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Copyright of Eastern Mediterranean Health Journal is the property of World Health Organization and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The growth of research biobanks has created many new ethical challenges worldwide. This article outlines and discusses key issues in the governance of Saudi Biobank, a newly established national biobank in Saudi Arabia launched in 2014. The Saudi Biobank project includes human biological samples from participants aged 10-70 years and aims to conduct an extensive study on the influence of genes, environment and lifestyle in common diseases. We examined the strengths and weaknesses of Saudi Biobank's governance as well as the similarities and differences with 4 other biobanks (in the United Kingdom, Iceland, Estonia and Canada). Three different ethical issues are discussed in detail: confidentiality, informed consent and children's participation in research. We evaluated these issues in relation to international ethical guidelines and Islamic law. The insights gained may be useful in developing national biobanking regulations in other Islamic countries, particularly in countries ofthe Eastern Mediterranean Region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]