Uppsala Reports Long Reads – Africa integral to evolution of pharmacogenomics research

Drug Safety Matters

As the cradle of modern humanity, the African continent is home to populations with high levels of genetic diversity. But while this diversity has implications for the safety and efficacy of many drugs, African patients remain underrepresented in drug studies. In fact, while more than 400 medicines have pharmacogenetics information and public guidelines available, only 15 have been studied in African populations. Thankfully efforts to boost pharmacogenomics research in Africa are now underway.
This episode is part of the Uppsala Reports Long Reads series – the most topical stories from UMC’s pharmacovigilance magazine, brought to you in audio format. Find the original article here.
Tune in to find out:

• How drug metabolism is affected by genetic variation
• Why African patients urgently need genotype-guided drug dosing
• How different research initiatives are trying to fill the knowledge gap

Want to know more?
A review of the disease burden in Africa concluded that a pharmacogenomics-based healthcare approach – where drug choices and doses are optimised for each patient ­– would benefit the genetically diverse African population.
Clinical pharmacogenetics studies conducted in African populations have so far highlighted several pharmacogenetics associations ­– but also gaps in knowledge.
The African Pharmacogenomics Consortium drives pharmacogenomics research in Africa and aims to improve the safety of drugs for use in African populations.
The Global Alliance for Genomics and Health aims to enable the safe and effective sharing of genomic and health-related data between different research and healthcare institutions.
Finally, don’t forget to ­subscribe to the monthly Uppsala Reports newsletter for free regular updates from the world of pharmacovigilance.

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