Having been organized by the Macedonian Society of Human Genetics and Medical Genetics Association of Turkey, the 13th International Balkan Congress of Human Genetics was held on April 17-20, 2019 at Trakya University in Edirne. The Near East University researchers participated in the event with two distinct oral and one poster presentations and represented our country.

The Directorate of Press and Public Relations Office of Near East University released that almost 500 clinicians and scientists from Albania, Croatia, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Slovakia, Macedonia, Greece, Belarus, Turkey and other Balkan countries participated in the congress. Researchers from Near East University made presentations regarding their studies on the molecular pathogenesis and epigenetics of neurological and metabolic disorders in pediatric or adult patient groups.

The congress provided a scientific platform for participants to make almost 200 presentations and discuss a wide range of topics spanning from prenatal diagnosis, pre-implantation genetic diagnosis, noninvasive prenatal screening, rare diseases, cancer genetics, complex genetic disorders to pharmacogenetics, personalized medicine and bioinformatics.

Near East University researchers contributed to the congress with three presentations.The study on the "Investigation of epigenetic changes in NFATC1 and FOS genes in post-menopausal cases" was presented by Rasime Kalkan, Associate Professor at the Department of Medical Genetics of Faculty of Medicine of Near East University. The study on the "High-throughput DNA sequencing-based genomic profiling analysis reveals novel homozygote mutations-phenotype association for severe dilated cardiomyopathy in a Turkish heritage patient" was presented by Mahmut Cerkez Ergören, Associate Professor at the Department of Medical Biology and Researcher at the Experimental Health Sciences Center.

The co-study" that carried out by Associate Professor Eda Becer, lecturer at the Faculty of Pharmacy and researcher at the Experimental Health Sciences Center, and Associate Professor Rasime Kalkan on "Clinical characteristics, identification and in silico analysis of a de novo SLC6A1 gene mutation in Myoclonic-atonic epilepsy phenotype” was presented by Associate Professor Eda Becer. All three presentations attracted great interest of the attending body.

Near East University researchers, who found opportunity to share their studies with clinicians and scientists from different Balkan countries, stated that the studies on the molecular pathogenesis and epigenetics of neurological and metabolic disorders in pediatric or adult patient groups were ongoing in collaboration with other departments within the body of Near East University and the centers abroad.