About Me

Professor Naila Rabbani | Scientist & Educator

Personal

Naila Rabbani, Professor Current Affiliation QU-Health, Research and graduate studies, Qatar University, P.O. Box 2713, Doha Qatar. (Based in Warwickshire, UK)

Current Appointment

Director, Glocentrica Ltd, Kenilworth, UK.
2. Adjunct Professor, QU-Health, Research and graduate studies, Qatar University, P.O. Box 2713, Doha Qatar.

Education/Qualifications

BSc. Biological and Medicinal Chemistry, University of Essex, Colchester, Essex, U.K. (Upper second class, with honours), Oct 1995 – Jun 1998
PhD. Chromatographic assay of advanced glycation endproducts and application to the study of human disease, University of Essex, Colchester, Essex, U.K., Oct 1998 – Sep 2001
MA Postgraduate Certificate in Academic & Professional Practice, Warwick University, UK, Apr 2009 – Jun 2010

Training

QSTP XLR8 Program A 10-week program offering intensive training and mentorship, enabling promising innovators to transform tech-based ideas into commercially viable businesses Sep-Nov 2019
QU Pre incubation training – from innovation to commercialisation April 2020

Appointments

Adjunct Professor, QU-Health, Qatar University, Mar 2023 – Present
Lead Proteomics Core, School of Medicine, QU Health, Qatar University, Feb 2021 – Mar 2023
Professor of Basic Medical Sciences, Chairperson of Metabolic Disorders and Diabetes Group, Qatar University, Jan 2020 – Mar 2023
Deputy Director of RTP – Proteomics, Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick, Aug 2016 – Dec 2019
Reader in Experimental Systems Biology, Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick, Jun 2014 – Dec 2019
Associate Professor of Experimental Systems Biology, Director of AGEomics and Systems Biology Group, Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick, Oct 2010 – May 2014
Assistant Professor of Experimental Systems Biology, Warwick Medical School, Jan 2007 – Sep 2010
British Heart Foundation Intermediate Research Fellow, Warwick Medical School, Jan 2006 – Dec 2009
Part-time Lecturer in Biochemistry, University of Essex, Mar 2004 – Dec 2006
Welcome Trust Postdoctoral Research Officer, University of Essex, Jan 2004 – Dec 2005
Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Postdoctoral Research Officer, University of Essex, Jan 2002 – Dec 2003

National and International Recognition

Citation Metrics:

Publication h-factor: 71
Career citations: 17,290 (Google Scholar)
Average citations per article: 231

Research Grant Review and Advisory Committees

Editorial Board: Nature Scientific Reports; 2016 – 2023. Handling manuscripts for eligibility, for review and making decision on for publication
Associate Editor: BMC Endocrine Disorders; 2012 – 2023
Editorial Board: Internationa Journal of Molecular science “Biochemistry section”; 2020 – 2024
Research grant review panel, Pathophysiology Evaluation committee of the French National Research Agency (ANR), 2017
Research grant review panel, Bioinformatics and Systems Biology committee of The academy of Finland, 2018 – 2021
Member/Chair of a Biochemical Society, Theme Panel Theme Panel III – Energy and Metabolism (2014 – 2019). Role involving:
- to instigate, encourage, review or commission the different types of meetings that make up the Society’s varied meeting programme throughout each year.
- to play an important role in the identification of potential Award winners.
- to identify gaps in the coverage of science both on the Panels and within the meetings programme.
- to provide an opportunity to develop interdisciplinary activities and to collaborate with a number of Sister Societies.
Council Member 2015 – 2021, International Maillard Reaction Society (IMARS), Tokyo, Japan.
Expert Group member on ‘Characterization of and criteria for glycaemic exposure markers in the non-diabetic population’ International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI) Europe; 2015 – 2019.
Secretary of European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) Study Group on Reactive Metabolites in Diabetes, Dusseldorf, Germany, 2014 – date.
Research grant review panel, Dutch Arthritis Foundation; 2014 -2015
Research grant review panel, Latvian Science Council (LSC); 2013
Co-Editor of Amino Acids journal – Glycation Section; 2010 – 2012
Member of The Intellectual Property Advisory Committee, Office of Innovation and Intellectual Property, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar; 2021-2023
President-elect of International Maillard Reaction Society (IMARS) 2024-2027

