Page 79 - University of Pretoria Research Review 2017

Foreword
Introductory Messages
DEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE
PEOPLE AND CONTEXTS
HEALTH AND WELL-BEING
PLANET AND SUSTAINABILITY
Precision medicine holds potential for the treatment of
cancer. While investigating the ability of different drugs to
inhibit the growth of new blood vessels, on which cancer growth
is dependent, Dr Peace Mabeta** found that the metabolic signatures of tumour vasculature in benign and malignant cutaneous diseases played an important role in identifying potential therapeutic targets. This work was conducted at the Wellington School of Medicine, New Zealand. In 2017, she published a paper on potential therapeutic targets downstream of the vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-2 pathway. In an ongoing study, her research group is unravelling the metabolic patterns in benign and malignant cutaneous neoplasms. These studies, coupled to the declining cost of genomic tests and the improved fidelity in high throughput ‘omics’ technologies, may soon make precision medicine a reality for the South African patient in this area.
Precision medicine relies on algorithms to identify patients with similar molecular signatures and lifestyle patterns, enabling healthcare providers to match the patient’s condition to the right healthcare approach. To develop these algorithms, information can easily be collected by smartphones. This information has important applications for the treatment of tuberculosis, cancer, HIV and non-communicable diseases, all of which impact heavily on South African and African communities.
** Dr Peace Mabeta is a Principal Investigator in the Angiogenesis Laboratory, Department of Physiology. Her research focuses on the underlying mechanisms of vascular development in both the physiological and pathophysiological settings, and using this knowledge to detect and develop treatments for neoplastic diseases.
* Jeanne van Rensburg is currently based at the University of Pretoria’s Institute for Cellular and Molecular Medicine in the Department of Immunology as a project manager.
Awards
Lead Researchers
Peace Mabeta
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proprietary gene therapy techniques, developed
in collaboration with the Universities of Geneva
and Zurich in Switzerland, to generate an HIV- resistant immune system. The group is also studying the effect of HIV on the formation of blood cells (haematopoiesis). This work addresses an important clinical manifestation of HIV disease, namely its haematological complications.
The future of medicine, undoubtedly, lies in acquiring and analysing large datasets, and is highlighted by the emergence of computational biology, including bioinformatics, as key disciplines in scientific discovery. These fields are linked to both precision (population-based) and personalised (individualised) medicine, which will lead the way in the future in disease prevention, diagnosis and management.
* NATURE COMMUNICATIONS, 8: 2062, DOI: 10.1038/s41467-017- 00663-9.
Into the Future
Precision medicine in South Africa – the way of the future?
Peace Mabeta and Jeanne van Rensburg, Department of Physiology, and Institute for Cellular and Molecular Medicine
Precision medicine is increasingly being practised in South Africa and is set to change the treatment of many diseases, from genetically-linked cancers and other conditions, to lifestyle- linked non-communicable diseases.
The genetic diversity of the South Africa population makes this region a central hub for precision medicine research. Because of this diversity, a disparity exists in population-specific genetic data between South Africa and other countries, where populations are less diverse.
At UP, postgraduate students and young researchers
are striving to find answers in this novel field. In her MSc dissertation, Jeanne van Rensburg* highlighted the diversity of cystic fibrosis variants in different populations. Her research emphasised the need for ‘omics’ research centred on genetically unique South African populations, because precision medicine solutions cannot necessarily be transferred between global regions or population groups.
Jeanne van Rensburg