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Ibrahim ME, Adarmouch L, Elgamri A, Abd ElHafeez S, Mohammed Z, Abdelgawad F, Elsebaie EH, Abdelhafiz AS, Gamel E, El Rhazi K, Abdelnaby A, Ahram M, Silverman H. Researchers' Perspectives Regarding Ethical Issues of Biobank Research in the Arab Region. Biopreserv Biobank 2024; 22:98-109. [PMID: 36951637 PMCID: PMC11044858 DOI: 10.1089/bio.2022.0112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Background: The recent expansion of genomic biobank research in the Arab region in the Middle East North Africa has raised complex ethical and regulatory issues. However, there is a lack of studies regarding the views of Arab researchers involved in such research. We aimed to assess the perceptions and attitudes of Arab researchers regarding these issues in biobank research. Methods: We developed a questionnaire to assess the perceptions and attitudes regarding genetic research of researchers from Egypt, Sudan, Morocco, and Jordan. The questionnaire requested demographic data, perceptions, and attitudes regarding the collection, storage, and use of biospecimens and data, the use of broad consent, data security, data sharing, and community engagement. We used multiple linear regressions to identify predictors of perceptions and attitudes. Results: We recruited 383 researchers. Researchers favored equally the use of broad and tiered consent (44.1% and 39.1%, respectively). Most respondents agreed with the importance of confidentiality protections to ensure data security (91.8%). However, lower percentages were seen regarding the importance of community engagement (64.5%), data sharing with national colleagues and international partners (60.9% and 41.1%, respectively), and biospecimen sharing with national colleagues and international partners (59.9% and 36.2%, respectively). Investigators were evenly split on whether the return of individual research results should depend on the availability or not of a medical intervention that can be offered to address the genetic anomaly (47.5% and 46.4%, respectively). Predictors of attitudes toward biospecimen research included serving on Research Ethics Committees, prior research ethics training, and affiliation with nonacademic institutions. Conclusions: We recommend further exploratory research with researchers regarding the importance of community engagement and to address their concerns about data sharing, with researchers within and outside their countries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maha E. Ibrahim
- Department of Physical Medicine, Rheumatology and Rehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, Egypt
| | - Latifa Adarmouch
- Department of Community Medicine, Public Health and Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, Cadi Ayyad University, Marrakesh, Morocco
| | - Alya Elgamri
- Department of Orthodontics, Pediatric Dentistry and Preventive Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Khartoum, Khartoum, Sudan
| | - Samar Abd ElHafeez
- Epidemiology Department, High Institute of Public Health, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt
| | - Zeinab Mohammed
- Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Beni-Suef University, Beni-Suef, Egypt
| | - Fatma Abdelgawad
- Pediatric Dentistry and Dental Public Health Department, Faculty of Dentistry, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Eman H. Elsebaie
- Department of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Ahmed Samir Abdelhafiz
- Department of Clinical Pathology, National Cancer Institute, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Ehsan Gamel
- Department of Oral Rehabilitation, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Khartoum, Khartoum, Sudan
| | - Karima El Rhazi
- Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University, Fez, Morocco
| | - Asmaa Abdelnaby
- Department of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Mamoun Ahram
- Department of Physiology and Biochemistry, School of Medicine, The University of Jordan, Amman, Jordan
| | - Henry Silverman
- Department of Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
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Sharaf A, Ndiribe CC, Omotoriogun TC, Abueg L, Badaoui B, Badiane Markey FJ, Beedessee G, Diouf D, Duru VC, Ebuzome C, Eziuzor SC, Jaufeerally Fakim Y, Formenti G, Ghanmi N, Guerfali FZ, Houaga I, Ideozu JE, Katee SM, Khayi S, Kuja JO, Kwon-Ndung EH, Marks RA, Moila AM, Mungloo-Dilmohamud Z, Muzemil S, Nigussie H, Osuji JO, Ras V, Tchiechoua YH, Zoclanclounon YAB, Tolley KA, Ziyomo C, Mapholi N, Muigai AWT, Djikeng A, Ebenezer TE. Bridging the gap in African biodiversity genomics and bioinformatics. Nat Biotechnol 2023; 41:1348-1354. [PMID: 37699986 DOI: 10.1038/s41587-023-01933-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/14/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Abdoallah Sharaf
- SequAna Core Facility, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
- Genetic Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Charlotte C Ndiribe
- Department of Cell Biology and Genetics, University of Lagos, Lagos, Nigeria
| | - Taiwo Crossby Omotoriogun
- Biotechnology Unit, Department of Biological Sciences, Elizade University, Ilara-Mokin, Nigeria
- A.P. Leventis Ornithological Research Institute, University of Jos, Jos, Nigeria
| | - Linelle Abueg
- Vertebrate Genome Lab, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Bouabid Badaoui
- Mohammed V University in Rabat, Rabat, Morocco
- African Sustainable Agriculture Research Institute, Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, Laâyoune, Morocco
| | | | - Girish Beedessee
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Diaga Diouf
- Laboratoire Campus de Biotechnologies Végétales, Département de Biologie Végétale, Faculté des Sciences et Techniques, Université Cheikh Anta Diop, Dakar, Sénégal
