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21 April 2023 | Story Andre Damons | Photo Charl Devenish
Dr Emms
Dr Ayodeji Emmanuel Ogunbayo (right), who graduated this week with a Doctor of Philosophy degree with specialisation in Medical Virology, with his proud supervisor Prof Martin Nyaga, Associate Professor in the UFS Next Generation Sequencing (UFS-NGS).

With respiratory diseases contributing to the highest morbidity and mortality rate in children, and the vast majority of disease aetiology remaining undiagnosed in clinical settings, Dr Ayodeji Emmanuel Ogunbayo hopes his research for his PhD in Medical Virology will help to reduce mortality in children with respiratory infection.

Dr Ogunbayo, commonly known as Dr Emms by his peers, graduated on Thursday (20 April 2023) with a Doctor of Philosophy degree with specialisation in Medical Virology at the University of the Free State (UFS) Faculty of Health Sciences graduation ceremony. The title of his thesis was Metagenomics of the respiratory RNA virome of children in the Free State. His supervisor was Prof Martin Nyaga, Associate Professor in the UFS Next Generation Sequencing (UFS-NGS) and Director of the WHO Collaborating Centre (WHO CC).

“While clinical metagenomics next-generation sequencing (mNGS), which is an upcoming method, has the potential to revolutionise infection diagnosis and management in children, there is a dearth of information on its clinical applicability in Africa. This is the knowledge that guided the inception of this research,” says Dr Ogunbayo.

Project came at the right time

He commenced with his PhD in Medical Virology in 2019, which was centred on the applicability of mNGS in severe acute respiratory infection (SARI) in children and deciphering the children’s respiratory virome in health and disease, a project which was the first of its kind in Africa.

According to him, the project was conceived before the COVID-19 pandemic, however, despite the challenges encountered due to lockdown measures, the project came at the right time as it was able to address several profound effects of the pandemic such as COVID-19 on the dynamics of transmission of respiratory viruses and ultimately its effect on children’s health. During his PhD study, he published four manuscripts in highly reputable journals including the most recent one which was accepted in Journal of Medical Virology (JMV)  an impressive impact factor of 20.693.

The findings from this study included a validated and robust workflow to recover respiratory RNA viruses from clinical samples, according to the graduation programme. The established workflow was adapted to decipher children’s respiratory virome composition in health and disease, with a degree of heterogeneity, while simultaneously establishing the clinical diagnostic applicability of mNGS and, more importantly, the increased utility of dual-triple mNGS analysis tools in robust detection of viral pathogens in SARI.

His hope for the research

Dr Ogunbayo says: “This research generated vast pioneering information and data in Africa that could guide and influence policy in the adoption of clinical metagenomics, especially in cases where conventional methods of diagnosis yielded no results. Hopefully, this could lessen mortality due to respiratory infection in children.

Before studying in the field of medical Microbiology and Virology, he wanted to be a psychiatric nurse, but instead chose his current field of study because of his interest in the microbial world and pathology.

“It’s a feeling one cannot really put into words. A part of me feels like it is a ‘dream come true’ and another part of me feels like ‘this is a milestone achieved, but it’s just a stepping stone to further milestones to be achieved’.

“What is next is for me to dive into the world of policy-influencing research, give back to the academic community through student supervision, and work on my journey to becoming an emerging researcher. This is the reason I have taken a postdoctoral position at the UFS-NGS Unit under the mentorship of Prof Martin Nyaga.”

Prof Nyaga says: “Looking back at Emmanuel’s doctoral journey, it brought out the best in him in every aspect of the study. Longitudinal studies are hectic in the sampling phase, and all the ethical clearances that a study must achieve prior to beginning the sampling and the laboratory work can be very frustrating. Soon after his study was approved, the pandemic lockdown level 5 rules were applied, which meant he had to pause on the study. However, his focus, positive mindset and his ability to work in close consultation with his supervisor enabled him to finish this study in the best way possible. I am very proud of him.”

News Archive

UFS research project aims to stimulate reflection on theological studies
2017-06-20

Description: Book, Theology and post Apartheid condition Tags: Book, Theology and post Apartheid condition

The first book in the ‘UFS Theological
Exploration’ academic series, called Theology
and the Post(Apartheid) Condition, has just
been released.
Photo: Supplied

 

The first study book with the title Theology and the Post(Apartheid) Condition, which is part of a new academic series by the Faculty of Theology and Religion at the University of the Free State, is now available. Volume 1, compiled by Professor Rian Venter as editor, is the first book in the ‘UFS Theological Exploration’ academic series, which the faculty plans to release.

Transformation
Professor Venter says the transformation of processes and practices in communicating and creating knowledge has become an urgent task for public universities in a democratic South Africa. Much reflection has already gone into the methods and scope of transformation in higher education.

Although the faculty has done work on the implications of this for theology, there is one area of investigation that has not received much attention. It concerns the role of theological disciplines such as Old and New Testament, Missiology and Systematic Theology and Practical Theology, and specifically the relationship between academic disciplines and societal growth. The book focuses on these challenges and contains the intellectual undertakings of the contributors who are all lecturers, research fellows and post-graduate students linked to the faculty.

The questions
The key questions addressed are: what are the contours of the (post)apartheid condition and what are the implications for responsible discipline practices in theology. Professor Venter says the chapters in the book are logically arranged and moves from wider to more specific concerns. The first three chapters suggest broad perspectives on the challenges for theology in higher education, chart the changes, and make some suggestions for the future.

A dynamic field of study
The book states that theology has already experienced profound and radical changes over the past decade, which is known to us. All the chapters demonstrate these fundamental shifts, which have taken place in all theological sub-disciplines. Professor Venter says the contributions in the book illustrate that theology is a dynamic field of study, and is pursued with enthusiasm and commitment. Not all disciplines in theology are investigated for the book. However, the studies reflect the interests of the theologians in the Faculty of Theology at the UFS. Professor Venter hopes that the volume might stimulate further reflection of a similar nature by other theologians.

New insights
Through the ‘UFS Theological Exploration’ research series, the faculty hopes to stimulate new insights and new developments in academic progress and overall human growth. Series editor Professor Francois Tolmie says it is a fact that strong university research is necessary to achieve academic progress and advance human prospering. He says the faculty's research series will make a valuable contribution to these causes. Professor Tolmie says the ‘UFS Theological Explorations’ contains research of the highest academic standard which has been peer-reviewed to make significant educational contributions to core theological issues in South Africa and overseas.

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