Said Ismail is a Professor at the College of Health and Life Sciences (CHLS) at Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU). He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Oxford and an MSc from University College London (UCL). His experience extends over 25 years and involves research, education, clinical diagnostics, consultancy and management. This including work at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research at UCL/UK, advisory roles at regional and international pharma/biotech companies, and a professor at the Medical School of the University of Jordan. He also worked as the director of the Clinical Genetic Diagnostics Laboratory at the Jordan University Hospital, as well as the Chairman of Genomics and Cell Therapy laboratories at the King Hussein Cancer Center.

In 2015, Dr. Ismail Joined Qatar Foundation to lead the establishment of the Qatar Genome Project and see it grow into one of the largest population genomics initiatives in the region shedding light on the genetic makeup of Qataris as well as over 400 million genomically underrepresented Arabs.

Dr. Ismail also lead the merger of Qatar Genome and Qatar Biobank and the creation of the Qatar Precision Health Institute (QPHI). In February 2024, he was appointed as the Acting President of the QPHI in addition to being the Chief Scientific and Operations Officer (CSOO).

Said also holds the position of an adjunct professor at Qatar University and is a board member at the Shoman Research Fund as well as the Transplant Immunology Research Centre of Excellence (TIREX) at Koç University, Istanbul/Turkey. He is also the first president and co-founder of the International Society on Aptamer Nanotechnology and an editorial board member in multiple international journals.

Dr. Ismail won several awards including the Said Foundation prize for young Arab researchers in the UK in 2001, the Ali Mango Award for distinguished Jordanian researchers in 2012 and the Shoman award for Arab researchers in biomedical sciences in 2013.

Dr. Ismail has special interest in promoting research among young Arab students. He launched one of the largest efforts to enhance the Arabic medical and scientific content on the internet; The “Bel-Arabi” initiative and he is also a Board member of the Phi Science Institute, which aims to encourage research among Arab youth.

1. Population Genomics

2. Cancer Genomics

3. Gene Therapy/Delivery

1. Professor, College of Health & Life Sciences (CHLS), HBKU (2025-Current)

2. A/President, Qatar Precision Health Institute (QPHI), (2024-2025)

3. Chief Scientific and Operation Officer (CSOO), (2023-2025)

4. Director, Qatar Genome Project (QGP), (2015-2023)

5. Professor, Medical School, The Univeristy of Jordan, (2002-2015)  

6. Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, UCL - UK (2000-2002)