06: From Nigeria To PhD Taking on Fatty Liver Disease

One in five Australians has fatty liver disease, yet most of us wouldn’t spot the warning signs until things get serious. We’re sitting down with Afalabi Akanbi PhD, a postdoctoral researcher at Gallipoli Medical Research, to talk about what’s happening inside the liver, why iron matters more than many people realise, and how new therapeutic approaches could help stop fatty liver disease progressing to inflammation, fibrosis, cirrhosis or liver cancer. 

We also get personal. Afalabi shares what it was like moving from Nigeria to Australia at 14, adapting fast to a new culture, navigating an accent that stood out, and watching his parents rebuild their working lives from scratch. His story is a sharp reminder that academic success isn’t always “natural talent” it can be curiosity, persistence, and the right environment at the right time. 

If you’ve ever wondered what researchers actually do all week, Afalabi breaks it down: planning experiments, long days in the lab, analysing data, writing constantly, training students, and taking feedback at conferences. He explains how an engineering mindset of problem solving and efficiency helps him stay resilient through failed results, and why integrity and learning from mistakes are non negotiable in medical research. 

If you care about Australian medical research, liver health, iron overload, or the behind the scenes reality of developing future treatments, this conversation is for you. Subscribe, share with someone who’d value it, and leave a review so more people can find Voices.

If you would like to support Gallipoli Medical Research's work, please visit https://www.gallipoliresearch.com.au/donate/ and make a contribution today!

Or visit us at:

Website: https://www.gallipoliresearch.com.au/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GallipoliResearch/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gallipolimedicalresearch/

LinkedIn: https://au.linkedin.com/company/gallipoli-medical-research

E: enquiries@gallipoliresearch.org.au

Transcript

Welcome To Voices And Our Guest

Host Miriam Kent 0:03

Hi everyone, I'm Miriam Kent, CEO of Gallipoli Medical Research, and I'm delighted to welcome you to our new podcast, Voices. Tune in as we bring you raw conversations with leaders, survivors, researchers, and advocates across veteran health, medical research, clinical trials, and the broader community. From a Victoria Cross Medal recipient and a mother of two surviving stage four melanoma to Australia's first female Three-Star Lieutenant General, their voices will transform the way you think about service, leadership, and what it truly means to stand beside one another during life's hardest moments. We have entrusted the master conversationalist Sarah Maxwell to sit down and facilitate these important conversations. Sarah, over to you.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 0:55

Today we will hear from researcher Afolabi Akanbi PhD. With his Master's in engineering from the University of New South Wales, Afolabi joined Gallipoli Medical Research as a PhD student back in 2019, where he switched his focus from cancer research to iron-related liver disease. Completing his PhD in 2023, with the support of GMR researchers Dr. Kim Bridal and Professor Crawford Darrell, Afolabi easily accepted the offer to stay on in the lab with his respected supervisors, something that is not often done. All of this before he turns 30. Afolabi's journey to that point had been anything but straightforward. In 2009, his family made the confronting decision to move from Nigeria to Australia when he was just 14. His father was a newly graduated PhD from the University of Lagos, and so choosing a completely different life path for their family was a major sacrifice. Since then, Afolabi has dedicated himself to the service of others, whether it's his academic pursuits or the hours spent helping patients in disability service in his meagre leftover time. He is a man of faith and integrity, and that shines through all that he does. Like this introduction for him would be really embarrassing because he's so humble. But look, Affalabi has always been motivated by the prospect of his research findings leading to enhanced treatments and interventions for patients, which is no surprise. And as you get to know him, we will learn that. And he is spurred on by this work because it's important and impactful. So welcome Afolabi to Voices, GMR's new podcast project designed to capture the sentiment of incredible women and men like yourself who conduct medical research to improve the health and well-being of veterans, their families, and the broader Australian community. So we are excited to speak to you. Are you ready for this?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 2:58

Yes, I am. Thank you so much, Sarah. Thank you for having me on here.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 3:02

You're welcome. You weren't too embarrassed?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 3:04

Um a little, a little. I was smiling as you were reading that, and I was like, oh but yeah, thank you so much for that.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 3:14

And your parents can be proud, you know? So you can tell them you're famous on a podcast, and they can hear that that decision that they made to move their family. They can hear about their son. I know you have sisters too, and they're proud of them too. But um, yeah, sometimes it's nice to hear a recollection of all the things that you've done up until now.

