Page 141 - SAMRC AnnualReport 2025-26

P E R FOR M A NC E I N FOR M A T I ON

neurodegenerative disorders and the limited The Unit successfully graduated postgraduate
availability of effective treatments. Positive findings students, comprising PhD and MSc graduates from
from this work may support the future development Tshwane University of Technology and North West
of plant-based therapies for neurological diseases. University, contributing to advanced expertise in
Related studies examined the effects of light, pharmaceutical sciences and pharmaceutics. It
salt, and osmotic stress on plant growth and also maintained a robust research training pipeline,
mesembrine-type alkaloid production in vitro, including postdoctoral fellows, doctoral students, and
contributing to the optimisation of cultivation master’s students. Female trainees represented more
conditions for improved yields of valuable bioactive than 70% of the cohort, reflecting the Unit’s strong
compounds. commitment to gender equity and the empowerment
of women in science.
The Unit also investigated the interactive
efficacy of limonene enantiomers, generating Staff development and transformation were further
new insights into how natural compound strengthened through the inclusion of new core
stereochemistry influences biological activity. This members, namely Dr Carmen Leonard, Dr Tsholofelo
work has potential applications in pharmaceutical Mapeka, and Ms Christel Hanson, contributing to a
development and in the innovation of essential oil more diverse and inclusive research environment.
products. Additional research isolated catechin, Mentorship and research support continue to be
taxifolin, and proanthocyanidin derivatives from provided to strengthen career development and
Entada elephantina rhizomes and assessed their scientific productivity.
antimicrobial activity, supporting the search for
novel anti-infective agents. Targeted training initiatives further enhanced technical
and interdisciplinary capacity. An Introduction
Phytochemical profiling and chemotypic variation to Cheminformatics in Drug Discovery course
studies of Lobostemon fruticosus, various equipped postgraduate students and postdoctoral
Oncosiphon species, and Bulbine species fellows with practical skills in protein modelling,
addressed the challenge of inconsistent plant molecular docking, and predictive pharmacokinetics,
chemistry resulting from geographic, genetic, enabling them to integrate computational and
and interspecies variation. These studies are experimental approaches in drug discovery research.
particularly important where multiple plant species
are traditionally used interchangeably for similar The Unit also hosted a Computational Metabolomics
medicinal applications, as they support accurate Workshop for postgraduate students and natural
species identification, prevent inappropriate product scientists from several South African
substitution, and contribute to the establishment universities, as well as an industry partner. The
of quality standards for reproducible therapeutic workshop provided practical training in molecular
products. networking using the GNPS ecosystem and in silico
annotation tools such as SIRIUS, strengthening
Collectively, these projects advance evidence- participants’ ability to analyse and interpret complex
based herbal medicine, natural product innovation, LC–MS datasets.
and public health protection.
Overall, these initiatives enhanced technical
Building Capacity Through competence, research efficiency, and interdisciplinary
Training, Mentorship, and Support expertise, while promoting transformation, equity,
and the development of a highly skilled scientific
The Unit implemented several capacity-building workforce in herbal drug discovery and natural
initiatives to strengthen research skills, promote products research.
transformation, and advance equity in health research.
A major focus was on postgraduate training and
mentorship to develop a skilled, inclusive scientific
workforce.

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