Dr Charles Awortwe received the prestigious Carl Duisberg Scholarship from the Bayer Science and Education Foundations (Africa Talents) for a six month research visit at the Institute of Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology (ICEP) at the Christian-Albrechts University of Kiel in Germany.
Awortwe, a postdoctoral research fellow in the Division of Clinical Pharmacology at the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS) at Stellenbosch University, visited the ICEP from January to June this year to do research on herbal remedies combined with conventional drugs.
His research focus is on drug-to-drug and herb-to-drug interactions. He has a keen interest in botanicals' potential to regulate cytochrome P450 (a heterogeneous group of hemoproteins functioning as enzymes), efflux drug transporters and changes in micro-ribonucleic acids (miRNAs) expressions upon co-administration with antiretroviral and chemotherapeutic medications.
During Awortwe's short research visit to the ICEP, he discovered there are two novel miRNAs with the potential to reduce adverse effects associated with certain cancer treatment.
The scientists at the University of Kiel are specialists in molecular pharmacology and constantly engage in translational research where both clinicians and scientists work in harmony to improve healthcare. "I had hands-on experience on new research methodologies that would benefit the postgraduate students in the Division of Clinical Pharmacology," Awortwe said."
According to Awortwe, this is an area he would like to explore. "We must desire to understand the pathophysiology of diseases and the constant increase in drug resistance by re-visiting the fundamentals of molecular biology and bioinformatics if we want to improve healthcare in our clinical environments," he said. "Precision medicine (a model that proposes the customisation of healthcare) is currently considered as a smarter and more effective mode of treatment. Thus, we have to develop better interaction between clinicians and scientists through translational science."
