Dr. Aldriwesh is an Assistant Professor of Molecular Biology and Microbiology and an Assistant Dean of Student Affairs at the College of Applied Medical Sciences, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences (KSAU-HS). She graduated from the Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences at King Saud University in 2009. She completed her postgraduate studies at the University of Leicester in the United Kingdom in 2017. She earned a second master's degree in medical education at KSAU-HS in 2020.
Dr. Aldriwesh is passionate about studying the human gut microbiome, especially its contributory role in the development of colorectal cancer (CRC). In Saudi Arabia, CRC is reported to be the most common cancer among men and the third most common cancer among women, a fact that necessitates the urgent need to discover an effective, non-invasive, and patient-friendly screening tool.
Dr. Aldriwesh and her team received a grant from King Abdullah International Medical Research Centre (KAIMRC) to study the gut microbiome in healthy and diseased states in a cohort of Saudi Arabian individuals. In collaboration with the Infectious Diseases Department at KAIMRC, a Saudi microbiome database is being established by utilizing next generation sequencing platforms. The generated data could be used to explore the gut microbial signatures in the Saudi population in both the healthy and diseased states, and then to identify individuals that are highly susceptible to CRC development.
In addition to her teaching experience in the undergraduate programs at KSAU-HS, Dr. Aldriwesh is currently supervising various students' research projects. She is training and empowering the students to develop their basic research skills and strengthen their critical thinking and oral and written communication skills. This learning experience will prepare students for professional service in Saudi Arabia.
