- BSc (Biochemistry), UG
- PhD, Cambridge
Prof. Augustine Ocloo is a Professor of Biochemistry at the University of Ghana. He obtained his BSc in Biochemistry from the University of Ghana in 1998 and his PhD from the University of Cambridge, UK, in 2005. He is a Fellow of the Cambridge Commonwealth Society, UK (FCCS) and a Life Fellow of the Mitochondrial Physiology Society, Austria.
Prior to his appointment as Dean of the School of Biological Sciences, he served as the Executive Director of the Centre for Plant Medicine Research, Mampong-Akwapim , a Centre of research excellence in plant medicine under the Ministry of Health between 2015 and 2019. He served as the Head of the Department of Biochemistry, Cell and Molecular Biology from Aug. 2011 to Jul. 2013 and briefly as a Senior Tutor of Elizabeth Frances Sey Hall in 2015. He has also served on several boards and committees, including the Governing Boards of the Food and Drugs Authority, the Centre for Plant Medicine Research, the Traditional Medicine Practice Council and the Audit Committee of the Food and Drugs Authority. His research interest includes: Pharmacotoxicology of medicinal plants and mitochondrial biochemistry and medicine.
Pharmacotoxicology of medicinal plants and herbal extracts and Mitochondria in Health and Diseases.
- BCMB 318: Bioenergetics and Biomembranes
- BCMB 401: Protein chemistry
- BCMB 606: Mitochondrial Biochemistry
- BCMB 601: Complex biomolecules
My main research interest is mitochondria in health and diseases. My research is focused on unearthing unique mitochondrial DNA mutations in patients with common and rare mitochondrial conditions and study the effect of extracts of medicinal plants products on mitochondrial oxygen consumption, mitochondrial membrane potential, reactive oxygen production, free radical damage to lipids and proteins with the overall goal of identifying important plant natural products.
The use of natural products with therapeutic properties is as ancient as human civilisation and, for a long time, mineral, plant and animal products were the main sources of drugs. Of the 252 drugs considered as basic and essential by the World Health Organisation (WHO), 11% are exclusively of plant origin and a significant number are synthetic drugs obtained from natural precursors. There are at least 120 distinct chemical substances derived from plants that are currently in use as important drugs in one or more countries in the world. Indeed “nature has provided us with plants for food and medicine”. Natural compounds can be lead compounds, allowing the design and rational planning of new drugs, biomimetic synthesis development and the discovery of new therapeutic properties not yet attributed to known compounds. Therefore, this aspect of my research is to conduct general pharmacological and toxicological assessments of medicinal plant extracts and herbal medicines to develop important natural products, identify important phytochemicals and unearth possible mechanism of action.
- Kumatia, E.K., Ocloo, A., Tung, N.H.
Triterpenoid esters from Capparis erythrocarpos (Isert), Capparaceae, root bark ameliorates CFA-induced arthritis
(2023) Saudi Pharmaceutical Journal, 31 (5), pp. 698-705. - Oduro-Mensah, D., Lowor, S.T., Bukari, Y., Donkor, J.K., Minnah, B., Nuhu, A.H., Dontoh, D., Amadu, A.A., Ocloo, A. Cocoa-associated filamentous fungi for the biocontrol of aflatoxigenic Aspergillus flavus
(2023) Journal of Basic Microbiology, . - Antwi, S., Oduro-Mensah, D., Obiri, D.D., Osafo, N., Antwi, A.O., Ansah, H.O., Ocloo, A., Okine, L.K.N.-A.
Hydro-ethanol extract of Holarrhena floribunda stem bark exhibits anti-anaphylactic and anti-oedematogenic effects in murine models of acute inflammation (2022) BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies, 22 (1), art. no. 80, . - Antwi, S., Oduro-Mensah, D., Asiedu-Larbi, J., Oduro-Mensah, E., Quasie, O., Lewis, C., Darko-Obiri, D., Ocloo, A., Okine, L.K. Prophylactic or therapeutic administration of Holarrhena floribunda hydro ethanol extract suppresses complete Freund’s adjuvant-induced arthritis in Sprague-Dawley rats (2022) Journal of Inflammation (United Kingdom), 19 (1), art. no. 3, .
- Dongdem, J.T., Helegbe, G.K., Opare-Asamoah, K., Wezena, C.A., Ocloo, A.
Assessment of NSAIDs as potential inhibitors of the fatty acid amide hydrolase I (FAAH-1) using three different primary fatty acid amide substrates in vitro (2022) BMC Pharmacology and Toxicology, 23 (1), art. no. 1, . - Mensah, E.A., Sarfo, B., Yawson, A.E., Arthur, J., Ocloo, A. Knowledge and awareness of mitochondrial diseases among physicians in the tertiary hospitals in Ghana (2022) PLoS ONE, 17 (10 October), art. no. e0276549, .
- Lartey, N.L., Vargas-Robles, H., Guerrero-Fonseca, I.M., Nava, P., Kumatia, E.K., Ocloo, A., Schnoor, M.
Annickia polycarpa extract attenuates inflammation, neutrophil recruitment, and colon damage during colitis
(2022) Immunology Letters, 248, pp. 99-108. - Kumatia, E.K., Ayertey, F., Appiah-Opong, R., Ofori-Attah, E., Bolah, P., Antwi, S., Appiah, A.A., Ocloo, A.
Effect of Anthonotha macrophyla (P. Beauv) leaf extract on carrageenan-induced paw oedema, oxidative stress makers and hyperalgesia in murine models (2022) Advances in Traditional Medicine, 22 (2), pp. 315-324. - Boakye-Yiadom, M., Obiri, D.D., Martey, O.N.K., Yeboah, R., Offei-Abrokwa, D., Ocloo, A., Woode, E.