The Zimbabwean aligning modern drugs with African genes
Big pharma medicines are not one-size-fits-all and the good prof is remeasuring them to size for Africans.
Lydia Namubiru
Professor Collen Masimirembwa deservedly won this year’s African Genius Award. The pharmacogenetics pioneer has spent three decades exemplifying African scientific excellence.
At the University of the Witwatersrand and the African Institute of Biomedical Science, his biochemistry lab teams consistently produce new knowledge on how drugs interact with the genetics of African populations. His peers have also cited his research at least 7,300 times, according to Google Scholar.
That already clears the bar for genius, but he also strives to incorporate this science into clinical practice.
In 2016, when UNAIDS announced its ambitious plan to turn HIV-infection into a manageable chronic condition by getting at least 90% of positive people on antiretrovirals, Masimirembwa welcomed the effort but flagged a major risk: the rollout included efavirenz. This drug causes severe psychiatric effects in people of African ancestry, as his team’s research had proven the previous year. He shifted to lobbying and the dosage of that drug was eventually reduced.
He is now pursuing similar change for African women with breast cancer. Decades ago, research found a unique genetic variation in African women. More recent research by Masimirembwa’s team shows the variation makes it harder to respond to tamoxifen, a standard breast cancer medication. He is lobbying for a change in tamoxifen dosage, specifically for African women.
His lab also invented a blood test, GenoPharm®, which predicts how a person of African ancestry may react to medicines. It could prevent many of the drug-response problems that have turned Masimirembwa into both a scientist and an advocate.
Superb news. But all too short / abrupt an article. This work needs more comprehensive coverage I am sure.