Ask the expert: clinical geneticists
Monogenic diseases
Dr. Bernadette Modell
Bernadette Modell started her academic life in 1952 as a biologist with a particular interest in genetics, embryology and anthropology. She had the great good fortune to study for her PhD in Cambridge when the science of molecular biology was in its earliest exciting stages. She went on to study medicine, in order to explore the role of genetics in human health. Her present interest in public health aspects of medical genetics arose from a lifetime’s work on haemoglobin disorders, and in collaboration with WHO she developed the concept of "community genetics”. Her present focus is on genetics in primary care.
Dr. Shaikha Al Arrayed
Dr. Al Arrayed is a Consultant, Clinical Geneticist and Head of Genetic Department, Salmaniya Medical Complex, Kingdom of Bahrain since 1994. She graduated as a physician from Cairo university and did her Master’s in Human and clinical Genetics, from London University in 1984. She then did her Ph.D. in Genetics from Aberdeen University, Scotland, United Kingdom in 1993 .
She is presently the Coordinator of the National Committee for the control of hereditary diseases in the Ministry of Health, a member of WHO Expert Advisory Panel on Human Genetics. Her other memberships include American Society of Human Genetics, the European Society of Human Genetics, American college of Medical genetics, the Human Genome Organization (London) and the committee for studying Genetic diseases in the Arab world, Arab Health Ministers council.
In addition to this she is a member of the Committee for Genetic Counseling, GCC Health Ministers council since 1993. She is Assistant Chief Editor at Bahrain Medical Bulletin since 1999.
Dr Al Arrayed is the founding member of various societies such as Bahrain National Hereditary blood diseases society, Bahrain Child development Society and Bahrain Down's syndrome society. She has organized and directed many National projects including Premarital Counseling services in Bahrain (1992-2003)and Student screening for Genetic Blood diseases 1999-2003 in Ministry of Health, Ministry of Education and Bahrain Hereditary anemia society.
She has established and directed Bahrain Birth Defect Register project since 1999 and also the New Born Screening project 2002. She has participated in more than 80 international and national conferences and published nearly 50 publications in international and national journals, 6 health education booklets, and three books on Heredity and Genetic blood diseases. Her main interests are in community and clinical genetics as well as genetic testing.
Professor Wanchai Wanachiwanawin
Professor Wanchai Wanachiwanawin received his M.D. degree from Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok in 1977. He has also been certified by both Thai Board Examinations: Internal Medicine and Hematology. Since 1981, he has been on the Faculty of Medicine, Siriraj Hospital, where he is currently a Professor of Medicine and Hematology. He received a grant from Anandhamahidol Foundation (King’s Scholarship) for a research fellowship at the Royal Postgraduate Medical School, Hammersmith Hospital, London during 1983-1986. Dr. Wanachiwanawin’s research interests are in the area of pathophysiology and clinical management of blood diseases, especially thalassemia and paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria.
Dr. Wanachiwanawin is currently the Director of the WHO Collaborating Centre for the Control of Haemoglobinopathies at Mahidol University, and has also participated in related activities organized by WHO-SEARO. He is also a member of the Policy Board of the Siriraj Thalassemia Program Project, and a co-ordinator of the Thalassemia Network at Mahidol University. He has co-organized several training courses for the management, prevention and control of thalassemia.
Professor Olu O. Akinyanju
Professor Olu Akinyanju received his medical training at the University of London’s St. Mary’s Hospital Medical School, now the Imperial College School of Science, Technology and Medicine. He returned to Nigeria and took up a joint appointment in the departments of medicine and pathology. This exposed him to many patients with sickle cell disorder and he proceeded to separate them from the general hematology clinic into a new dedicated sickle cell clinic. His encounter with them induced him to travel to Toronto, Canada for formal training in hematology. On return, he tackled the total absence of programs for people with sickle cell disorder in the community and soon resuscitated the Sickle Cell Club and organized an International Symposium on Sickle Cell Disorders in Lagos in 1985 followed by annual training courses on genetic counseling from 1986. The Sickle Cell Clubs in Nigeria are non-governmental patient/parent support and advocacy organizations and have helped to provide some basic services including prenatal diagnosis; sensitize the government and the people and run some training programs.
In 1991, he founded the Federation of Sickle Cell Clubs of Nigeria (FESCCON) for mutual support and harmonization. For the same reasons he co-founded in 1996, the Federation des Association contre la lutte de la depranocytose en Afrique (FALDA) which links the non-governmental sickle cell organizations in 13 West African countries. The need to develop a National Sickle Cell Centre to intensify activities, extend their coverage, promote research and monitor impact soon became clear and he founded the Sickle Cell Foundation Nigeria in 1994 for this purpose. Construction of the centre started in Lagos in 1998 but completion has been delayed by insufficient funding. More information on the development of the National Sickle Cell Centre can be found at the website http://www.sicklecellfoundation.com. He has made numerous publications and presentations on sickle cell disorder and he is a member of WHO expert committee on hereditary disease. He is currently advising the WHO on the introduction of sickle cell programming in developing countries.