PhD student Abubakar Bello: I’ve always remained determined in doing what’s best to achieve my dreams

• Lectures by Prof. Shamaki inspired Abubakar to pursue a career in pharmacokinetics.
• In his PhD, Abubakar will determine the concentration of drug residues in blood plasma and eggs of laying hens that have been exposed to ionophore coccidiostats
• According to Abubakar, having a good relationship with your supervisors is essential to achieving scientific success
• After his doctorate, Abubakar plans to pursue a scientific and academic career

Abubakar Bello, a PhD student of the UPWr Doctoral School, obtained his Bachelor’s degree in veterinary medicine at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at Maiduguri University in Nigeria. As an extremely gifted student, Abubakar received a scholarship to study in India, which allowed him to obtain a master's degree in veterinary pharmacology and toxicology at the Madras Veterinary College of Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University in 2019.

– At the end of my master's studies, I felt the need to change my research environment and decided to pursue a PhD at a European university. Using the platform ResearchGate and university portals, I searched for potential supervisors whose research topics would coincide with mine. This is how I came across Prof. Błażej Poźniak – says the doctoral student, adding that although initially there were no vacancies for a PhD in the field he was interested in, in May 2020 Prof. Poźniak obtained a research grant from NAWA for a project for which he decided to take in a PhD student. And so, as the best candidate, Abubakar was chosen for the position, and now he is a part of the UPWr Doctoral School.

– I like Wrocław – says the doctoral student – I’ve lived here for a year now and I can see how many great historical and tourist places to visit this city has. All the people I’ve met are always nice and caring which makes me happy. Polish is a difficult language to learn, but I’ve been gradually learning the basics. I can say hello, count to ten, I know the names of food I get at the grocery store and, of course, the equipment I use in the lab – Abubakar laughs.

Veterinary pharmacology: career choice-turned-passion

Abubakar's passion for veterinary pharmacology and toxicology began during his undergraduate studies, as a result of a class led by Prof. Bala Usman Shamaki. Charmed by his lecture, Abubakar chose him as his mentor and decided to pursue a career in this field. He later expanded his interests within the subject of pharmacokinetics during his graduate studies in India. Pharmacokinetics is a field of pharmacology that describes the changes in drug concentrations in the body over time after administration.

During that time, his department at Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University was running a project involving the determination of antibiotic residues in poultry meat which is led by Prof. Ramesh Srinivasan, the present Head of the Department. His practical participation as a student in the project created a drive for him to pursue a PhD and a career in that field.  –  I found the work in the field of quantitative veterinary pharmacology and toxicology to be extremely exciting. I was fascinated by the possibility of using mathematical modelling and simulations to solve real problems related to human and animal health – explains the PhD student.

Organic eggs – are they as healthy as they seem?

– In brief, Abubakar’s PhD thesis focuses on population pharmacokinetic modelling of ionophore coccidiostats residues in laying hens. Ionophore coccidiostats are a drug commonly used as feed additives for the treatment and prevention of coccidiosis, a certain parasite, in poultry–  says Prof. Jonatan Mochel – one of Abubakar’s supervisors, an associate professor at the Faculty of Biomedical Sciences at Iowa State University.

During his PhD research, Abubakar is planning to analyse drug residue concentrations in the blood plasma and eggs of laying hens, which had been exposed to ionophore coccidiostats. They chose two breeds of laying hens for their research: Isa Brown, a popular commercial and highly productive breed, and the Green legged partridge, a Polish breed of hens that is slightly less productive in terms of laying performance. 

– There is a growing need for organic or ecological eggs from local farms that people consider safe and free from chemical residues– says the PhD student, explaining that the topic of his research comes from the lack of information on pharmacokinetic studies conducted on local breeds of hens which have been exposed to ionophore coccidiostats, that could be used to estimate the amount of drug residues in the animal's tissues and eggs.

Together with his team, Abubakar hypothesises that the differences in physiological body variables such as weight, laying performance, and the production phase could be an important determinant of differences in the accumulation and elimination of drug residues in eggs. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct pharmacokinetic studies in both breeds of laying hens to compare this. His research will provide useful insight to food safety regulators who carry out consumer health safety and risk assessments on commercial poultry egg products.

– The nature of my collaboration with Abubakar and Prof. Poźniak is based on the use of mathematical modelling and simulation and the so-called population pharmacokinetic modelling to characterise the disposition kinetics of therapeutic drugs in biological systems. This approach has been proved to deepen our understanding of the risks associated with drug residues in food-producing animals. Construction of a population pharmacokinetic model for lasalocid will allow us to identify and quantify the determinants of the drug residues in eggs. Although lasalocid is one of many coccidiostats on the market, it also seems to have the highest affinity to egg yolk and may be treated as the model substance for studying egg contaminants – explains Prof. Mochel.

Teamwork makes the dream work

According to Abubakar, one of the most important things for a doctoral student, that will determine his success, is to identify outstanding supervisors and maintain positive relations with them. – Considering the difficulty of my PhD programme, I am lucky to have Prof. Błażej Poźniak and Prof. Jonathan Paul Mochel as my supervisors. They are both brilliant minds in the field of quantitative veterinary pharmacology and toxicology, which is why I have chosen them as my mentors. I appreciate that they help me improve my scientific knowledge and skills and I appreciate their advice, moral support, encouragement, care, understanding and patience in helping me achieve my research goals – says the PhD student.

Abubakar’s supervisor from the UPWr Doctoral School – Prof. Błażej Poźniak, although has only worked with the PhD student for a year, admits that he feels confident in assigning him increasingly more responsible tasks, because he trusts him fully. – I thoroughly enjoy working with Abubakar. He is extremely hardworking, independent and has a brilliant mind. The cultural differences between us are never a cause of conflict, rather they have formed the basis of many of our discussions, from which we have both learned a lot about the world  – says his supervisor, Prof. Poźniak, emphasizing that Abubakar is quick to learn new things and gives a lot from himself too. The small age gap between them has also helped to form their relationship into a partnership, more so than a mentorship. He also adds that his focus and calm character have a very good effect on the entire team.

What's next for Abubakar?

The doctoral student dreams of becoming an independent, recognized scientist and academic. He wants to use his skills to address real-world issues, and he also wants to pass on his knowledge to the next generation of young scientists: – For the advancement of mankind! – proudly proclaims Abubakar.

After completing his PhD, Abubakar plans to apply for a post-doc to develop his knowledge and skills in mathematical modelling and simulations in animal health. – It’s an important yet difficult topic, as the use of modelling and simulating in veterinary medicine is still in its infancy compared to mathematical models in human medicine where significant progress has been made. But I’ve always remained determined in doing what’s best to achieve my dreams and life goals. I’m always looking for new ideas and skills that will help me in my career development – concludes Abubakar.

is