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23 November 2022
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Story André Damons
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Prof Motlalepula Matsabisa, Professor and Director of Pharmacology, will play host to the various stakeholders to network and share knowledge on current developments in indigenous knowledge research and product development, biodiversity, innovation, and commercialisation of the IK-based research products. The Indigenous Knowledge System (IKS) for Health unit in the Department of Pharmacology within the UFS Faculty of Health Sciences was last year awarded an annual Technology Innovation Agency Platform (TIA) grant of R17 million for the next five years.
The research and teaching programme in the School of Clinical Medicine has since been rebranded and is now known as the African Medicines Innovation and Technology Development Platform (AMITD), which will strive to respond to community health needs and address industry research needs and challenges.
The indaba will showcase progress made by TIA and other entities in enriching the development and commercialisation of IK-based innovations. It will take place from 24 to 25 November 2022 in the Equitas Senate Hall at the UFS.
Prof Matsabisa is the chairperson of the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) Regional Expert Advisory Committee on Traditional Medicines for COVID-19. He is also a visiting professor at the Beijing University of Chinese Medicine (BUCM) in Beijing, China, and the Deputy President of the South African Society for Basic and Clinical Pharmacology.
UFS gets equipment worth R3,9 million to do doping tests for the World Cup
2010-05-18
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One of the new state-of-the-art machines to be used for dope testing.
Photo: Mangaliso Radebe |
The South African Doping Control Laboratory (SADoCoL) at the University of the Free State (UFS) in Bloemfontein boasts new state-of-the-art equipment worth R3,9 million with which doping tests for next month’s 2010 FIFA World Cup will be done.
“Our new instruments are some of the best in the world,” said a proud Dr Pieter van der Merwe, Head of the laboratory.
SADoCoL, housed in the Department of Pharmacology at the UFS, has done doping analyses for many international sport events in South Africa and elsewhere in the world, including the 1995 Rugby World Cup and the Sevens Rugby World Cup in Dubai.
“Because of our international recognition and accreditation by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) the laboratory was selected to be the official doping control facility of the 2010 FIFA World Cup,” he said.
“FIFA has entered into a contract with us and they will send all the urine and blood samples for the World Cup to this laboratory. I must hasten to say that it is not only for the World Cup. We will continue with the work that we have been doing all these years regarding doping analysis in South Africa.”
“It is an honour for the Department and the UFS to offer a world-class service to a world-class association like FIFA and to be associated with a tournament of this magnitude.”
Being the only one of its kind in South Africa, and one of only two in Africa (the other being in Tunisia), it is not surprising that FIFA has entered into this partnership with SADoCoL.
“It is a well-known fact that we have been, and still are, the official doping control testing facility in South Africa for many years now. So there is also a lot of African involvement in our laboratory where African countries send samples to us for analysis,” he said.
It is not for the first time, though, that SADoCoL is involved with FIFA. The laboratory did all the testing for the Confederations Cup that was held in South Africa in June 2009.
It had just been extended to accommodate the new equipment. An official viewing session of the new facility was held last week.
Media Release
Issued by: Mangaliso Radebe
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2828
Cell: 078 460 3320
E-mail: radebemt@ufs.ac.za
18 May 2010