Center for Non Communicable Diseases-CNCD

18/07/2026

Center for Non Communicable Diseases is proud to announce a significant milestone for Pakistan's healthcare and biotechnology sector as 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐫 𝐃𝐫. 𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐒𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐡𝐞𝐞𝐧, 𝐂𝐄𝐎 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐍𝐨𝐧 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐂𝐄𝐎 𝐨𝐟 𝐙𝐢𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬, signed a landmark 𝐯𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 agreement between 𝐙𝐢𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐡𝐚𝐢 𝐒𝐡𝐞𝐧𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐁𝐢𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥.

The prestigious signing ceremony was witnessed by 𝐅𝐞𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐌𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐟𝐚 𝐊𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐥, 𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐀𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐇𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐧 𝐀𝐤𝐡𝐭𝐚𝐫, and other distinguished dignitaries, highlighting the national importance of this strategic collaboration.

This partnership marks an important step toward strengthening Pakistan's capabilities in vaccine development, advancing local biotechnology innovation, and enhancing national health security.

We congratulate Professor Dr. Danish Saleheen and the entire team at Ziest Therapeutics on this remarkable achievement. At CNCD, we take immense pride in supporting visionary leadership and transformative initiatives that contribute to scientific advancement and create a lasting impact for Pakistan.

Syed Mustafa Kamal

03/07/2026

Glimpses from the visit of the Honorable Federal Minister for Health, Syed Mustafa Kamal, to the Center for Non-Communicable Diseases - (CNCD), Karachi.

During the visit, the Honorable Minister toured CNCD’s state-of-the-art facilities, its advanced research infrastructure, and appreciated the Center’s ongoing scientific initiatives.


Edward Medical University Lahore University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan Services Academy Health Organization (WHO)

27/06/2026

The Honourable Federal Minister for Health, 𝐒𝐲𝐞𝐝 𝐌𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐟𝐚 𝐊𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐥, visited the 𝐂𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐍𝐨𝐧-𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐬 (𝐂𝐍𝐂𝐃), Karachi, home to Pakistan’s first and largest genetic sequencing facility. During the visit, 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐫 𝐃𝐫. 𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐒𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐡𝐞𝐞𝐧, CEO of CNCD, briefed him on the research activities being conducted at the centre, particularly the 𝐏𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧 𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐞 (𝐏𝐆𝐑) Program. He informed the Honourable Minister that more than 250,000 participants have already been enrolled in this landmark research initiative, with plans to scale the program up to one million participants.

The Honourable Minister toured all departments of the centre, visited the research laboratories, and interacted with the research and laboratory staff. He was highly impressed by CNCD’s state-of-the-art R&D facilities, particularly its next-generation sequencing facility, which is equipped with an 𝐈𝐥𝐥𝐮𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐚 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐚𝐒𝐞𝐪 𝟔𝟎𝟎𝟎 system. Detailed discussions were also held on the importance of genetic testing in reducing the burden of diseases in Pakistan through early diagnosis, disease prevention, and more effective treatment.

The Honourable Federal Minister appreciated CNCD’s advanced infrastructure, research capabilities, and scientific facilities, and assured his full support and cooperation for this important national initiative. He also planted a tree at CNCD as a symbol of growth, sustainability, and a healthier future for Pakistan.


King Edward Medical University Lahore
Dow University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan.
Health Services Academy Syed Mustafa Kamal

27/06/2026

We are proud to share a remarkable achievement by 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐟. 𝐃𝐫. 𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐒𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐡𝐞𝐞𝐧 (𝐃𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐂𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐍𝐨𝐧 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐬-𝐂𝐍𝐂𝐃 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐫 𝐔𝐧𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐢𝐚, 𝐔𝐒𝐀). His groundbreaking research, recently published in 𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 analyzed over 173,000 genomes from Pakistan and has established one of the world's most valuable genomic resources for advancing precision medicine.

This landmark study places Pakistan on the global genomics map and has the potential to accelerate discoveries in disease prevention, drug development, and personalized healthcare.

27/06/2026

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-026-10667-5?_gl=1*bbbpt4*_up*MQ..*_gs*MQ..&gclid=Cj0KCQjwi8nRBhDhARIsAHZf_pbf-nRsYnbDd1mwFd8bg3c1UTwYB1Jy2rCdVimBdcDzOIQMjkJaus4aAgpcEALw_wcB&gbraid=0AAAAA_gZIe55GtEpw5mx2EjkelQ1s2sBP

The Pakistan Genome Resource compiles biobank data from 173,303 individuals with high familial relatedness, broadening the catalogue of human genetic variation and establishing a population-specific genomic reference for Pakistan.

27/06/2026

The Pakistan Genome Resource study is live in Nature. We sequenced 173,303 individuals across Pakistan; 34,364 individuals (1 in 5 individuals) were found to be complete knockouts for one or more genes. 51% of the 6,476 genes are unique to PGR vs. non-South Asian gnomAD.

Our study generated three actionable insights for understanding biology and drug development:

1) Target de-risking through human genetic validation. We identified 6,476 genes with complete loss-of-function variants. For each target, we can now ask: Do humans tolerate loss? What are the safety signals? This is the gold standard for de-risking—direct human genetic evidence, not mouse models. We've already validated TRPM8 inhibitors for migraine (Phase 2b/3 ongoing) and flagged critical kidney safety concerns for LRRK2 inhibitors in Parkinson's programs.

2) Recall-by-genotype studies enable rapid clinical translation. When we identify individuals with rare variants, we bring them back for comprehensive clinical evaluation alongside family members in the same household. No confounding from different diets, environments, or healthcare systems. We move from genetic discovery directly to clinical phenotyping in months, not years. No other genomic resource in the world offers this capability at scale.

3) Ancestry-specific insights that regulators now require. The FDA and EMA increasingly mandate diverse population representation in drug trials. We've sequenced South Asia's largest population—1.9 billion people, 25% of global population, currently 2% of genomic databases. Understanding genetic architecture, ancestry-specific allele frequencies, and population-specific disease mechanisms is no longer optional. It's competitive advantage.

Why partner with PGR:

Drug development costs $2-3B and takes 10-15 years. Most failures occur because targets were validated only in mice. The Pakistan Genome Resource compresses timelines and de-risks targets by providing direct human genetic evidence in a genetically diverse, high-consanguineous population where rare variants are discoverable and clinically phenotyped.

We're expanding recruitment and launching additional recall-by-genotype studies on high-impact genes.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-026-10667-5?_gl=1*bbbpt4*_up*MQ..*_gs*MQ..&gclid=Cj0KCQjwi8nRBhDhARIsAHZf_pbf-nRsYnbDd1mwFd8bg3c1UTwYB1Jy2rCdVimBdcDzOIQMjkJaus4aAgpcEALw_wcB&gbraid=0AAAAA_gZIe55GtEpw5mx2EjkelQ1s2sBP