Before joining the University of Wolverhampton, Dr Ojo was a Lecturer in Biochemistry within the School of Health, Sport and Bioscience at the University of East London (UEL), Stratford, United Kingdom. He was also a Postdoctoral Research Associate in Diabetes Research at the University of Ulster, Coleraine, UK, where he completed his PhD studies in Experimental Diabetes. Dr. Ojo started his academic career in Nigeria as a Lecturer in Integrated Science at the Federal College of Education, Yola, Nigeria and was one of the pioneering scientists at the Chevron Biotechnology Centre at Federal University of Technology, Yola before relocating to the United Kingdom. Dr. Ojo’s research largely centres the discovery, targets and actions of novel antidiabetic agents; regulation of non-classical beta cell receptors and implications for the treatment of type 2 diabetes as well as epigenetic factors contributing to the development of type 2 diabetes, particularly among people from Black, Asian and Minority ethnic groups. He currently supervises PhD students who work on different aspects of diabetes research. Dr. Ojo is passionate about community engagement and currently leads a Diabetes Awareness Campaign, tagged “You Are What You Eat” across the UK and Africa. Dr. Ojo has a publication portfolio containing about 60 research articles, 1 patent, 35 abstracts/short communications, 2 book chapters and 2 books. Details are available via https://www.wlv.ac.uk/about-us/our-schools-and-institutes/faculty-of-science-and-engineering/all-faculty-staff/school-of-biology-chemistry-and-forensic-science-staff/dr-opeolu-oyejide-ojo/ or https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Opeolu_Ojo/contributions

 

  Overview of Research

Despite improvements in Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) therapy, substantial mortality (even in optimally treated patients) still exits. The need for novel/more effective therapeutic strategies to combat the disease is therefore clear. We have recently identified some amphibian host-defence peptides (tigerinin-1R and magainin-AM2) which improve glucose tolerance and enhance beta-cell function in animals with T2D. Our ongoing studies indicate that hybrid-peptides which combine actions of these novel peptides with other important endogenous peptides which regulate glucose metabolism (GLP-1 and GIP) may synergistically enhance their actions and increase their therapeutic utility. The concept of developing multi-acting hybrid peptides with improved therapeutic potential in obesity-diabetes is a recent concept which is gaining momentum. In this project, we seek to build on our expertise in hybrid-peptide design/characterization and investigate the hypothesis that hybrid peptides designed in this study will improve glucose homeostasis, attenuate vascular dysfunction and ultimately improve cardiovascular homeostasis in animal models of T2D. We will investigate metabolic and vascular actions of novel hybrid peptides both in vitro and in vivo.