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 3:34

That's right. That's right.

A Real Week In Research

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 3:36

So I am very curious about your family's journey from Nigeria to Australia and all the academic successes that brought you to research at GMR. But first, I would love to hear what a typical week in the life of a researcher even looks like. Could you share a little bit of how you defide your time these days?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 3:57

Yeah, um as a researcher, you know, no week is the same. Um, usually my time, you know, is spent um, you know, planning for experiments, um, you know, going into the lab, doing experiments, and when the result comes out and the data comes out, analyzing them and trying to make a sense out of the data. Um so, and then after that, you know, there's also writing um that comes in in, week in, week out. Some week I do more of experiments. Um, some week I do more of writing. Um, other weeks when we have students in our Gallipoli medical research, um, when we have undergraduate students, you know, um, you know, I help in training them and helping them to learn new um experimental um procedures. And you know, some days I also often go to other institutes um to perform um some specialized experiments. And um yeah, it's it's very interesting and and you know, one of the exciting things you know for researchers is also when you attend conferences, right? Both either national or international, when you have the opportunity to present your work and also get um feedback you know from um renowned experts all around the world. And you know, when they tell you, you know, you could look into this, you can look into that, and sometimes critical feedbacks, but I see it as all helpful, um, you know, that's for you to progress as a scientist. So yeah, that's that's usually what is it takes. Yeah.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 5:37

Do you design your own schedule then, Avalabi? Like it's up to you to decide whether it's from the writing to the expert, like designing the experiments and stuff. Is that entire schedule up to you? And are you sometimes working till 9 p.m. or do you like decide, oh no, I'm stopping at 4 p.m.? How does it work?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 5:55

Um, definitely when I was doing my PhD, I think there were days, there were days like that. Um, but like now as a postdoctoral researcher, I try to manage my time um effectively also because I've also got a young family, so I like to be home before um before my baby sleeps. But yeah, I guess in terms of you know designing in terms of my schedule, I do, I do design my schedule and you know have a chat, you know, with my immediate supervisor, um, Dr. Kim, and we talked you know with each other and see what else I could do or what I should be doing now. So there are some times um that I will have, yeah, I will have to run through the priorities of the week with her and so that she knows exactly what I'm doing. Yeah.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 6:40

Okay. That's cool. Thank you. Because for many of us who are not researchers, I just can't even imagine what your day looks like. So I now want to go from the lab to Nigeria. I

Growing Up Curious In Nigeria

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 6:52

mean, there's a leap. So I want, I'd love you to give us a picture of Nigerian life when you were a little boy. So mini Afalabi, like and maybe your sisters were born, I don't know. But what was it like back then? And would the little version of you be surprised by the work you do today?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 7:15

Yes, oh, as you can tell from my accent, you can see the Nigerian there. But yeah, I was I was, you know, I was um you know born in Nigeria, grew up in Nigeria, and you know, moved to Australia when I was 14 years old. So um, you know, before then, um I would probably say, yeah, little Afalabi would probably be surprised to see what I'm doing now. Um, because I remember early on when I started school, I you know, I think I was I was I would say I was a very slow learner and I usually end up at the bottom of the class. Um really? Yeah, yeah.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 7:53

But you only were good at school, like that academic stuff started in Australia?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 7:58

Oh, yeah, absolutely. I think just you know, when I started high school, you know, in Nigeria, like um yeah, like my pos I remember I having a position of like 25th out of 30.

Speaker 2 8:10

Wow, yeah.

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 8:11

So I was like definitely at the bottom of the class. I think I only liked I only begin you know to like school and like reading when I moved to Australia, you know. I was actually in year eight um when I came to Australia, and and I think that was when you know the curiosity and the love of school um really kicked in. And I, you know, I I loved studying, I loved reading rather than being told to um read. You know, my mom was a teacher, so growing up, you know, she would, you know, would I say force me, but she would make me, you know, want to study, want to read, and she would wake me early in the morning, you know, to do that. But but I was I was yeah, I found it difficult, you know, um in school, you know, very, very young. But but one thing, you know, I know when I was young was I was a very curious child. Um, I was very, very curious. And my mom told me that, you know, when I was growing up as a child, even as a young five, six, seven years old, you know, I like to you know try something. And when I'm not able to do it, um I don't give up. Like I always try again and again and again. And I'm sure that will be very annoying for any parent. Um, but um, but you know, I think that's something that you know I've continued to you know have in terms of being curious and trying something new and not giving up when I don't get it the first goal um or the second goal or the third goal, but just yeah, keep trying. Yeah.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 9:46

