Associate Professor of Chemistry at Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Olatomide Fadare, has dedicated his career to developing novel solutions to some of Africa’s most pressing health challenges, including malaria. Fadare, in this interview with IYABO LAWAL, shares his groundbreaking research on malaria, the challenges faced by Nigerian scientists, and his hopes for the future of scientific innovation in Nigeria.

Can you walk us through your team’s recent breakthrough in malaria research, and what it means for Nigeria and the global scientific community?

I would like to let you know that, from a scientific perspective, we are attempting to design and develop a new drug to treat malaria. And the reason is that, over the years, we know that when we use a particular drug to treat malaria, it eventually loses efficacy because the malaria parasites develop resistance. You know, there was a time we used Chloroquine. If you remember that time, when you get well, your body starts itching.

Nobody really uses this drug anymore, and the reason is that the malaria parasite has developed resistance, which has rendered the drug ineffective. There was also Fansidar, a three-tablet drug or therapy that you just take once. But nobody really uses it anymore. then we had different variants of the Fansidar that came in different names such as maloxine, Amalar etc. Nowadays we use a new kind of drug that is called artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT), and there are many variants of it too, but they are essentially a derivative of artemisinin and another compound such as (artemether & lumefanthrine).

So these combination therapies have worked very well, until recently, when we started to discover cases of resistance. it started some years back, and it was reported majorly in Eastern Africa and South East Asia, but it is spreading gradually.

Unfortunately, in Nigeria, we don’t normally keep records like that. We try, but we are not very good at record keeping, and right now there is a possibility that we have resistant strain of the malaria parasite among us.

We are still using the artemisinin-based combination therapy, but we know that very soon, we’ll get to a point where these drugs won’t work anymore (just like Chloroquin and Fansidar), and before we get to that point, we must have new drug molecules that are potent, and can be used to treat malaria.

That was the reason me and my collaborators initiated this research effort. Our goal is to develop a new malaria therapy that is a small molecule, so that when we eventually get to the point where these current set of drugs that are in the market are no longer working as expected, we will have something to fall back on, and we love doing this because malaria is our problem in Africa, and it’s good that we are able to find solution to the problem.

We are targeting a novel protein in the parasite (transketolase enzyme). We have focused on working with this protein for some time now, and our current groundbreaking discovery is by virtue of the work that we are doing with this protein.

We cloned and expressed the protein from Plasmodium falciparum using a recombinant expression system and, after producing the protein, we were able to crystallise it. Reaching the point of obtaining a protein crystal is highly advanced science.

There is a global repository known as the Protein Data Bank, where scientists from around the world deposit the crystal structures of proteins they study. In rational drug design, we rely heavily on resources from the Protein Data Bank. Most of the structures we use are deposited by researchers from Western countries. It is rare to find scientists from Africa, particularly Nigeria, conducting research to the level of depositing structures in the Protein Data Bank. But now, instead of being mere users of the database, we have become contributors.

We have successfully deposited our own structure, which is unique and rich in information (considering that it is the first deposit of this parasite protein that is bound to an inhibitor, oxythiaine) that other researchers can access and build upon for raaal drug design approaches. Most significantly, those listed as authors on the deposit are Nigerians, Dr Olawale Raimi, Structural Biologist, University of Dundee, Scotland, Dr Abiodun Ogunjimi, Structural Biologist and Biochemist, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, Canada, Prof Olubanke Ogunlana, Biochemist, Toxicologist, and Bioinformatician, Covenant University, Nigeria, Dr Oluseyi A. Vanderpuye, Biochemist and Forensic Scientist at Fayetteville State University, North Carolina, USA and Additional contributors include Prof Oladega Soriyan (OAU) and graduate researchers Imisioluwa Akintola (Kings University, Ode Omu), Katherine Babalola (OAU), as well as Yetunde Orogun (Covenant University, Ota).

That is deeply meaningful because it demonstrates that Nigerians can compete and contribute meaningfully on the global scientific stage. In a nutshell, that’s what the research is about.

