The acceleration of South Africa’s energy transformation to address current economic challenges and industrialisation opportunities for the country’s economic recovery will take centre stage at the upcoming virtual Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) 7th Biennial Conference. The...
CSIR gears up to bring relevant science and technology conversations to all in its first online conference
A South African born surgeon living in the United States of America – and one of the most successful entrepreneurs in the healthcare sector, Prof. Patrick Soon-Shiong – is amongst the top speakers at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) 7th Biennial Conference taking place on...
CSIR assists women-led SMME in developing nutritious food products for underprivileged communities
The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), an entity of the Department of Science and Innovation, has been collaborating with small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) in the chemicals, agro-processing and biotechnology industry to translate research into market-ready products. ...
Bioengineering and integrated genomics
CSIR bioengineers are combining stem cell technology and genome engineering to help improve the efficacy and safety of medication for the African population. Africa retains 25% more genetic variation than the rest of the world. This remarkable diversity contributes to unique health issues associ...
Stem Cell-derived liver in a dish
Research has shown that unique African genetic variants in hepatic metabolism genes alter the efficiency of drug metabolism and, thus, drug response. For example, CYP2D6, an important enzyme from the cytochrome P450 superfamily for drug metabolism, assists in the formation of endoxifen from tamo...
African immunity models: stem cell derived macrophages
Various models have been developed to study inflammatory diseases in humans. While murine models provide a Vivo physiological response, they pose a challenge in that therapeutic effects that are observed in mouse models fail to show similar efficacy in human clinical trials. To circumvent the cha...
CSIR microbiome mapping initiative
This project is based on the investigation of human microbiome in the South African population and using this to quantify/describe the specific microbiomes present in South Africans. This project aims to create a national digital platform for the analysis of the human microbiomes present and deve...
Digital precision medicine platform
Adverse drug reactions caused by our population being prescribed ‘one-size-fits-all’ treatment regimens are costing the South African government and private medical insurers a significant amount of money, and prevent the democratisation of healthcare across the country. Using research established...
Local COVID-19 swab extraction kits to be produced at scale
South Africa is on track to manufacture its own Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) sample purification kits in large quantities within six months, creating a steady local supply that will speed up testing and reduce the country’s reliance on international suppliers amid intense global demand. Th...
An assessment of claims regarding health effects of 5G mobile telephony networks
Speculation linking 5G mobile telephony and data networks to a range of health threats, has been rife. Some claims even go to the extent of attributing the current COVID-19 pandemic to the initial rollouts of 5G networks. Unfortunately, a lot of opinions aired do not come with a high degree of cr...