Four Decades of Cytochrome P450 Research in Africa: Past, Present and Future

Over the past four decades, African researchers have made important contributions to this globally significant field, yet the evolution and impact of African-led P450 research have never been examined comprehensively.

In this colloquium, I present the first historical and bibliometric analysis of African P450 research spanning 1987 to 2025. Using large-scale analyses of publications from PubMed and Web of Science, I explore how the field has grown from a handful of pioneering studies into a continent-wide research enterprise involving scientists from 31 African countries and extensive collaborations worldwide. The findings reveal remarkable growth in research output, with major advances in pharmacogenomics, structural biology, insecticide resistance, microbial biotechnology, and drug discovery.

Beyond celebrating these achievements, the talk highlights how computational biology and bioinformatics have transformed enzyme discovery, genome-wide annotation, and evolutionary analysis, creating new opportunities for precision medicine and biotechnology. I conclude by discussing the key remaining research gaps and how interdisciplinary approaches-including AI, large-scale biological data analysis, and international collaborations can help shape the next generation of cytochrome P450 research in Africa.