Wow, that's that is like so interesting to hear that you were like 25th in the class. Yeah. And now um, you know, being so successful academically, but yes, that you always had this like fight in you to like your curiosity was there. Just one more visit into Nigeria for a sec, because I would like to just get a vision of what was different about growing up in a different country than Australia. So if you remember back, what was some of the biggest differences that you noticed as a four when you moved to Australia at 14 when you thought about your Nigerian life?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 10:30

Yeah, wow. I thought, yeah, coming from Nigeria to Australia, um the the biggest difference was just, I think was a cultural, you know, shock. Um, you know, things were quite different um to how it was back in Nigeria. Um, you know, when I was in Nigeria, you know, everybody around you are Nigerians, you know, but coming to Australia, you start to see, you know, it's very much cultural, um, people from different um you know nations and food from different nations, which I love. Yeah, okay.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 11:08

What was the first different kind of food that you ate? Can you remember that?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 11:12

Well, I actually I remember when I was in school, I actually saved you know my pocket money um to be able to buy because when I was going to school, I usually see everyone buying like this, like this, you know, mini food like in a box. And I was like, I'm gonna try this one day. So it took me a while. I saved the five dollars for me to be able to buy it, and I went to the school canteen and I got the pizza. And that was my first time, you know, trying pizza. I was like, hmm, interesting. This is not bad.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 11:41

And did you like it?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 11:42

Um, I think at first it was like um it was a bit strange odd, um, but I think I've definitely grown to love pizza and and and also you know the the fries, you know, I tried, you know, you know, we call it chips, um, yeah, you know, um at a friend's house. And I think, yeah, it's it was it was very interesting trying different food, but um I've grown to love a lot of um Australian and other nations' food. Yeah.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 12:13

Yeah. Did you just then when you described that everyone in Nigeria was Nigerian? That's really interesting as well. So basically, there was never someone from Iran, someone from Canada, you know. So I think I just assumed that you were gonna say when you came to Australia that you stood out from all the Australians. Yeah. But would you say, how did you feel about that actually? Did you stand out in turn and did you like that or was that hard?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 12:43

Um, so yeah, the iSchool I first went to, you know, it was actually, you know, Blacktown Boys in um

Culture Shock And Finding Belonging

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 12:50

in Sydney. It was actually quite mixed, and there was, you know, a lot of other Africans there. Um, so obviously it was easy, you know, to you know, get along, you know, with the Africans, even though they might not be from Nigeria. Um, we look alike, so it was it was easy to get along. Yeah, but but yeah, definitely. I think you know, um, as I continue my iSchool, um, you know, there was not really like a time to learn how to switch. You just kind of have to like, you know, you are now in a new country, you have to adapt, you have to um incorporate. And all of us were doing this, all six of us were doing this. You know, we've never um you know been outside Nigeria, we've never so we all had to learn. Yeah, we all have to learn how to integrate. Um and yeah, it was tough sometimes, you know, you speak differently. Um sometimes you know your accent was more evident and sometimes even teased, you know, because of that. Um but you learn to you you learn to understand that you know these things um are bound to happen and don't let it you know distract you or or make you um you know feel rejected, but just yeah, just keep trying. And and I guess one thing that helped me coming in was I really love soccer, and I I think I was good at soccer. Um, so um, and then I also you know learned quick to be, you know, to be good at my studies at academic. So those two things were always something that um that I enjoyed and I look forward to. Yeah, yeah.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 14:23

And I wanted to hear that perspective because I think we often forget to put ourselves in someone else's shoes. Like, what is it like to be 14 and all of a sudden look around you and everybody looks different? And all of a sudden your accent is in question, and all of a sudden, like, yeah, you draw to people that look like you because it feels safer. And you brought up this is important too, is yeah, your whole family, all six of you were in it together. So your father had recently graduated with his PhD before moving from Nigeria. So, I mean, a lot was going on for your parents as well in this new land called Sydney. Um, would they now say that it was all worth it, um, even though it wasn't so easy when they first landed on Australian shores?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 15:15

