Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, has reported on efforts by some African researchers to develop new medicines from the continent's vast natural biodiversity using artificial intelligence.
Gavi, referring to an interview with SciDev.Net, an organisation that publishes news, opinions and analysis on science and technology for global development, confirmed the group's efforts as narrated by lead researcher Fidele Ntie-Kang, an associate professor at the University of Buea in Cameroon.
Mr Ntie-Kang said his team is deploying AI to analyse hundreds of natural compounds and find effective remedies for globally neglected diseases.
He said AI is key to unlocking Africa’s potential for local healthcare solutions.
“By leveraging our own natural and human resources and applying new technologies such as AI, we can develop local solutions to our healthcare challenges,” said Ntie-Kang.
He added that with more than 40,000 unique plant species in Africa, the team aims to harness the continent's natural resources to develop local solutions to healthcare challenges, adding that this innovative approach has the potential to unlock new, less toxic treatments and reduce reliance on external solutions.
Unlocking the potential of African medicinal plants
According to the researcher, traditional medicines play a crucial role in Africa, as more than 80 percent of the population depends on them.
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He said Africa is home to more than 40,000 unique plant species, representing 25 percent of the world's plant genetic resources, adding that more than 5,000 plants are used in traditional African medicine, “containing unique molecules that have been used effectively in modern medicine, such as quinine for malaria and salicylic acid for aspirin.”
However, he said that despite their efficacy, African medicinal plants have been the subject of limited systematic exploration by pharmaceutical researchers, with most of their medicinal properties remaining unstudied and few molecules having been developed into drugs.
The researcher also said that drug discovery from African natural products faces numerous challenges.
He said: “Drug discovery has traditionally been a complex, expensive and time-consuming process, which has led to limited investment in the exploration of natural products from Africa. In addition, there are infrastructure challenges, such as frequent power cuts, which we have had to overcome by installing solar panels to ensure the continuity of research.
“As the scientific study of African natural compounds remains largely untapped, knowledge sharing and capacity building are crucial for rapid advancement in this field. However, visa regulations and requirements in the West make it difficult for African scientists and students to access training abroad and establish collaborations with international partners. These challenges have highlighted the need to build our online database on natural compounds and ensure that it remains accessible to researchers across the continent.”
He revealed that the availability of basic resources for research poses a major challenge. Obtaining reagents in Europe can take weeks or months, while online orders in Europe are processed within days at a lower cost. Furthermore, there is a prevailing bias against integrating African natural compounds into pharmaceutical drug development.
However, Mr Ntie-Kang said they are making progress by showcasing capabilities and publishing research in prestigious journals, gradually dispelling doubts about Africa's potential for innovative drug discovery.
Accelerating drug discovery in Africa with artificial intelligence
The team said AI is revolutionizing drug discovery in Africa by dramatically shortening the process of identifying molecules that can bind or interact with proteins in desirable ways, adding that machine learning and AI enable the screening of millions of molecules in less than a day, a process that previously took weeks or months.
Mr Ntie-Kang said his research team is establishing a state-of-the-art regional drug discovery centre.
He said: “My research team at the University of Buea in Cameroon is establishing a state-of-the-art regional drug discovery centre, which will screen and use 400 natural compounds from the continent to identify new antiviral drugs. Using artificial intelligence-backed techniques and working with an international and interdisciplinary team of biologists, chemists, geneticists and computer scientists, we are adopting innovative screening techniques to identify natural compounds that may contain treatments for viral diseases such as COVID-19 and HIV.”
To support drug discovery efforts across Africa, the team is creating an open-access online database of African natural product compounds, including those from fungi, plants, corals and bacteria.
According to him, the platform does not require login and provides researchers with a valuable resource to identify potential treatments for diseases such as tuberculosis and malaria, and neglected diseases such as chikungunya and schistosomiasis.
He said his work has broader implications for Africa as it leverages local natural and human resources, combined with technologies such as AI, to develop innovative solutions to healthcare challenges.