney disease (nephrology), diabetes, proteomics, and different aspects of the field. The tools that I use in my work are molecular biology techniques, mass spectrometry, and bioinformatics (proteomics).
I am open to collaboration opportunities, and If you are near or around KAU, drop by the biochemistry department and we will be happy to talk to you.
Education
- 2007
Bachelor degree from BiochemistryFaculty of Science, King AbdulAziz University, Jeddah, المملكة العربية السعودية
- 2013
Master degree from BiochemistryFaculty of Biology, Medicine, and health sciences, The University of Manchester, مانشستر, بريطانيا
- 2017
Doctorate degree from BiochemistryFaculty of Biology, Medicine, and health sciences, The University of Manchester, مانشستر, بريطانيا
Employment
- 2008-2009
Demonstrator, King Abdul Aziz University, Jeddah, المملكة العربية السعودية
- 2009-2010
Media Affair, Saudi Student House - London - ON - Canada, London, كـــــــندا
- 2018-2019
Head of Public relations and media affairs at the knowledge economy centre, King Abdulaziz University, جدة, المملكة العربية السعودية
- 2018-2020
Supervisor of the central and research lab at the Biochemistry Department - KAU, King Abdulaziz University, جدة, المملكة العربية السعودية
- 2020-2021
Supervisor of the central and research lab at the Biochemistry Department - KAU, King Abdulaziz University, جدة, المملكة العربية السعودية
- 2020-حاليا
Head of the Biochemistry department - Faculty of Science, King Abdulaziz University, جدة, المملكة العربية السعودية
- 2021-حاليا
Deputy manager for innovation and development - Knowledge economy and tech transfer centre, King Abdulaziz University, جدة, المملكة العربية السعودية
Research Interests
The complications of diabetes mellitus in the kidneys and other organs:
Diabetes is considered a global epidemic with an estimate of 552-592 patients worldwide by the year 2035 [1], and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is among the top 10 countries with diabetic patients where almost 1 in 4 individuals are affected by diabetes [2]. Type 1 and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T1DM and T2DM respectively) are the most common forms of diabetes that can lead to secondary complication if not properly managed. Some of these complications may include kidney disease (diabetic nephropathy), nerves disease (diabetic neuropathy), eye disease (diabetic retinopathy) and others. Diabetic Kidney disease (DKD) could affect around 30-40% of diabetic patients, and it could progress to complete renal failure where the only solutions at that stage are transplantations or dialysis. Despite the huge efforts in DKD research, we are yet to discover reliable biomarkers of early kidney and to understand the underlying mechanisms of the disease. I am interested in researching and advancing our understanding the kidney biology under normal and disease conditions using high throughput approaches such as proteomics, metabolomics, and lipidomics. Cellular cross-talk between the different kidneys cell types plays a central role in the kidneys function, and studying this aspect using the aforementioned approaches could provide meaningful information that can help in answering difficult questions.
The discovery of novel targets and new hypothesis by analyzing the literature and published datasets and databases:
Cancer, Alzheimer, and Diabetes mellitus are examples of heavily studied subjects where the literature is rich and tens of studies are published on daily bases. High throughput studies are also taking a considerable percentage of these studies, where they represent an invaluable resource for discovering novel aspects of these diseases. A genomic, proteomic, or any other dataset that is associated with any study usually is designed and used to answer specific enquiries; however, these datasets could be to answer other question with different degrees of relevance to the original topic. I am interested in exploiting the free available resources from data repositories and databases to try to answer specific questions regarding proteins and pathways interactions, cell signalling, and other aspects of systems biology. The focus will be on diabetes and obesity and the related complications such as cardiovascular diseases, liver disease, and others.
[1] Guariguata, L., Whiting, D. R., Hambleton, I., Beagley, J., Linnenkamp, U., & Shaw, J. E. (2014). Global estimates of diabetes prevalence for 2013 and projections for 2035. Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice, 103(2), 137–149. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.DIABRES.2013.11.002
[2]
Naeem Z. Burden of Diabetes Mellitus in Saudi Arabia. International Journal of Health Sciences. 2015;9(3):V-VI.
Scientific interests
I have several scientific interests that I am currently working on some of them, these include:
- Natural products and their extraction methods and strategies.
- Bioinformatics (integrative, Docking, etc.).
- Nano-emulsions.
- Anticancer and antimicrobial activities of natural products.
- Analytical methodology development.
Courses
| Analytical biochemistry |
343 |
BIOC |
Areas of expertise
| Sample preparation methods (proteins) for analysis by LC-MS |
The quality of samples injected in LC-MS is important for gaining meaningful results, and proteins (proteomics) could be very challenging in some cases. I have an excellent experience in sample preparation methods for mass spectrometry in general, and in proteomics in specific. |
| Academic accreditations |
Academic accreditations are important for any academic department that wants to meet specific standards with clear goals and objectives, and the process of obtaining an academic accreditation could be daunting. I have a very good experience in international and national accreditations, and I know how to run a team/department to obtain them. |