Yeah, so for us kids, I think it was exciting, you know, moving country. Um, for for my parents, it was more like a big week, like a big challenge. Um, you know, both of them and in their mid-career, um, they're doing well, you know, in their career. You know, my dad was a lecturer at the University of Lagos, got his PhD. So it was, you know, definitely on the path of what he has always wanted to do. And my mom was an iSchool teacher. Um, you know, for many years she's been there, she's also settled. So being in your mid-career and just you know, making that decision to uh leave all behind. Um, I remember my my grandmom from my dad's side was very also very um elderly, and um that was a tough decision leaving her because it's almost knowing that we would not see her again because she did pass away when we came to Australia. So all of that was was what was going on, you know, in my parents' um, you know, um mind at that time, and then coming to a country where um you know you are not certain, so there was no job by the time.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 16:30

I was gonna say, did your mom or dad have a job?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 16:32

They didn't have a job, yeah.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 16:33

Can you imagine? Yeah, just this is incredible.

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 16:37

Yeah, so no job, and um they end up not able, you know, to get there a job in their respective field, and we will, you know, it took several months um before that could happen. So yeah, it was definitely challenging from their point of view, and I'm sure there were times where my mom um you know would have said, look, it's better to have stayed in Nigeria. Um, but you know, we kept going. And yeah, it's important to know this because obviously, as a as a you know, 14 years old, my younger sister was probably about 10 years old at that time. You know, whatever we experience in school or in the society, in the culture, we don't we necessarily can't take it back home and start, you know, appointing all of that to them because they also have their um you know their challenges, you know, getting driver lessons, getting a job, you know, all of those things um made it difficult. But you know, fast track 15, 16 years, um, I would say, you know, they definitely would be um happy about the decision. Um, you know, my three sisters and myself, you know, graduated from university, and and and they'll be you know expecting their seventh grandchild in September. So so um I I think they would, I think even though it was a tough decision at that time, I think they'll be um excited and happy to the opportunities that that Australia brought. And I think that's probably one of the main reasons why they brought all of us across because my you know, my dad, my mom had always wanted us to have you know a better educating system, um, which you know we have benefited from.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 18:22

Well, you moved from number 25, yeah, yeah. I mean, things moved up for you, so at least they can be happy. So change for their son. Something sparked. And seven grandkids, are any of them like older? Like, what's the oldest grandchild?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 18:38

I think the oldest would be about 11 years old. Yeah.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 18:41

And with an Australian accent?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 18:43

Of course, of course.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 18:46

Um, you know, being this accent, this Canadian accent, um, I understand there's a very funny moment when your kids have a different accent.

Speaker 2 18:55

Yeah.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 18:56

It's so bizarre. So they're very Aussie. Okay, that's that's very funny. That must be strange for your parents. Okay, thank you for that. I I am very passionate about um understanding the journey of people that come to a new land. So I I wanted to spend time there. I think it's really important um for all of our compassion and understanding.

Why Engineering Led To Medicine

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 19:20

So your initial degree was in engineering, actually. So what led to you choosing the medical route for your PhD?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 19:28

Yeah, so I did um chemical engineering and and then I did my master's in biomedical engineering at the University of New South Wales. Um when I when I was in high school, you know, I loved science, um, I loved maths, uh, I loved chemistry. So uh yeah, I thought you know engineering, you know, was a good fit. And um towards the end of my you know, you know, master's degree, um, we have to we had to you know write a thesis, and um and you know, my topic at that time was immunotherapy. And and you know, I think that was the first time that I was exposed to uh medical literature, um literature reviews and literature articles, and you know, and I just remember reading them and um I just fell in love. You know, I fell in love with you know with the medical field, um, with you know the contributions that have been made, how impactful those contributions have been to patients. Um I probably I would say I definitely did not enjoy engineering um journals as much as I enjoy um the medical one. Um so um so from there, you know, there was a curiosity to explore a bit more. And even though I was in the lab, I was also doing experiments, doing my master's project. Um, I was more drawn towards um the literature review, and you know, and I and I just knew that okay, this is an area that you know I can potentially make a big impact in, especially pursuing you know, PhD. Uh, you know, I believe pursuing PhD in engineering would uh would be good in terms of efficiency, um, but I thought you know doing something more medical uh is going to uh you know ignite you know a passion within me because you can actually see um you know the difference you're making. For example, you know, my project is on fatty liver disease. Over five million Australians have fatty liver disease, and and you know, there is not really an approved therapeutic drug in that space. So, you know, when I was doing my PhD, just reading those literatures, you know, leading reading the introduction and seeing the burden of the of the system, it's kind of it's kind of help you to keep going, you know, and not and not stop and not give up. So um doing PhD, you need something, uh you need a topic, you know, that you are also invested in. So which I think I found in the medical um area.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 22:00

