Professor Ayesha Motala is the co-chief investigator of Discover Me South Africa, a research study looking at how health and genetic information will allow us to better understand diseases.
New technology aimed at offering better healthcare to people could change the way medical experts treat patients in the future. University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) College of Health Sciences launched Discover Me South Africa at the end of June.
The study aims to enrol up to 100 000 individuals in Durban. To enable this study, the university will collaborate with Omnigen Biodata, Inkosi Albert Luthuli Central Hospital (IALCH), the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health, Regeneron Genetics Center, AstraZeneca, Roche, including Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, GSK, Pfizer and Alnylam
Emeritus Professor at UKZN and co-chief investigator of Discover Me South Africa, Professor Ayesha Motala said this innovative study aims to advance scientific development and discovery within the region, building on long-standing collaborations.
“We are excited to be at the forefront of influencing the future of patient health and care on a local and international scale,” said Professor Motala.
Manjinder Sandhu, founder of Omnigen Biodata Ltd, and co-chief investigator of Discover Me South Africa said: “The collaboration presents a unique opportunity for discovery science in Africa - continuing efforts to expand genomic data resources and support scientific communities across the region.
“Importantly, this initiative has the potential to enable innovation in drug development and health and care solutions. This will influence the future of patient health and care for generations to come.”
The work of Professor Motala and her team in the Department of Diabetes and Endocrinology will advance scientific development and discovery that seeks to benefit all populations. The study is sponsored by Omnigen Biodata, a research and development company based in Cambridge, United Kingdom.
The Discover Me South Africa study will focus the health and genetic information of thousands of patients of IALCH, who enrol in the study. Combining electronic health records and genomic data at scale will provide them with unique opportunities to better understand and predict risk of disease and patients’ responses to treatments.
“These findings have the potential to transform patient care by improving the accuracy of diagnoses, including earlier detection of disease and enabling the development of more targeted personalised treatment,” said Professor Motala.
“Personalised medicine can improve patient outcomes and reduce the risk of adverse drug reactions, saving costs for health services and reducing wastage. Importantly, study participants will receive access to their health information via a secure online participant portal, to help empower individuals in their health care,” said Professor Motala.
Over the next two years, the study will significantly expand the scale of genomic data and analysis. By connecting genetic information to other health information, Discover Me South Africa, has the potential to transform our understanding of why certain diseases affect some people more than others and why diseases progress differently in different people, explained Professor Motala.
The research may also help improve existing treatments and discover new treatments, she said.