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19 July 2018 Photo Supplied
AEVGI advances Next-Generation Sequencing in Africa
Prof George Armah, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, Ghana; Prof Carl Kirkwood, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, USA; Cornelius Hagenmeier, Director: Internationalisation, UFS; Prof Gert van Zyl, Dean: Health Sciences; Dr Martin Nyaga, Senior Lecturer in the NGS Unit; Prof Joyce Tsoka-Gwegweni, Vice-Dean: Health Sciences; Dr Glen Taylor, Senior Director: Research and Development; Prof Jeffrey Mphahlele, Vice-President, South African Medical Research Council.

The inaugural edition of the University of the Free State (UFS) Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) Data and Bioinformatics Workshop, hosted by the UFS-NGS Unit in the UFS Faculty of Health Sciences, marked a new beginning for the advancement of NGS in Africa under the auspices of the African Enteric Viruses Genome Initiative (AEVGI), which was recently funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The AEVGI will generate rotavirus genomes at the UFS-NGS Unit to investigate the long-term effects of the introduction of the monovalent RV1 vaccine in three African countries – Ghana, Malawi, and South Africa.

The workshop attracted over 90 participants from 15 national and international institutions, with organisations from seven different countries as well as company representatives attending the event. The workshop kicked off with a courtesy call to the Rector and Vice-Chancellor, Prof Francis Petersen, followed by a stakeholder meeting with the executive management of the UFS.

The funding was secured through an award to the principal investigator, Dr Martin Nyaga, and sub-awards to co-investigators, Dr Khuzwayo Jere, Dr Francis Dennis, and Dr Valentine Ndze. According to attendee evaluations of the workshop, the remarkable performance of the workshop instructors was outstanding. Through practical sessions, participants were equipped with knowledge on how to apply several tools of genetic data analysis, using the rotavirus genome as a model to construct and interpret different genomic datasets.

A total of 65 students attended the hands-on workshop, the majority of which were from South African higher-education institutions. The organisers are grateful to the sponsors, particularly to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the University of the Free State, for making the workshop a success. Whitehead Scientific and the South African Medical Research Council also played a major role in the success of the workshop. The local organising committee consisted of Dr Martin Nyaga (host, convener and chair), Dr Saheed Sabiu (secretary), and Mr Stephanus Riekert (principal ICT support).

News Archive

Prof. Martha Nussbaum visits Kovsies
2012-12-27

Prof. Martha Nussbaum
Photo: Sonia Small
10 December 2012

The UFS community was privileged to gain insight into the brilliant mind of renowned philosopher Prof. Martha Nussbaum when she visited the Bloemfontein Campus.

Prof. Nussbaum, considered by some as one of the foremost living philosophers on the world stage, spent a week at the university interacting with staff, students and visitors from South Africa and abroad. The visit attracted huge interest, with people traveling from other parts of South Africa to hear Prof. Nussbaum speaking at public events held on the campus. International visitors attending the conference “Engaging the Other: Breaking Intergenerational Cycles of Repetition”on campus and scholars taking part in the Southern African Young Scientists Summer Program, also attended events.

Prof. Nussbaum’s first public event was on 6 December 2012 when the university honoured her with an honorary doctorate. She received a D. Litt degree for her intellectual and public contribution to human development. On 7 December 2012, she delivered a lecture on “Creating capabilities, the human development approach”. She also delivered a keynote address on the Political Role of the Arts as part of the conference on “Engaging the Other: Breaking Intergenerational Cycles of Repetition”.
 

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