It's a really interesting distinction. And you did that really nicely when you shared about that immunotherapy because that thesis that you were doing, because as an engineer, your vision, you know, your perspective is with efficiencies. But then from a medical perspective, it was more about what is this, what are these results? Like, how's that going to impact other people? So then I see the personality and the man that you are and how important it is. Like those aspects become what drive you to do the PhD and keep you motivated. So I think that's a really interesting um play. Then back in, so now you've realized you've gone the medical route, PhD, so you're helping real people, you know, that like that's motivating you. How does your engineering brain then play back onto how you can help more people?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 22:56

Yeah. So, you know, as engineers, you know, when you're in university, one of the first things you're trained is how to solve problems, you know. Um, you know, from the very first, you know, questions, the first year, um, the old the old you know degree is designed to solve problems and solving it efficiently and you know, streamlining the process. So um, and then you know, coming to a medical field, you know, you've clearly got a problem here, um, and you know, the goal is to solve it. And when you're doing research, you tend to realize that even though you can attempt to solve a problem, there's usually um, you know, negative side effects you know that comes into it and how to manage that is important. So um, as engineers, as well we've been trained, you know, to solve problems, to make it as efficient as possible. Um, a lot of the time, you know, to create more profits. Um, I think coming with that mindset, it helps to it helps you to be resilient, you know, as a medical researcher, because you know, there's definitely more failed result than positive result. You know, we talk about the positive one, yeah, but but there's always a lot more um failed one. And sometimes when you get a failed result, you you know, you don't um you want to you know just leave it aside, but as you know, but you need to also learn from that failed result where by going into your data, seeing what has happened, and you know, being bold enough to acknowledge that, like, yes, this is where I made a mistake, and then being ready again to get back up and you know start start the cell work again, or you know, start the Eliza again, and you know, there's no assurance that you won't make another mistake, but at least you know, if you learned from your previous one, you won't make the same mistake. So I think, yeah, that has helped me and that trained me to be able to um have a strong desire to solve a problem, to be resilient and to um to be efficient, even as I solve the you know the problems you know that we face in the medical um field.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 25:10

Yeah, you know what I hear even stronger, it's really interesting hearing you share that is there's the methodology that you learn from engineering, problem solving. Yep, but then there's that aspect it's coming up again of the integrity and like you said, the ability to admit you make mistakes. Like these come into your personality traits and your these other aspects of who you are come into the research that you now do as well. So I thank you for sharing that because I think sometimes we omit that and as an important aspect of what makes you good at what you do and how you can help more people. And so um I am curious how you ended up at Gallipoli. I know you guys in the lab, you call it Gallipoli, but we're referring to GMR or Gallipoli Medical Research here. How did you come to be at Gallipoli?

Moving To Brisbane For GMR

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 26:06

Yeah, so um, you know, I was in Sydney, I'd you know, just finished my um you know, bachelor um and master's degree, and I was looking for the next opportunity. I'd I'd already been convinced in my final year um of going into PhD, um, going into medical research. So, you know, um what everyone has done at their point in life, um, you know, researching about opportunities that are out there, and um, and I did you know see an advertisement from Gallipoli Medical Research um you know regarding you know looking for PhD students you know that can work um that are interested to work you know in in liver cancer um at that time. So yeah, I reached out to Dr. Kim, tell her I would be interested. Um, you know, we did an interview and and um yeah, that saw me to be a good fit, and I saw Gallipoli Medical Research, you know, in collaboration with UQ to be a very, very good fit. And um and you know, I was offered the position, and the more I read about you know the articles and the publications that um that Gallipoli have had in the past, um, the more interested um I was I was in the project. And later I was informed that you know the project will be around um fatty liver disease and testing out therapeutic um uh you know drugs. So I became more interested. And you know, in 2019, I made the the journey um from Sydney to Brisbane and and um and yeah, you know, coming into the to the lab, you know, learning some other you know experimental techniques and you know learning more about the project, you know, the more I you know fall in love with it. Yeah.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 27:59