What are the next steps for this research, and how do you plan to build on this breakthrough?

Our focus is to identify unique and promising small molecules that can bind strongly to this protein and inhibit it. The protein is critical for the survival of the malaria parasite. Scientifically speaking, we aim to inhibit the protein so that the metabolic processes it controls in the parasite will either slow down or stop entirely. If that happens, the malaria parasite will be unable to grow or replicate and will eventually die.
This could potentially lead to a new cure for malaria—one that targets a mechanism different from those to which the parasite has already developed resistance.

Presently, we have identified four molecules that strongly inhibit the parasite’s transketolase without significantly affecting the human counterpart. These are promising leads. Our next step is to refine and optimise their structures to improve both their potency and specificity using a combination of organic synthesis and bioinformatics.

What role do you think science and research can play in addressing Africa’s health challenges, and how can Nigerian scientists contribute to this?

One major issue is our dependence on Western-developed therapies. We rarely develop solutions locally. During the COVID-19 pandemic, for example, none of the vaccines in the market originated from Africa.

Beyond vaccine development, we also lacked the infrastructure for mass production of the vaccine. This left us reliant on imports—for drugs, technology, and even basic medical components.

If we prioritise science and technology locally, we can reduce this dependency. Africa, and Nigeria in particular, is home to highly intelligent and capable individuals. However, many are unable to maximise their potential due to limited infrastructure and funding.

As a result, there is a significant brain drain. Many leave the country and go on to achieve remarkable success abroad, while the local system continues to struggle.

Investment in science must begin early—at the secondary school level—by encouraging students to pursue science subjects and envision careers in research. But beyond inspiration, there must be viable career opportunities within the country. Without that, we will continue to lose our brightest minds.

Can you speak on your approach to mentorship and how it has impacted your work and the broader scientific community in Nigeria?
Mentorship is another critical pillar of my work. Advancing the frontiers of science cannot be done alone. It requires nurturing young, motivated, and intelligent individuals. I intentionally seek out talented students, mentor them closely, and help them see the bigger picture of what their future in science could look like.

Through this mentorship, we have produced exceptional young scientists. Unfortunately, many eventually leave Nigeria because there are limited opportunities to practise advanced medicinal chemistry locally. When I train students in sophisticated drug design techniques, there are virtually no industries in Nigeria capable of employing them at that level. As a result, they move abroad, where their skills are readily absorbed and celebrated.

What are your thoughts on the current state of Nigeria’s pharmaceutical industry, and how can it be improved?

The reality is that most active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) are imported, primarily from India and China. Local companies largely focus on formulation—turning imported APIs into tablets, syrups, or injections.

The scientific expertise to manufacture APIs exists in Nigeria, but the industry has not matured to an industrial scale that supports such production using local concepts that are designed to work in our system. Furthermore, pharmaceutical companies need to embrace rational drug design strategies for developing brand new therapies to solve our local health challenges. This gap contributes to brain drain and weakens both the pharmaceutical industry and the broader health sector.

Without developing local solutions, we remain dependent and vulnerable. It is deeply concerning to see highly trained scientists leave the country because their expertise cannot be fully utilised at home. So, if we don’t wake up to this responsibility, our industry, both pharmaceutical industry and the health sector may not develop the way it is supposed to develop and we will keep losing bright minds, which worries me a lot.

It really worries me because I’ve had the opportunity to train and mentor some very smart students that are no longer in Nigeria, and I consider that a tragedy for the country.

I don’t know how we’re going to solve that conundrum, but on my part, I will keep working in my own group, and with the help of my collaborators abroad, we are going to push our solution to the market eventually. We want to use what we are doing in my lab as a model for other people, so that they can see that it is actually achievable.

We have not got any funding from any organisation or government, but it does not mean that we don’t need the funding. If we get funding, we’ll be able to do more, but even without it, we have been able to come this far. You can imagine what will happen if we have the right kind of funding or the right kind of support.