Everyone carries something
Healthy adults with no family history typically carry pathogenic variants for several recessive conditions without ever knowing it.
Now available across the UAE
Know your carrier status before you start a family
VISTA™ expanded carrier screening from BGI identifies whether you and your partner carry variants for serious recessive conditions — from thalassemia and SMA to over 1,200 monogenic disorders. Delivered in the UAE by geneticlab, with counselling in Arabic and English.
- 1,200+
- conditions screened
- 2–5 mL
- blood, or saliva
- 21 days
- typical turnaround
Why it matters
Recessive conditions are the birth-defect risk that standard tests do not see
Routine prenatal care misses it
Recessive monogenic conditions rarely cause visible malformations in the womb, so ultrasound and NIPT do not detect them. They surface after birth.
Consanguinity raises the risk
In the UAE and wider Gulf, related-couple marriages are common, sharply increasing the chance both partners carry the same variant.
Screening works
National carrier screening programmes have virtually eliminated new thalassemia births in populations where they were once endemic.
Panels
Three levels of coverage, one sample
Every panel is selected against international guidelines: high incidence, clear gene–phenotype correlation, severe and early-onset disease, and conditions where prenatal diagnosis or delivery management changes the outcome.
VISTA 10+
11 conditions
13 genes · 4,000+ variants
The essential panel covering the highest-incidence recessive conditions, including alpha and beta thalassemia, SMA, cystic fibrosis and hereditary hearing loss.
Turnaround: 21 working days
VISTA 170+
172 conditions
164 genes · 10,000+ variants
Guideline-aligned expanded screening across metabolic, neuromuscular, blood, immune, endocrine, renal and multisystem disorders. Recommended for most couples.
Turnaround: 21 working days
VISTA 1200+
1,200+ conditions
1,200+ genes
The most comprehensive monogenic screen, designed for couples undergoing IVF and PGT who want maximum coverage before embryo transfer.
Turnaround: 26 working days
Optional add-ons
Fragile X Syndrome
CGG repeats in FMR1 — TP-PCR with fluorescence capillary electrophoresis
Hemophilia A
Variants on the F8 gene — targeted NGS with long-range PCR
The test
Sequencing, interpretation and residual risk
Results are interpreted against BGI's curated database of more than 10,000 pathogenic and likely-pathogenic variant sites, cross-referenced with ClinVar. Low-frequency variants outside the database are reviewed manually by clinical scientists, and every report states the residual risk that remains after a negative result — as required by ACOG 691 and ACMG guidance.
- Detection method
- Targeted-capture NGS, with TP-PCR and long PCR options
- Platform
- DNBSEQ-G99 / DNBSEQ-G400
- Sample type
- Peripheral blood (2–5 mL) or saliva
- Coverage
- Coding regions ±30 bp, plus thalassemia introns and promoter
- Variant types
- SNV, indels ≤20 bp, selected exon deletions and duplications
- Turnaround
- 21 working days (26 for the 1200+ panel)
What the 170+ panel covers, by system
172 conditions across 164 genes.
- Genetic & metabolic83
- Neuromuscular & skeletal31
- Integumentary18
- Multisystem13
- Blood & cardiovascular9
- Immune & endocrine9
- Digestive & urinary9
Detection covers coding regions plus 30 bp upstream and downstream, and the intron and promoter regions of thalassemia genes, including common HBA/HBB large deletions.
Your journey
From consultation to reproductive plan
- 01
Consultation & consent
A geneticlab counsellor reviews family history, explains the panel options and the residual risk that remains after any screen.
- 02
Sample collection
2–5 mL of peripheral blood, or a saliva kit. Both partners are encouraged to test at the same time.
- 03
Sequencing & interpretation
Targeted NGS on DNBSEQ platforms, interpreted against BGI's curated variant database of 10,000+ pathogenic sites plus ClinVar.
- 04
Report & counselling
A clear report with carrier status, reproductive risk and residual risk, followed by a counselling session with your clinician.
- 05
Reproductive planning
Low-risk couples proceed with routine care. High-risk couples are guided toward PGT-M or prenatal diagnosis.
