Project at HIAS

A Biomimetic Approach, Exploring Phytocompounds, Phyto-organometallic complexes and Phyto-nanoparticles for Anticancer Activity”

Tshepiso Makhafola’s HIAS project aims to integrate ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry and chemistry to design and discover new lead molecules and drug formulations against cancer. The project will apply cutting-edge methodologies and technologies using selected medicinal plant extracts and isolated compounds from South Africa that have shown promising antiproliferative effect to develop alternative and effective anticancer plant-based therapies. Together with his Tandem Partner he will specifically focus on tumor targeting using natural product-based drug discovery approaches to further perceive how the compounds can be evaluated to allow for identification of more possible druggable targets, opening avenues for novel modes and mechanisms of anticancer activity.

His Tandem Partner is Wolfgang Maison, Professor of Pharmacy, including tumor targeting, at the University of Hamburg.

Biography

Tshepiso Makhafola obtained his PhD in 2015 from the University of Pretoria investigating the in vitro inhibition of genotoxicity by plant extracts and the isolation and characterization of antimutagenic compounds from combretum microphyllum (combretaceae). The results obtained in the study provide impetus for possible development of cancer chemopreventive and cancer chemotherapeutic agents. He is currently appointed as an Associate Professor: Health Sciences and the Director of the Centre for Quality of Health and at the Central University of Technology; Free State. He holds a C2 rating from the South African-National Research Foundation.

Makhafola’s research focuses on investigating the various bioactivity of South African medicinal plant extracts, isolated phytocompounds and chemically synthesized compounds for drug discovery purposes.

Tshepiso Makhafola is Iso-Lomso Fellow at the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study (STIAS). His HIAS Fellowship is provided by the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg and the federal and state funds acquired by the University of Hamburg in the framework of its Excellence Strategy.