Is your whole family still in Sydney and you're the only one with your immediate family here in Brisbane?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 28:05

Yes, yes, mom, dad. Yeah, all in Sydney, yeah, yeah.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 28:10

And I I hear it's rare to do your research. So you made that first move as your next opportunity in research that this is where you wanted to be. Um and this is what you were doing as a student, really, and then beyond. What made you decide to stay on? Because I hear that's a bit rare to stay on after your researching as a student.

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 28:32

Yeah, I think um I was very fortunate with the project we had, whereby at the end of my PhD, um, there was still quite um a lot to do, even though we had found some positive findings. Um, we needed to understand the mechanism of how um of the drug and what's happening. So I was fortunate that the project kind of didn't finish with my PhD. And also, you know, um I think the team environment that I was in is is that I'm in also is very, you know, it's very supportive. Um, you know, Dr. Kim and Professor Dowell, um, they have been you know very, very you know supportive and they create a very good work environment for for for researchers you know to be able to work in. So that has been something I enjoyed um doing my PhD and also post-PHD. Yeah.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 29:26

So how would you describe that environment? Why is it um an enriching environment to work in?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 29:34

Yeah, um, so you know, Professor Daro, who is the director of our um of Gallipoli Medical Research, um, director of research, he you know, is a clinician by background. So whenever you speak to him, you always feel like you learn something about the patients. Um a lot of time when you're doing basic science, um you know, it's you your your view might be limited. Um, but when you have someone that is seeing patients day in, day out, um, discussing with them, um you know, you always learn something. And also with Dr. King, um, you know, very supportive. And whenever I go to her with a challenge, you know, we always try to come up with not just one solution, but multiple solutions um to the problem. So um I just think yeah, it makes it easier for for a researcher to to flourish if you have a good um um you know senior um you know colleagues, it makes it so much easier. And and that's you know what I've been blessed with. Yeah.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 30:35

Got it. All

Fatty Liver Disease And Iron Links

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 30:37

right. So take us through your research and what excites you about it in a way that a layman could understand. I feel like it'd be nice in how you describe this.

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 30:48

Yeah, I mean, uh, so I like you know, my project, you know, focus on you know fatty liver disease. And, you know, like I said, you know, probably about one, you know, in five Australians have fatty liver disease. And um, not in everyone, but in in a few amount of people, it does progress to um um you know inflammation, fibrosis, um, psoriosis. And yeah, my project is you know about understanding that fatty liver disease and trying to understand the subset of which um the disease progresses in. Um, like I said earlier, you know, there is no specific, you know, approved TG therapeutic good Australian drug for it. So um it's really important to um, you know, not just understand you know the disease, but you know, create therapeutic options you know for people that are you know in those diseases. So my project is about you know testing out you know several you know therapeutic means for for um fatty liver disease and trying to understand uh um you know the mechanism behind it, you know, how we can you know address it and how we can you know um create something for for for for people you know in that condition. Yeah.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 32:08

Are people currently dying from that then, the one in five, or is it like you live with that disease and it's terrible?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 32:15

Yeah, so no one like you wouldn't die from fatty liver disease. It's only when it's you know, if when it progresses um to you know psilioses or even liver cancer, for example. So um, but yeah, it's it's important to to um you know to pay attention uh at the early stage, uh, because yeah, you know, few percentage of those people with fatty liver disease would end up you know developing something more serious, um, which can then be devastating.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 32:45

Yeah, wow. Um, I know real-world applications are really motivating, like that's why you chose to do what you're doing. Can you share some of the results that you're getting in the lab and the implications? I know some of it you're not allowed to talk about, which is a bit like comfort and exciting, but what are the can you share some of them?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 33:04

