Events

Engaging Communities to Improve Comprehension of Informed Consent for Genomics Research
Clement A. Adebamowo, BM, ChB, ScD, FWACS, FACS

Genomic research in Africa is critical to understanding gene-disease associations in Africa and other parts of the world, population history and pharmacogenomics. However, there are widespread low levels of education that raise concern about understanding of the technical components of genomics research and validity of informed consent. African communities have words, adages, idioms and proverbs that are used to communicate concepts of heritability. These words can be appropriated to improve comprehension of genomics and enhance validity of informed consent. Dr. Adebamowo will discuss his NHGRI/NIH funded study of Comprehension of Heritability in Genomics Studies among the Yoruba in Nigeria, methodologies for implementing similar studies in other communities, online repository of indigenous words and recommendations for future studies.

This course has been pre-approved by the JHM IRB to satisfy the in-person training requirement for PIs for HSR recertification. Individuals seeking credit for PI recertification must register for the course online in advance of the course and sign in on the printed sign-in sheet on the day of the course. If you are seeking credit for recertification, please register at the link below:

Engaging Communities to Improve Comprehension of Informed Consent for Genomics Research (JHM IRB Training / resid 1851665)

Clement Adebamowo is Professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health; Associate Director (Population Science Program) and Director Global Health Cancer Research, Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center; Member, Institute of Human Virology, Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health, Center for Research on Aging, and Program in Oncology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD. He is also Research Scientist, Institute of Human Virology Nigeria and Center for Bioethics and Research, Nigeria.

Activities in research ethics

Training:He directs the Fogarty funded Center for Bioethics and Research, Ibadan, Nigeria which has trained over 50 Masters’ degree students in Bioethics at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria; 78 medium duration blended diploma training in Research Ethics, and Responsible Conduct of Research; and 14,000 CBR/BRANY-CITI training program in West Africa.

Research:As PI of the NIH funded Indigene Project, Dr. Adebamowoconducta research into the use of indigenous educational concepts to improve comprehension on informed consent in genomics and cancer research in Africa. He is the PI of the NIH funded African Collaborative Center for Microbiome and Genomics Research (ACCME) which has enrolled 12,000 women in Nigeria for integrative epidemiology research on persistent high-risk HPV infection, cervical and breast cancer. As part of this project, he established a comprehensive genomics laboratory in Nigeria including facilities for epigenetics and next generation sequencing using Illumina NextSeq500. Adebamowo is also PI of the African Female Breast Cancer Epidemiology (AFBRECANE) project. ACCME and AFBRECANE are parts of the H3Africa Project. He leads an EDCTP funded Consortium – Deepening Research Ethics in Nigeria (DREIN project) that included COHRED, NAFDAC – the Nigerian drugs regulatory authority and NHREC.

Service: Dr. Adebamowowas foundational chair the Nigerian National Health Research Ethics Committee for 10 years and was responsible for developing the research ethics regulation infrastructure in Nigeria. He is a member of the Advisory Committee of Research Ethics training programs in Kenya, Myanmar and the US.