Prof. Faadiel Essop, PhD, BA (Hons)
Faadiel Essop is a professor and director of the Centre for Cardio-metabolic Research in Africa (CARMA) at Stellenbosch University’s Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences located in Cape Town (South Africa). He completed his undergraduate and doctoral studies at the University of Cape Town, with a molecular biology and physiological focus. He subsequently completed a BA (Hons) degree (Arabic Studies) at the University of the Western Cape (Cape Town, South Africa). During his postdoctoral fellowship (2000-2007) he worked at the University of Cape Town’s medical school where he focused on the role of metabolic perturbations in terms of the onset of cardiovascular diseases. He continued with such work during 2005-2006 as a Fulbright Fellow at the University of Texas-Houston Medical School.
During 2007, he took up an Associate Professor position in the Department of Physiological Sciences (Faculty of Science) at Stellenbosch University and was promoted to full professor in 2011. Prof. Essop is a co-founder of the CARMA that was established in 2020 in the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences at Stellenbosch University. He currently leads the centre with the vision to tackle the growing burden of cardio-metabolic diseases in Africa and to strengthen collaborative research work across the continent and beyond. His research group is investigating the effects of chronic stress on cardio-metabolic health, with a particular focus on the health and well-being of university students.
Prof. Essop has produced more than 115 peer-reviewed publications, wrote several book chapters, delivered numerous talks at national and international congresses, and supervised more than 50 MSc/PhD students. He recently published a book (as lead editor) entitled Truth unveiled: navigating science and society in an era of doubt (Academic Press) that focuses on broader aspects related to the pursuance of science/medicine such as societal, philosophical and historical contexts. He is currently working on a new book volume (as lead editor) entitled Decolonizing medical education, research and practice: transforming challenges into solutions (Academic Press; to be published December 2025).
He was a recipient of Stellenbosch University’s teaching excellence award (twice) and is a Teaching Advancement at University (TAU) fellow. Prof. Essop was former Presidents of the Physiology Society of Southern Africa (PSSA) and the African Association of Physiological Sciences (AAPS), and a previous chairperson of the Research Advisory Committee of the SA Heart and Stroke Foundation. He is currently an elected council member of the International Union of Physiological Sciences (IUPS). He is also a Fellow of the American Physiological Society and was awarded the PSSA’s prestigious Lifetime Career Achievement Award for research excellence. Prof. Essop was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society of South Africa in 2023 and was recently awarded the prestigious TAU Fellow award for his innovation in curriculum development, inter-disciplinary work, and holistic student training in the medical field.
