Thumbay Group today (June 10) marked a major milestone in its commitment to advancing medical research and innovation with the groundbreaking of its purpose-built, six-storey research facility in Al Jurf, Ajman.
Designed to integrate scientific discovery, diagnostics, and clinical care under one roof, the Thumbay International Research Centre will foster seamless collaboration between researchers, clinicians and healthcare innovators.
Spanning 3,000 sq m across a ground floor, five upper levels, and a rooftop, the facility will rise to a height of 27.75 m in Al Jurf.
Located within an thriving healthcare and academic ecosystem, the Centre will enable research teams to work alongside clinical practitioners from its first day of operation.
According to Thumbay Group, the facility has been strategically designed to support the full research continuum with the first floor housing start-up laboratories, an incubation centre and an advanced AR/VR laboratory.
The second floor will accommodate general-purpose wet laboratories, while the third floor will focus on experimental oncology research.
The fourth floor will be dedicated to genomics, next-generation sequencing, and bioinformatics. A comprehensive preclinical research floor featuring animal facilities and a dedicated zebrafish research unit will occupy the fifth floor.
The ground floor will include a 110-seat seminar hall and a shared imaging core facility, it added.
The groundbreaking ceremony was held at the Dusit Ajman Resort & Villas under the patronage of Sheikh Ammar bin Humaid Al Nuaimi, the Crown Prince of Ajman and Chairman of the Ajman Executive Council, and was hosted by Group Founder President Dr. Thumbay Moideen.
The Thumbay International Research Centre will serve as the permanent home of Gulf Medical University’s research ecosystem, supporting faculty, researchers, and students across its colleges of Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmacy, Health Sciences, Nursing, Veterinary Medicine, and AI in Healthcare, said the top official.
"It represents the next chapter of that journey. Our vision is to bring discovery, diagnosis, and treatment together," he added.
The facility will be anchored by the Thumbay Research Institute for Precision Medicine (TRIPM), which has until now operated within existing university facilities.
Prof. Manda Venkatramana, Chancellor, Gulf Medical University, said: "The strength of a medical university is measured not only by the degrees it awards but also by the quality and impact of its research."
"This facility provides our faculty and students with the infrastructure needed to conduct internationally competitive research and positions the University firmly on the path toward becoming a leading research-intensive institution. Today, that vision takes a significant step forward."
The Centre will also bring together health-tech entrepreneurs from the GMU Startup Lab and the Thumbay Institute for AI in Healthcare with doctoral researchers, genomics specialists, and clinical teams, creating a collaborative innovation environment rarely found in the region.
Prof. Salem Chouaib, Director at TRIPM, said: "The new centre removes many of the limitations that have constrained our ambitions. It provides dedicated infrastructure for immunotherapy combination studies, advanced genomics and liquid biopsy research, and preclinical investigations supported by a fully operational zebrafish platform."
"Initiatives such as the region’s first liquid biopsy programme and our diabetes–cancer genetics collaboration with RCDR can now move from concept to implementation," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
