Qatar University’s Department of Biomedical Sciences under the College of Health Sciences organized a webinar series titled "Latest Updates in the (Covid-19) virus studies by Dr. Gheyath’s research team" to highlight the research activities of the faculty members.

Dr. Gheyath Khaled Nasrallah is an Associate Professor of Biomedical Science at the College of Health Sciences. The webinar took place via the WebEx platform and witnessed over 50 participants from different health sectors in Qatar and the Biomedical Research Center at Qatar University.

With the goal of combating the coronavirus and finding a solution in the State of Qatar, Qatar University believes that supporting and collaborating with researchers in the field of medicine will help address this threat.

Over 2,100 volunteered in Dr. Gheyath’s study during the months of July and August 2020. During his presentation, it was pointed out that the prevalence of the SARS-CoV-2 was about 15 percent among the PHCC register, with males showing significantly higher rates when compared to females and varied based on nationality and age. It was also mentioned that phase 2 of the study has already begun and it is expected that prevalence in the second phase may exceed 20 percent among the same participants in the first phase.

The Crescent Medical Centers study led by the Ministry of Public Health took place between July and September and showed some interesting results. Among the 2641 male participants primarily engaged in skilled work and craft, 60.6 percent of them were positive for SARS-CoV-2.

However, prevalence among the workers was much higher than in the PHCC participants indicating that SARS-CoV-2 prevalence is significantly associated with geographic location, level of education, and type of occupation.

Another impressive result, which works in favor of the population of Qatar, is that only 8 cases from the total positive samples developed severe symptoms.

Dr. Nasrallah explained during the presentation that research also aims to understand why there is such a high infectivity rate of SARS-CoV-2 in Qatar, but the least morbidity and mortality.

In collaboration with Sidra Medicine and Weil-Cornell, it was identified that people who live in crowded areas and share accommodation may have a higher level of immunity and antibodies to other common cold coronavirus families which only cause mild or no symptoms.

As these people are in continuous contact with such groups in comparison to those living in the suburbs, it should enable them to develop high antibody levels that provide cross-protection against SARS-CoV-2.

For more information on Qatar University’s initiatives, please visit www.qu.edu.qa

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