October 16, 2018 famous neurologist, geneticist and CEO of Centogene AG, a Rare Disease Company, Prof. Arndt Rolfs (Rostock, Germany) visited Tbilisi State Medical University with the lectures on the following subjects:  “Biomarkers for rapid and effective diagnosis of rare diseases” and “Precision Medicine – Solutions for Challenges in Rare Diseases”.

Within the frames of a very short visit to Georgia Prof. Rolfs also visited G. Zhvania Pediatric Academic Clinic. He consulted patients with genetic disorders and offered them genetic diagnostic tests to be performed in Centogene Laboratory free of charge. Patient cases were presented by Dr. Tinatin Tkemaladze and supported by Prof. Michael Lentze, Prof. Nana Geladze and Dr. Sophia Bakhtadze.

In the nearest future, with the support of Prof. Rolfs and Centogene Clinical Studies Team, Georgia will be involved in the international multicenter observational program devoted to the new biomarkers development for the following genetic diseases: cystic fibrosis, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, Tuberous Sclerosis, Alport syndrome, Gaucher diseases, Hereditary Angioedema, Alpha-Mannosidosis, Muchopolysaccharidosis, Metachromatic Leukodystrophy. Participation of Tbilisi State Medical University along with the other medical institutions in the program will allow Georgian patients managed by different specialists to get free access to innovative diagnostic technologies and will help to improve the situation in identification patients suffering from rare genetic disorder in our country.

Prof. Rolfs is invited to visit Georgia in May 2019 for the “2nd International Conference Human Genome and Health: Translational Medicine in the Omics Era”. Possibility to organize patients’ assessments, to meet specialists in the area and to further develop collaboration between Centogene and Tbilisi State Medical University and Georgian Society of Medical Genetics and Epigenetics is under discussion.

Prof. Rolfs is a principle investigator of several international multicentre studies in the area of rare diseases including the Sifap project (www.sifap.eu), the world’s largest study in young stroke patients related to Fabry disease, biomarker studies on more than 30 rare disease indications and epidemiological studies in neurogenetic etiologies. Prof. Rolfs has an extensive track record in medical and scientific publications with more than authored/contributed to 250 peer-reviewed publications and acts as a consultant for international biotech and industrial companies, and is also a consultant for the EMA and FDA.