Prizes and Awards

Shaul Massry Prize for the best oral poster presentation at the 4th International Congress on Uremic Research and Toxicity in Izmir, Turkey, 14th – 16th September 2005
Eli Lilly Clinical Science Poster Award, (with Babaei-Jadidi, R., Al-Ali, H., Song, L., Ahmed, A., Bodmer, C. and Thornalley, P.J.), Diabetes UK Meeting, Birmingham, U.K., 2006.
2014 Société Internationale de Chirurgie Orthopédique et de Traumatologie (SICOT) Prize (Best oral presentation award) A simple biochemical algorithm for the detection of early-stage osteoarthritis 21st SICOT Trainees meeting London 01st and 02nd June 2014
Research poster competition, 2nd place award in Medics category (Ahmed, U., Savage, R.S., Anwar, M.M., Costa, M.L., Filer, A., Raza, K., Watts, R.A., Winyard, P.G., Tarr, J., Haigh, R.C., Thornalley, P.J. and Rabbani, N. (2015) Biomarker combination detects early-stage and discriminates osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and other inflammatory joint disease. Scientific Reports 5: 9259), R & I summit, Friday 14th July 2017, UHCW, Coventry.
Awarded 2nd Place Faculty Presentation on “Conversion of low density lipoprotein to the small, dense pro-atherogenic form by glycation with methylglyoxal – super-sticky ‘ultra-bad’ cholesterol at 5th QU Health Research Symposium, 15th November 2020.
Gold award and research excellence award “method development of blood test for autism” at the 7th International Invention Innovation Competition in Canada, iCAN 2022.
Received Qatar University Innovation Award for the method development of blood test for autism” at Qatar University annual research forum 2022.

Membership of Journal Editorial Boards and Learned/Professional Societies

European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD), Dusseldorf, Germany – co founder (with Professors Paul Thornalley and Peter Nawroth, University of Heidelberg) of EASD Study Group on Reactive Metabolites in Diabetes.
The Biochemical Society, London, U.K.
International Maillard Reaction Society (IMARS), USA

Patents

P.J. Thornalley, N. Ahmed and O.K. Argirov. Assay of advanced glycation endproducts in proteins. Priority file May 2000.
P.J. Thornalley, N. Ahmed and O.K. Argirov. Novel therapeutic agent for the vascular complications of diabetes. Priority file September 2000.
P.J. Thornalley, N. Rabbani and M. Xue. (2011) Prevention of proteomic and genomic damage by dicarbonyl substrates of Glo 1. WO 2011161436.
R.S. Savage, U. Ahmed, N. Rabbani and P.J. Thornalley. Diagnostic for Determining Skeletal Health. (2014) WO2014016584 A2. Priority file: July 2012.
P.J. Thornalley and N. Rabbani. (2014) Quantitation and imaging of methylglyoxal and related dicarbonyls by fluorogenic derivatizing agents. WO 2014037697. Priority file: September 2012.
P.J. Thornalley, N. Rabbani, R.S. Savage and U. Ahmed. Markers for skeletal disorders. WO 2017149300. Priority file: March 2016.
Fowler, M.I., Jenkins, G., Messenger, D.J., Xue, M., Rabbani, N. and Thornalley, P.J. Composition for hair follicle growth. WO2017080958. Priority file November 2015.
Masania, J., Rabbani, N., Thornalley, P.J., Rajpoot, N., Rajpoot, K., Winklhofer-Roob, B.M., Roob, J. and Faustmann, G. Biomarkers of impaired health. Patent Application No. 1721723.3.
Rabbani, N., Thornalley, P.J., Rajpoot, K. and Marini, M. Method of diagnosis of autistic spectrum disorder. Priority file January 2018.
Rabbani, N., De la Fuente, A. and Thornalley, P.J., Blood and urine-based test for prediction of progression of diabetic kidney disease. Filed December 2020.

Conference Organization

Methylglyoxal and glyoxalase conferences (unique to this investigator)
Glyoxalase Centennial – 100 years of glyoxalase research and emergence of dicarbonyl stress (with Professor Paul J Thornalley), University of Warwick, Coventry, UK, 27th – 29th November 2013.
14th International Symposium on the Maillard Reaction (IMARS-14) – Glycation in food, health and disease (with Professor Paul J Thornalley), hybrid live in Doha, Qatar, and on-line, 20th – 24th September 2021.

Other conferences

Organiser (with Professor Paul J Thornalley), Glycation symposium, 12th International Congress on Amino Acids, Peptides and Protein, Beijing, Peoples Republic of China, 1st – 5th August 2011.
Proteomics and related metabolomics of oxidative damage and glycation: Technical workshop (with Professor Paul J Thornalley), University of Warwick, 9th – 11th July 2018.
European Association for the study of Diabetes (EASD) Reactive Metabolites Study Group (with Professor Paul J Thornalley), 4th October 2018, Berlin, Germany.
European Association for the study of Diabetes (EASD) Reactive Metabolites Study Group (with Professor Paul J Thornalley), 18th September 2019, Barcelona, Spain.
Mathematical metabolic modelling – towards intrinsic prediction of risk of developing insulin resistance and diabetic vascular complications. EASD Reactive Metabolites Study Group (RMSG) Symposium (with Professor Paul J Thornalley), 56th EASD Annual Meeting, 23rd September 2020.
Symposium on Reactive metabolites and increased risk of severe COVID-19 disease in obesity and diabetes. EASD Reactive Metabolites Study Group (RMSG) Symposium (with Professor Paul J Thornalley), 57th EASD Annual Meeting, 28th September 2021.
Symposium on Insulin resistance – new insights and nutritional approaches to therapy. EASD Reactive Metabolites Study Group (RMSG) Symposium (with Professor Paul J Thornalley), 58th EASD Annual Meeting, 20th September 2022.
15th International Symposium on the Maillard Reaction (IMARS-15) – Glycation in food, health and disease. Maastricht, The Netherlands. 16th – 19th September 2021.