MENA Organization for Rare Diseases has signed an agreement with AutismConnect to become a Strategic Partner at the International Conference for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders (ICAN) that will take place at JW Marriot Marquis Hotel, Dubai, UAE from 28 to 30 April 2023. 

ICAN is a unique autism conference for parents and professionals at which the newest and the latest development research about autism will be discussed and the final beneficiaries will be the children on the autism spectrum. ICAN will be held on 29th and 30th of April 2023 and pre-conference workshop will be held on 28th April 2023. 

The Keynote speaker will be Temple Grandin who is author, speaker, and autism rights activist. ICAN will be a special opportunity for parents to connect with medical professionals dealing with autism and speak to them on one-on-one basis. The conference will have more than 75 speakers and 400-500 expected attendees from all over the globe. ICAN’s workshop will provide a unique platform for parents and professionals for scientific discussion and interactive meetings. 

ICAN will be a grand platform for communication, interaction, and information sharing with reputed experts from across the globe and to enhance knowledge to the next level. ICAN is intended to facilitate the exchange of ideas and clinical results between professionals and parents to better the care for people on the autism spectrum.

MENA Organization for Rare Diseases was established to serve and support people with rare diseases in the region of Middle East and North Africa (MENA). The goals of MENA Organization for Rare Diseases are to educate and spread knowledge about rare diseases, connect patients and doctors to exchange knowledge and experience, and support people with rare diseases. 

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a disease of complex interaction between genetics and the environment, with heritability estimates ranging from 40 to 80%. ASD can be caused by variable rare chromosomal or genetic defects. A small fraction of children with ASD (0.5%) have fragile X syndrome diagnosed by testing the FMR1 gene. Between 5% and 14% of individuals with ASD have copy number variation (small chromosomal deletions or duplications) that can be identified by chromosomal microarray tests. Between 8% and 20% of children with ASD have variable rare single gene defects identified by exome sequencing [PMID: 31843864]. MENA Organization for Rare Diseases supports people with rare diseases including genetic diseases causing autism. As a strategic partner, MENA Organization for Rare Diseases will support ICAN Conference by sharing knowledge and experience related to rare genetic diseases in the MENA region. The organization will also have a booth in the exhibition area to communicate directly with the conference attendees who are expected to exceed 500.