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Department of Chemistry strengthens international ties through International Chemical Symposium

30 June 2021 | Story Dr Nitha Ramnath

organic chemistry_web read more — Dr Charlene Marais, Prof Vladimir Azov and Prof Ulrich Hennecke

The Department of Chemistry at the University of the Free State (UFS) held a successful online International Symposium on Organic Chemistry on 15 June 2021. The symposium brought together scientists from several South African and foreign universities and created a virtual platform for a long-awaited discussion stalled by the COVID-19 pandemic. About 20 participants from universities in South Africa, Belgium, and Germany presented their lectures during the symposium. In addition, this symposium was directed at the postgraduate students in the Department of Chemistry at the UFS, allowing them to present their results to an international audience and to foster their engagement in scientific research.

For more than a year, the COVID-19 pandemic has prevented the common personal communication avenues for the researchers: face-to-face (F2F) conferences, symposia, and workshops. To bridge this gap, Prof Vladimir Azov and Dr Charlene Marais from the Department of Chemistry organised the online meeting for the researchers from the UFS and several other local and foreign universities, all working in the field of organic chemistry.

Online material from the International Symposium on Organic Chemistry is available at here

Collaborative project between the UFS and VUB towards the development of gel-based drug release systems

The symposium also served as a long-awaited inception meeting for the collaborative project between the Organic Chemistry group at the UFS and the Organic Chemistry (ORGC) group at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB). This project is jointly funded by the National Research Foundation (NRF) and FWO (Research Foundation – Flanders); it is aimed at the development of new peptide-based materials with properties controllable by precisely tuned interactions of unnatural amino acids included in the peptide sequence. Such peptides can, for example, be used as smart materials for precisely controllable drug release. The South African team members, directed by Prof Vladimir Azov, will specialise in the development of the new amino acid building blocks, whereas the VUB team, headed by Prof Ulrich Hennecke, will focus on peptide preparation and studies on their properties.

This kick-off meeting was initially planned as a F2F event in June 2020 but was delayed due to the COVID-19 travelling restrictions and finally migrated to a virtual space. This provided an opportunity to present the project proposals and to discuss the initial results in a much broader circle than would have been possible within the common F2F meeting framework.

News Archive

Right to Learn cyclists still solid on the pedals

2017-11-29

Asive Dlanjwa, Bloemfontein Campus SRC President, on the
morning of their departure from Bloemfontein.
Photo: Nhlanhla Modzanane

It is a new day and the Right to Learn cycling team continues to make its way to Cape Town.The team arrived at their first stop in Luckhoff on day one, after cycling for 182 kilometres in five hours and five minutes. They left Luckhoff at 05:00 in the morning on day two, heading towards Britstown via De Aar and arrived at midday. On day three, the team will rest in Britstown and will continue cycling on day four, 30 November 2017, to Victoria West for 133 kilometres via Merriman.

Looking forward to another day
Asive Dlanjwa, Bloemfontein Campus SRC President, felt confident about day two despite the strong winds that they experienced along the way. “I’m feeling strong, I actually thought after day one that I’ll be feeling a bit weak, but I just don’t know how we are going to make it in this wind,” he says. Dlanjwa and his fellow cyclists cycled for 213 kilometres to Britstown, where they ended their race for day two.

Kovsies fully behind cycling team
The tour began on 27 November 2017 in Bloemfontein, when they were sent off by Prof Nicky Morgan, former Vice-Rector: Operations, Pura Mgolombane, Dean of Student Affairs, and their Kovsie peers. Prof Morgan encouraged the team to have a wonderful and enjoyable journey, acknowledging that the journey will not be an easy one. “I want you to know that you have the support of everyone here at the UFS,” he said.

Messages of support continue to pour in for the team on the UFS social media platforms. The Qwaqwa Campus SRC President, Hlalele Masopha, also sent his best wishes to his mate, saying, “I wish the President with his crew a quantity of good fortune and extremely good success.” He says, “This is for the betterment of the students and the institution.”

There have been no reports of any injuries or medical defects incurred by the cyclists nor the supporting team who are travelling with them. The team is expected to arrive in Cape Town on 4 December 2017.

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Please use the following bank details:
Bank: ABSA Bank
Account Number: 1570850721
Branch Code: 632005
Account Type: Cheque
Reference: R2L: Right to Learn
Send the proof of payment Rinda Duraan: duraanmj@ufs.ac.za

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All donations are tax deductible in terms of South African income tax legislation.

Related article:

27 November: Kovsies SRC President cycles to raise money for registration

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