Brain gain: an African institute of excellence

FROM LEFT TO RIGHT A thin slice
of brain from a genetically modified
mouse with different components of
the neurons visible in green and red;
Amalia Awala, a UCT postgraduate
researcher in neuroscience; UCT
neuroscientist Dr Joseph Raimondo
operating a precision microscope; a
blue-stained human pyramidal neuron,
a type of large neuron named for its
triangular cell body.
monitoring of the brain to improve
recovery from injury and development
of new surgical techniques. One
example is work done by Professor
Darlene Lubbe and her team at Groote
Schuur Hospital to access brain tumours
via the eye-socket.”
Other areas in which the Institute
hopes to build on a strong research
foundation are neuro-infection –
diseases that affect the nervous system,
such as meningitis and encephalitis –
and early brain development.
UCT Professor Kirsty Donald, deputy
director of the Neuroscience Institute,
explains that explosive population
growth in Africa could mean that by
2050 a large part of the population will
be younger than 18 years.
“This growth represents huge
potential,” says Donald, a paediatric
neurologist. “But it also means that we
must urgently understand how best to
support healthy brain development in
children, particularly those children who
live in high-risk contexts and places in
which they are exposed to infections
like HIV.
“There are few places in the world
that combine deep expertise with
“
It is not enough that
the Neuroscience Institute is
relevant to today’s challenges
in health care in Africa and
globally. It must also have
the capacity to answer
tomorrow’s questions.
insight and understanding of these
populations.
“The UCT Neuroscience Institute is
one place where this is possible, thanks
in part to the special relationship that
the university enjoys with the Red Cross
War Memorial Children’s Hospital as
a teaching facility. The Neuroscience
Institute represents an enormous
opportunity to improve people’s lives.”
Transforming neuroscience
Dr Joseph Raimondo, a UCT senior
lecturer and neuroscientist, leads the
institute’s basic neuroscience laboratory
and convenes its honours programme.
He believes that the Neuroscience
Institute represents an opportunity to
address the issue of transformation in
the field.
“There is an urgent need for
transformation in neuroscience to
ensure that researchers and academics
reflect the diversity of South Africa,
which will help us more easily prioritise
and address research problems relevant
to our context,” he says.
“The honours program in
neuroscience is really the entry point
for young South Africans interested
in a career in neuroscience research.
It’s therefore crucial that we make
resources available to encourage and
support those from under-represented
backgrounds to study neuroscience
at UCT.”
“It is not enough that the
Neuroscience Institute is relevant
to today’s challenges in health care
in Africa and globally,” concludes
Fieggen. “It must also have the capacity
to answer tomorrow’s questions.”
umthombo 11

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