Senior Lecturer
Biochemistry
At the Biochemistry department office
Appointment on Visitation important
Topic: MEDICAL BIOCHEMISTRY: PHYTOTHERAPEUTICS FOR DIABETES AND METABOLIC DISORDERS
Description:
Diabetes mellitus is a metabolic disorder
characterized by alterations in carbohydrate, fats and protein metabolism that
results from defects in insulin secretion or insulin action. The number of
people suffering from the disease worldwide is increasing at an alarming rate
with a projected 700 million people likely to be diabetic by the year 2045 as
against 463 million estimated in 2019.
The management of diabetes mellitus is considered a global problem and
successful treatment is yet to be discovered. The underlying goal of all
diabetes management is to maintain an adequate blood glucose concentration.
The main approach used in the management of diabetes is oral hypoglycemic drugs such as biguanides (metformin), sulfonylureas (glimepiride), thiazolidinediones (pioglitazone) and alpha-glucosidase inhibitors (acarbose). However, these drugs have been shown to have undesirable side effects and high secondary failure rates. In addition, these drugs cannot be afforded by majority of people living in rural communities of developing countries because of their high cost. These limitations of currently available antidiabetic agents have prompted researchers all over the world to investigate alternative antidiabetic remedies.
The main thrust of my research is the evaluation of medicinal foods and plants for their antidiabetic potential using both in-vitro and in-vivo methods. The in-vitro technique involves the determination of the inhibitory potentials of plant extracts on the activities of diabetes-related enzymes (alpha-amylase, alpha-glucosidase, aldose reductase and sorbitol dehydrogenase). The in-vivo method encompasses the use of animals (e.g Wistar rats) in the evaluation of the possible antidiabetic properties of the medicinal plants.
# | Certificate | School | Year |
---|---|---|---|
1. | Ph.D (Biochemistry) | University of Ilorin, Ilorin, Nigeria | 2012 |
CELLULAR SENESCENCE IN DIABETES AND AGEING: THERAPEUTIC ROLES OF PHYTOCHEMICALS AND THEIR MECHANISMS
BACKGROUND: Diabetes mellitus is a chronic condition characterized by hyperglycemia due defects in insulin secretion and/or insulin action. The prevalence of diabetes, especially type 2 diabetes, increases with age, with the majority of people globally who have diabetes being over 64 years old. Dysfunction of multiple organ systems manifests similarly in diabetes as it does during normal chronological ageing, but in diabetes this frequently occurs at a younger age. Diabetic individuals are more likely to develop age-related comorbidities, such as Alzheimer’s disease, cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, visual impairment and renal dysfunction, indicating that type 2 diabetes itself might represent a pro-ageing state.
AIM: To evaluate some phytochemicals for their senolytic potential and determine the mechanisms behind this activity. These phytochemicals include chicoric acid, cinnamaldehyde, cosmosiin and momordicine. These phytochemicals have been reported to possess antidiabetic properties. However, since ageing is one of the risk factors for diabetes, there is the need to evaluate the effect of these compounds on cellular senescence.
METHODOLOGY: Both in-vitro and in-vivo techniques will be used in the evaluation of the modulatory role of phytochemicals in diabetes and ageing. These will include enzyme inhibition assay, cell culture and gene expression analysis.
EXPECTED RESULTS: Discovery of both known and novel phytochemicals with senolytic potentials, thereby making them suitable for management of diabetes and ageing.
KAZEEM IDOWU is a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Biochemistry
KAZEEM has a Ph.D in Biochemistry from University of Ilorin, Ilorin, Nigeria