Based on the ancestral Arab knowledge in medicine and the use of cutting edge science and clinical research, IBSAR focuses on characterizing, verifying and validating the beneficial effects of plants and other natural resources, while exploring their safe use and marketability. This program seeks to develop products attractive to biotechnology industries. Researchers at IBSAR have successfully identified plants and molecules that possess bioactive properties and their promising market potentials are now being pursued. Many of the plants have roots in traditional Arab medicine and culinary practices. Plants from the region are collected, extracted, and tested for their potential effects on major diseases such as cancer, inflammation, microbial infections, skin diseases and diabetes as well as their value in nutrition and use for general health purposes