| | - Vincent C Duru
- Department of Parasitology and Entomology, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Nigeria
| | | | - Samuel C Eziuzor
- Department of Isotope Biogeochemistry, Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research-UFZ, Leipzig, Germany
| | | | - Giulio Formenti
- Vertebrate Genome Lab, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Nidhal Ghanmi
- Bioinformatics Lab, Pasteur Institute of Tunis, Tunis, Tunisia
| | - Fatma Zahra Guerfali
- Laboratory of Transmission, Control and Immunobiology of Infections, Pasteur Institute of Tunis, Tunis, Tunisia
- University of Tunis El Manar, University Campus Farhat Hached, Tunis, Tunisia
| | - Isidore Houaga
- Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health, Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | | | | | - Slimane Khayi
- Biotechnology Research Unit, CRRA-Rabat, National Institute of Agricultural Research, Rabat, Morocco
| | - Josiah O Kuja
- Bioinformatics Center, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | | | - Rose A Marks
- Department of Horticulture, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | | | | | - Sadik Muzemil
- School of Life Science, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - Helen Nigussie
- Department of Microbial, Cellular and Molecular Biology, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
| | | | - Verena Ras
- Computational Biology Division, Department of Integrative Biomedical Sciences, IDM, CIDRI Africa Wellcome Trust Centre, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
- Department of Biodiversity and Conservation Biology, University of the Western Cape, Bellville, South Africa
| | - Yves H Tchiechoua
- Pan African University Institute for Basic Sciences Technology and Innovation, Nairobi, Kenya
| | | | - Krystal A Tolley
- South African National Biodiversity Institute, Claremont, Cape Town, South Africa
- Centre for Ecological Genomics and Wildlife Conservation, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | | | - Ntanganedzeni Mapholi
- Department of Agriculture and Animal Health, University of South Africa, Florida, South Africa
| | - Anne W T Muigai
- Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, Nairobi, Kenya.
- National Defense University-Kenya, Nakuru, Kenya.
| | - Appolinaire Djikeng
- Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health, Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
- International Livestock Research Institute, Nairobi, Kenya.
- Department of Agriculture and Animal Health, University of South Africa, Florida, South Africa.
| | - ThankGod Echezona Ebenezer
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI), Cambridge, UK.
- Early Cancer Institute, Department of Oncology, School of Clinical Medicine, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
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Abdelhafiz AS, Ahram M, Ibrahim ME, Elgamri A, Gamel E, Labib R, Silverman H. Biobanks in the low- and middle-income countries of the Arab Middle East region: challenges, ethical issues, and governance arrangements—a qualitative study involving biobank managers. BMC Med Ethics 2022; 23:83. [PMID: 35965314 PMCID: PMC9375918 DOI: 10.1186/s12910-022-00822-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2022] [Accepted: 08/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Biobanks have recently been established in several low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) in the Arab region of the Middle East. We aimed to explore the views of biobank managers regarding the challenges, ethical issues, and governance arrangements of their biobanks. Methods In-depth semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of eight biobank managers from Egypt (6), Jordan (1), and Sudan (1). Interviews were performed either face-to-face, by phone, or via Zoom and lasted approximately 45–75 min. After verbal consent, interviews were recorded and then transcribed. The authors performed a thematic analysis of the transcripts independently and then integrated the themes via a consensus process. Results Biobank managers discussed the main challenges in establishing their biobanks. These included the staff’s lack of experience and training, limited funds, deficit awareness of biobanks, obtaining funding from different sources. Only four reported they were active in distributing biospecimens and health data to researchers. Six biobanks used a broad consent model, one used tiered consent, and another allowed participants to opt-out of being recontacted. Five managers avoided partnerships with pharmaceutical companies due to concerns with unfavorable reactions from the community. Five managers did not have clear policies for returning research results to the donors. Five expressed challenges with sample and data sharing with international collaborators; all five used material transfer agreements. The biobank managers revealed variable governance arrangements and activities with community involving awareness and educational efforts rather than active engagement. Several expressed the importance of transparency with the operations of their biobanks and gaining the trust of their stakeholders. Conclusion Managers of biobanks in LMICs in the Arab Middle East encounter financial, operational, and social challenges toward their sustainability efforts. Discussions with key stakeholders are warranted to manage ethical issues involving informed consent, privacy, data sharing, and the return of results. We recommend that biobank managers in the Arab Middle East form collaborative networks within the region and internationally, develop trusting governance relationships with their stakeholders, and pursue engagement activities with their communities to enhance trust. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12910-022-00822-8.
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