Today, we are honored to have Dr. Jackson Mukonzo as our guest. He is not just an Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Pharmacology & Therapeutics at Makerere University but also a leading expert on drug quality issues, patient compliance, and the clinical pharmacology of drug-drug interactions.
I have known Jackson for several years, and we recently collaborated on a symposium at the 2024 annual meeting of the American Society for Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics on the challenges of introducing new medicines to patient populations that are often poorly represented in clinical trials for new drugs under development.
Jackson's work is a powerful reminder of how adequately funded and supported researchers within low - and middle-income countries can contribute to our global understanding. The contexts in which these researchers live and work harbor novel scientific, clinical, and regulatory insights that may be overlooked in studies based in high-income countries and which have the potential to significantly impact clinical and regulatory decision-making for the betterment of all.
We hope you enjoy this first episode of the Velocity Made Good podcast. Please have a look at the recommended reading list for more information on this topic. Also, remember to subscribe to the Velocity Made Good substack for details about upcoming essays and podcasts.
Finally, I would love your feedback and suggestions on the format of the Velocity Made Good podcast and thoughts on potential future guests – as together we chart a course toward better global health.
Recommended Reading:
Mukonzo JK, Bisaso RK, Ogwal-Okeng J, Gustafsson LL, Owen JS, Aklillu E. CYP2B6 genotype-based efavirenz dose recommendations during rifampicin-based antituberculosis cotreatment for a sub-Saharan Africa population. Pharmacogenomics. 2016;17(6):603-13.
Jackson K Mukonzo, Helen Byomire Ndagije, Geroge Tsey Sabblah, Wangui Mathenge, David A Price, Thaddeus H. Grasela. Expanding regulatory science: Regulatory complementarity and reliance. Clinical and Translational Science, 2023 https://doi.org/10.1111/cts.13683
Adugna Chala , Birkneh Tilahun Tadesse, Tolossa Eticha Chaka , Jackson Mukonzo , Eliford Ngaimisi Kitabi , Sintayehu Tadesse, Anton Pohanka, Eyasu Makonnen 1,7 and Eleni Aklillu. Predictors of Efavirenz Plasma Exposure, Auto-Induction Profile, and Effect of Pharmacogenetic Variations among HIV-Infected Children in Ethiopia: A Prospective Cohort Study, J. Pers. Med. 2021, 11(12), 1303; https://doi.org/10.3390/jpm11121303
Mukonzo J, Aklillu E, Marconi V, Schinazi RF. Potential drug-drug interactions between antiretroviral therapy and treatment regimens for multi-drug resistant tuberculosis: Implications for HIV care of MDR-TB co-infected individuals. International Journal of Infectious Diseases: IJID : official publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases. 2019;83:98-101. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30991140/,
Karungi, S.A., Bisaso, K.R., & Mukonzo, J. (2017). Impact of Lower Dose Efavirenz on the HIV epidemic in a Ugandan population. DOI:10.13140/RG.2.2.25256.88325
Acknowledgements:
We gratefully acknowledge Joe Brancato's generosity in allowing us to use his original composition of Extraordinary People as music for the podcast.
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