Every cell in the human body relies on a squad of protein repairmen—molecular chaperones—to fold newly made proteins into shape and scrap those that are damaged beyond repair. When this quality-control system, called proteostasis, breaks down, it drives diseases ranging from neurodegeneration to cancer. African scientists are increasingly studying these mechanisms, but they lack a coordinated platform to share protocols, train young researchers, and connect with established networks in the UK and US. This project will create a formal network—a South Africa–UK chapter of Proteostasis in Africa—to plug that gap. If it succeeds, it will build a critical mass of African-led expertise in protein quality control, enabling local researchers to investigate how proteostasis failures contribute to diseases prevalent on the continent, such as sickle cell disease and tuberculosis. The network could eventually set the stage for African scientists to develop diagnostics or treatments tailored to African populations, rather than relying on solutions designed elsewhere. For now, the work is about building infrastructure for fundamental science—the kind that, historically, has underpinned unexpected breakthroughs in drug discovery and biotechnology.
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The guardians of protein quality control are mainly molecular chaperones that facilitate the correct folding of other proteins to achieve their functional structure. The molecular chaperones mainly the heat shock proteins also assist in their refolding after unfolding events and also facilitate the removal of those proteins unfolded beyond redemption. This process is also known as protein homeostasis or in short as proteostasis. Disturbances in the maintenance of proteostasis result in several plants, human and animal diseases. As such, the number of African scientists and researchers focusing on understanding the role of protein quality control in the development of diseases is increasing. However, there is no coordinated platform to share ideas, protocols and networking across the traditional disciplines. We seek to establish a network of scientists researching on proteostasis towards establishing a chapter of Proteostasis in Africa. This platform will enhance the recruitment and training of young scientists including networking with sister networking platforms in the United States and in the United Kingdom. We envisage that such a platform will assist to plug the shortage of skills and capacity on understanding the role that these protein quality control processes play in several disease pathophysiology which could be instrumental in setting the stage to enable the African based scientists to answer these questions towards generating solutions to African problems by Africans.
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