Yeah, so you know, in in the lab, you know, in Galile Polymedical Research, what we have found, even before I joined, you know, we found that um, you know, having increased iron in the body, so iron, increased iron levels um can potentially you know contribute to you know devastating results for the liver. Um and then so having a co-combination of too much iron, too much fat can, you know, we we believe can play a role in actually progressing that fatty liver disease quicker from fatty liver disease to something like you know um fibrosis or pseriosis. So one of the things we've been doing in the lab is seeing how we can reduce, you know, um not just the level of iron, but also the level of fat, so that you know we can actually reverse um you know the fatty liver disease. And you know, we've we've done some you know from some studies, some you know, um basic science study to show that um you know the drug that we have been trying out could actually help to um reduce the ampful levels of iron and also fat um in the liver. Uh and you know, when you have that, you know, um there is no fatty liver disease and there is no progression. So that's currently the stage of our research, which is you know, testing out you know, these new ways to actually reduce iron and fat in the liver um before it gets to the stage where it's you know there's inflammation, there's fibrosis, there's pseriosis. Yeah. So that's that's what we're currently working on.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 34:40

That's exciting. You're on, yeah, I see. You're this is really lining up with the reason that you switched medical, um, the medical stream. So that's very exciting. So I

Parenting Lessons Plus Farewell

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 34:52

have to say, I'm like taking this whole journey of your life, Afalabi's life, and I'm thinking about your kids. Um, what would you because I know you have young kids, so just reflecting on your life and life in Nigeria, now you're in Australia, and just the twists and turns that it's taken. What advice would you give your kids around schooling and academics?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 35:19

Very good one. Um, I mean, I think I think for me, um, one of the things I've come to learn is that um, you know, looking for my own experience too, um, as a child was um that like, yeah, it's it's I think the the time I did better, the time I loved you know, studying and school was actually the time when we came to you know Australia where when my parents you know have their own challenges that they have to face, that you know, not that they left me alone, but like, yeah, there was less attention, um, focused on me and school. Because I feel like you know, when I was growing up, there was a lot of pressure, there was a lot of focus on you know afhalabi and school, like and being forced to study. And I think that kind of made me not to um not to strive, you know. But but when we came to Australia and and you know, my mom, you know, she had to get a driver license, she also had to get a job, she has to make a new friendship connection. You know, I'm kind of you know put a bit on the side, and that was actually when you know I, you know, you know, you flourished homework, yeah. There was less pressure, there was less um, it wasn't it was less of you have to do this to I want to do this.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 36:43

So I think that's a good lesson. Yeah, leave your kids alone, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 36:48

Pretty much it. So I think for me, I think perfect.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 36:51

This is easier for you in your life.

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 36:53

Yeah, the the the more I was not left alone, the more I struggle. So I think I think it's important, um, yeah, as parents also to to let your you know child find their own, yeah, just leave with a bit of with guidance, but um find their own way in life, yeah.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 37:08

Yeah, that is I I said it jokingly, that's easier, it's not easier. That's the thing, that's a really big lesson of letting go as a parent. So I think we all heard that one. So thank you. That's how old are your kids?

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 37:22

So so I've currently got a 16-month-old baby.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 37:26

Um it's your first.

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 37:28

Yeah, yeah. And I've got a second, I've got a second one coming.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 37:31

Um my gosh. Okay. Yeah, yeah. One is is cellular dividing, as we say.

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 37:38

Yeah, yeah, at the moment, yeah.

Conversationalist Sarah Maxwell 37:40

Oh, that's a oh, that's beautiful. Okay, that's great because you can have lots of aspirations before they get older, then it gets like all the our good ideas get through. Um that's beautiful. Thank you for sending them. I think that's a really great assessment from the life that you've led so far. You're the demonstration of what you just said. So I do want to thank you on behalf of the GMR community, because look, the service that you're doing through research, it does make a lasting impact. We talked about some of these outcomes, but sometimes it's important to know that in this process, it is making a difference. So, on behalf of the community at large, thank you.

Guest Afolabi Akanbi 38:21

Thank you very much, Sarah. It's been a pleasure being on here.

Host Miriam Kent 38:24

Thank you for joining us for this episode of Voices. We hope you've been inspired by the courage, honesty, and generous spirit shared on today's episode. Our work only happens with your support. So please visit us at www.galiphalyresearch.com.au. And now over to your part. If you know someone who needs to hear this episode, please share it with them. And why not review our podcast so that others can hear voices of GMR? Don't forget to click the follow button so you can easily find that next episode. Thank you for listening. We look forward to sharing the next voice of Gallipoli Medical Research with you very soon.