Browsing by Author "Hurrell, Tracey"

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
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    A new dawn: Vitalising translational oncology research in Africa with the help of advanced cell culture model
    (2025) Klima, S; Hurrell, Tracey; Goolam, M; Gouws, C; Engelbrecht, A-M; Kaur, M; Van den Bout, I
    The advent of in vitro models such as induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) and patient derived (disease) organoids is supporting the development of population and patient specific model systems reflecting human physiology and disease. However, there remains a significant underrepresentation of non-European, especially African model systems. The development of such models should be enthusiastically embraced by Sub-Saharan African countries (SSAC) and middle-income countries (LIMC) to direct their own research focused on the improvement of health of their own populations at a sustainable cost within their respective funding environments. Great care needs to be taken to develop national frameworks to direct, sustainably fund and support such efforts in a way that maximises the output of such models for the investment required. Here, we highlight how advanced culture models can play a role in vitalising local healthcare research by focusing on locally relevant health care questions using appropriate cell culture models. We also provide a potential national platform example that could maximise such output at the lowest cost. This framework presents an opportunity for SSAC and LMIC to base their healthcare research on locally relevant models to ensure that developed health care initiatives and interventions are best suited for the populations they serve and thus represent a reset in global health care research at large.
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    An African perspective on genetically diverse human induced pluripotent stem cell lines
    (2024-10) Hurrell, Tracey; Naidoo, Jerolen; Ntlhafu, Tiro; Scholefield, Janine
    Human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived models are a well-established preclinical tool, with the ability to retain the genetics of the individual from which they are derived. Here we comment on the global representation and accessibility of such cellular tools from African population groups.
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    Functional applications of human microbiome diversity studies
    (Academic Press, 2024) Nkera-Gutabara, Claudine; Hurrell, Tracey; Naidoo, Jerolen; Das, S; Dash, HJ
    The human microbiome refers to the collection of symbiotic, pathogenic, and commensal microorganisms that co-inhabit discrete sites across the human body and play a crucial role in human physiology, health, and disease. The average human body houses more bacterial cells than it does human ones, and this has led to the human microbiome being referred to as the second genome of its host. Perturbation of the natural balance of microbes within the human body, referred to as dysbiosis, has been associated with human pathologies including neurodegenerative diseases, tuberculosis, fatty liver disease, obesity, cancer, and human immunodeficiency virus. The pervasive impact of the microbiome on various aspects of human physiology is also becoming increasingly appreciated as understanding around the various gut–organ axes (e.g., gut–brain, gut–liver) continue to emerge and evolve. Importantly, the microbiome is readily influenced and shaped by environmental factors including lifestyle, diet, and environmental exposures. This dynamic nature of the microbiome enables the detection of changes in microbiome profiles, which are indicative of potential disease risk before the onset of more permanent health effects. The human microbiome is also readily malleable to noninvasive interventions like prebiotics, postbiotics, and lifestyle changes. This further posits the microbiome as attractive target for therapeutic interventions and as the next frontier for health innovation. Several international research efforts, catalyzed by the human microbiome project, have thus sought to propel the clinical relevance of microbiome research, through the accurate identification of outlier signatures indicative of disease onset and risk. In this chapter, we discuss the human microbiome, its role in human health, the factors that regulate it, and the functional applications of microbiome research.
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    The generation of human induced pluripotent stem cell lines from individuals of Black African ancestry in South Africa
    (2024-12) Naidoo, Jerolen; Hurrell, Tracey; Scholefield, Janine
    The lack of equitable representation of African diversity in scientific resources, such as genome-wide association studies and human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC) repositories, has perpetuated inequalities in the advancement of health research. HiPSCs could be transformative in regenerative and precision medicine, therefore, the generation of diverse lines is critical in the establishment of African-relevant preclinical cellular models. HiPSC lines were derived from two healthy donors of Black African ancestry using Sendai virus reprogramming of dermal fibroblasts, and characterised to confirm stemness markers, trilineage differentiation, and genetic integrity. These hiPSCs represent a valuable resource for modelling African relevant disease biology.