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01 October 2019 | Story Nikile Ntsababa (Registrar)

The nomination process for the election of two representatives to serve on the UFS Council was finalised on Tuesday, 17 September 2019 – the closing date for nominations.
 
Here are the names of the nominees (listed alphabetically):
 
Representative from the Qwaqwa Campus:
None
 
Other representative:
Mr Christo Dippenaar
Dr Pieter du Toit
Mr Lefa Mabaso
Dr Walter Matli
Mr Zama Sigwebela
 
Please note that no nominations were received for representatives from the Qwaqwa Campus.  Since this scenario is not legislated in the Statute, Institutional Rules, and Convocation Constitution, the Registrar will, after consultation with the President of the Convocation, open another round of nominations for Qwaqwa representatives to Council (with the closing date 8 October 2019) to ensure that the campus is also represented on Council.
 
Convocation and Alumni members from the Qwaqwa Campus are therefore given a second opportunity to nominate one representative from among their members for the Qwaqwa Campus.  All nominations must reach the office of the Registrar no later than 16:30 on Wednesday, 9 October 2019.
 
Every nomination form  shall be signed by four (4) members of the Convocation and shall contain the written acceptance of the nomination by the nominee under his/her signature as well as an abridged CV and a motivation of more or less 200 words.
 
Nominations are to be submitted to:  email: registrar@ufs.ac.za or delivered by hand to Nikile Ntsababa, Main Building, Room 51, Bloemfontein Campus.
 
Kindly take note that late or incomplete nominations will not be accepted or considered.
 
Further information regarding the election process will follow in due course.

News Archive

#Women'sMonth: Save the children
2017-08-10

Description: Trudi O'Neill Tags: : rotaviruses, young children, Dr Trudi O’Neill, Department of Microbial, Biochemical and Food Biotechnology, vaccine 

Dr Trudi O’Neill, Senior lecturer in the Department of
Microbial, Biochemical and Food Biotechnology.
Photo: Anja Aucamp

Dr Trudi O’Neill, Senior lecturer in the Department of Microbial, Biochemical and Food Biotechnology, is conducting research on rotavirus vaccines.

Dr O’Neill was inspired to conduct research on this issue through her fascination with the virus. “The biology of rotaviruses, especially the genome structure and the virus’ interaction with the host, is fascinating.”

“In fact, it is estimated that, globally, ALL children will be infected with rotavirus before the age of five, irrespective of their socio-economic standing. However, infants and young children in poor countries are more vulnerable due to inadequate healthcare. The WHO estimates that approximately 215 000 deaths occur each year. This roughly equates to eight Airbus A380 planes, the largest commercial carrier with a capacity of approximately 500 seats, filled with only children under the age of five, crashing each week of every year.”

Alternative to expensive medicines 
“Currently, there are two vaccines that have been licensed for global use. However, these vaccines are expensive and poor countries, where the need is the greatest, are struggling to introduce them sustainably. It is therefore appealing to study rotaviruses, as it is scientifically challenging, but could at the same time have an impact on child health,” Dr O’Neill said.

The main focus of Dr O’Neill’s research is to develop a more affordable vaccine that can promote child vaccination in countries/areas that cannot afford the current vaccines.

All about a different approach 

When asked about the most profound finding of her research, Dr O’Neill responded: “It is not so much a finding, but rather the approach. My rotavirus research group is making use of yeast as vehicle to produce a sub-unit vaccine. These microbes are attractive, as they are relatively easy to manipulate and cheap to cultivate. Downstream production costs can therefore be reduced. The system we use was developed by my colleagues, Profs Koos Albertyn and Martie Smit, and allows for the potential use of any yeast. This enables us to screen a vast number of yeasts in order to identify the best yeast producer.”

Vaccination recently acquired a bad name in the media for its adverse side effects. As researcher, Dr O’Neill has this to say: “Vaccines save lives. By vaccinating your child, you don’t just protect your own child from a potentially deadly infection, but also other children in your community that might be too young to be vaccinated or have pre-existing health problems that prevents vaccination.” 

A future without rotavirus vaccination?

Dr O’Neill believes a future without rotavirus vaccination will be a major step backwards, as the impact of rotavirus vaccines has been profound. “Studies in Mexico and Malawi actually show a reduction in deaths. A colleague in Mozambique has commented on the empty hospital beds that amazed both clinicians and scientists only one year after the introduction of the vaccine in that country. Although many parents, mostly in developed countries, don’t have to fear dehydrating diarrhoea and potential hospitalisation of their babies due to rotavirus infection anymore, such an infection could still be a death sentence in countries that have not been able to introduce the vaccine in their national vaccination programmes,” she said. 

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