Qatar wants to become a leader in genomics

Researchers at the Qatar Genome Programme, a project paid for by the former emir’s wife, say they want their Gulf state to become, in terms of genetics, “the Iceland of the Middle East”. For a thousand years, Icelanders have kept detailed records of how everyone is related to everyone else. These leafy family trees and the country’s genetic homogeneity helped Iceland become a pioneer in genomics. Qatar, a country with roughly the same population (excluding foreign residents), hopes to become a genetics powerhouse, too. Its neighbours are following suit.