High-risk means the female partner is a carrier of an X-linked condition, or both partners carry variants in the same autosomal recessive gene — regardless of whether the variants are identical. These couples are offered preimplantation genetic diagnosis or prenatal diagnosis.
Quality & partnership
BGI Science, delivered locally by geneticlab
geneticlab has served clinicians and families in the UAE since 2000. We handle consultation, sample collection, logistics and genetic counselling, while BGI's accredited laboratories perform the sequencing and interpretation behind VISTA™.
- ISO 17025 / CNAS
- CAP accredited
- CLIA certified
- CE-IVDD
Questions
What couples ask us most
14 questions
Who should have carrier screening?Testing
All couples planning a pregnancy or in early pregnancy — including couples with a normal phenotype and no family history, couples using assisted reproduction, and consanguineous couples, which is particularly relevant across the UAE and wider Gulf.
When is the best time to test?Testing
During the preconception period or early pregnancy. Testing both partners at the same time gives the fastest, clearest answer about reproductive risk.
What sample is needed and how is it collected?Testing
2–5 mL of EDTA whole blood, or a saliva kit when a blood draw is not practical. Collection can be arranged at partner clinics in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah, or by home visit anywhere in the UAE.
Which panel should we choose?Testing
VISTA 10+ covers the most common recessive conditions, VISTA 172 broadens coverage to severe childhood-onset disease, and VISTA 1200+ is the most comprehensive option. Your counsellor will recommend a panel based on ethnicity, family history and consanguinity.
How long do results take?Results
Reports are typically issued 21–26 days after the laboratory receives the sample. You will be notified as soon as the report is released and a counselling session is scheduled.
What does a positive result mean?Results
Being a carrier does not affect your own health. Risk to a pregnancy arises when both partners carry a variant in the same autosomal recessive gene, or when the female partner is a carrier of an X-linked condition.
What is residual risk?Results
No screen detects every variant. Your report states the residual risk that remains for each condition after a negative result, in line with ACOG and ACMG guidance, so decisions are made with full information.
Do we get help understanding the report?Results
Yes. Every report is delivered with a genetic counselling session, and high-risk couples are guided toward next steps such as PGT-M or prenatal diagnosis.
How much does VISTA carrier screening cost?Pricing
Pricing depends on the panel selected and whether one or both partners are tested. Contact geneticlab for a current UAE price list and couple packages.
Is testing covered by insurance?Pricing
Some UAE insurers reimburse carrier screening when it is clinically indicated. We provide the coding and documentation your clinician needs to submit a claim, and offer self-pay options.
Are add-on tests charged separately?Pricing
Optional add-ons such as extended gene sets are quoted separately and can be bundled with the base panel at the time of ordering.
Who can see my genetic data?Privacy
Only you and the clinician who ordered the test. Reports are never shared with employers or insurers without your written consent.
How is my sample and data stored?Privacy
Samples and data are handled under accredited laboratory controls with encrypted storage and restricted access. You may request destruction of your residual sample at any time.
Is the laboratory accredited?Privacy
BGI's carrier screening is supported by ISO 17025 / CNAS accreditation, CAP and CLIA certified laboratory operations, CE-IVDD marking and Saudi FDA registration. Sample logistics and counselling in the UAE are handled by geneticlab.
VISTA carrier screening
Sample collection, turnaround & results
Answers for patients and clinicians about what happens from the moment the sample is taken to when the results are explained.
We accept 2–5 mL of peripheral blood in an EDTA (purple-top) tube, or a saliva kit when a blood draw is not practical. Both partners are encouraged to test at the same time so the laboratory can assess combined reproductive risk.
Get started
Speak to a genetic counsellor
Tell us a little about your plans and we will call you back to recommend the right panel, arrange sample collection anywhere in the UAE, and explain what your results will and will not tell you.
Email: info@geneticlab.ae
WhatsApp: +971 55 763 4488
Our Clinic: Sahara Healthcare City · Sharjah
Languages: Arabic and English counselling