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By Grateful Ogunjebe
On December 23, 2025, an article titled ‘Neurologist raises the alarm over rising stroke cases among youths’ was published in a Nigerian newspaper. After the aforementioned news broke, Moses Ataben — neuroscientist and doctoral researcher in the fields of cellular and molecular Neuroscience at the University of Missouri-Columbia, United States — was sought to gain more insight on how neurological disorders or conditions affect people and communities.
In doing so, the scholar cited his previous media interventions on the matter — ‘Most neurological disorders under-diagnosed in Nigeria, stronger healthcare needed for patients’ and ‘Scientist seeks special needs reform’, published in two other Nigerian newspapers.
Ataben defined neurological conditions as disorders that affect the functioning of the central and peripheral nervous systems. They involve the brain, spinal cord, and nerves, and can cause physical, cognitive, emotional, and behavioural problems. These conditions include degenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, stroke, epilepsy and migraine, brain and spinal injuries, neuromuscular diseases, peripheral nerve disorders, and developmental conditions like autism and cerebral palsy.
He referenced an October 2025 report by the World Health Organisation (WHO) on how neurological disorders are a leading cause of illness and disability worldwide, affecting hundreds of millions of people across the globe.
Explaining his reason for choosing neuroscience as field of special interest, Ataben said he has always been fascinated by how the brain and nervous system control the body and behavior, and that understanding their impact on people’s lives drives his research. This fascination has carried him across continents, from the lecture halls of the University of Uyo, Nigeria (where he obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Human Anatomy), to world-class neuroscience laboratories in Europe, and currently to the University of Missouri-Columbia in the United States.
“My current research aims to improve the diagnosis and treatment of neurological disorders,” he said, adding that most of his studies are funded through grants and fellowships. He explained that his doctorate degree research focuses on how damage to glial cells, particularly Schwann cells, disrupts peripheral nerve function in inherited peripheral neuropathies. By combining disease modelling with translational approaches, he seeks to understand glial cell function at the molecular level and develop interventions that could improve patient outcomes.
According to the scholar, neurological disorders are complex and can lead to dysfunction in different parts of the body. In several of his co-authored, peer-reviewed publications, he has demonstrated how these diseases impact not only the brain but other organs as well.
One of such publications cited was ‘Comparative brain microanatomical and neurochemical alterations following the administration of seven oral artemisinin-based combination therapies in Swiss mice’, published in June 2024 in the International Journal of Anatomy and Research. The study examined common antimalarial drug combinations to determine if they induce subtle changes in areas associated with memory and learning.
“While these drugs are lifesaving, my research examines how their long-term use may subtly affect the brain. By studying these effects, we aim to identify combinations that protect cognitive health while still effectively treating malaria,” he said.
Another study, ‘Brain antioxidants and hippocampal microanatomical alterations following the administration of Efavirenz, Lamivudine, Tenofovir disoproxil fumarate and Lamivudine, Nevirapine and Zidovudine in adult male Wistar rats’ published in March 2022 in IBRO Neuroscience Reports, studied how common antiretroviral drug combinations interact with the brain, which the scholar said is among the first studies to investigate these effects.
The goal of the study, he added, was to evaluate these therapies for safety and efficacy, aiming to identify approaches that help people with HIV not only survive but also maintain cognitive health and quality of life.
Another scholarly article Ataben co-authored, titled ‘Low-dose quercetin at 25 mg/kg ameliorates dolutegravir-lamivudine-tenofovirdisoproxilfumarate-inducedcardio-hepato-renal toxicities in Wistar rats’ and published in August 2024 in Clinical Phytoscience, examined whether a low dose of quercetin, a well-known antioxidant, could help protect the body from side effects caused by a common HIV drug combination. The study focused on key organs such as the heart, liver, and kidneys because they play major roles in drug processing and removal from the body.
Ataben highlighted that his research aimed to investigate the broader effects of long-term HIV treatment on multiple organs. The study tested whether supplementing with an antioxidant could mitigate these effects. Early results suggest that quercetin may reduce toxicity, although further studies are needed.
He emphasised that neurological diseases can profoundly impact individuals, highlighting the urgent need for more research to understand and manage these conditions.
Furthermore, because of the rising cases of neurological conditions in Nigeria, stakeholders have called for urgent and coordinated policy interventions to address their growing burden in Nigeria and Africa.
The stakeholders made the call at the First Africa Neurological Health Summit 2025, jointly organised by the Brain and Spine Foundation Africa (BSFA) and the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare. They stated that the prevalence of strokes, epilepsy, brain and spinal cord injuries, Parkinson’s disease, dementia, and neuro-developmental disorders such as autism and cerebral palsy is rising sharply, a trend most visible in underserved communities where access to diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation remains limited.
The Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Muhammad Ali Pate, observed that treatment gaps exceed 75 per cent in most low-income countries and exceed 50 per cent in most middle-income countries, while disabilities associated with neurological conditions disproportionately affect women, older people, and those with poor socio-economic backgrounds.
Ataben stressed that the minister’s comments aligned with his own media interventions on the issues, but he added that simply complaining about these conditions would not solve the problem. The way forward, he said, is what he had outlined in his Saturday Tribune interview, where he advocated research and technology as key tools to address neurological conditions in Nigeria.
In the interview, he stated that some of the most exciting research in neuroscience today is happening where powerful technologies converge, such as advanced genomic tools, artificial intelligence, and high-resolution imaging techniques.
“These tools are really changing the game because they let us explore the brain and neurological disorders in ways that were not possible before,” he added.
He highlighted that these technological advances offer patients hope through earlier, more accurate diagnoses and the potential for personalised treatments, while also enhancing healthcare efficiency and accelerating new therapy discovery.
Beyond academics and research, Moses Ataben said he is committed to raising awareness of neurological disorders in Nigeria and across Africa. He highlighted that children with intellectual disabilities (ID) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are often misdiagnosed or left without proper care due to low awareness and weak policy frameworks. To address this, he called on the government to reform special education policies and to ensure consistent training for healthcare workers and educators.
•Ogunjebe, a freelance journalist, writes from Ogun State
