(Press-News.org) Since its inception in 2021, the African BioGenome Project (AfricaBP), has made significant gains towards its ambitious goal of sequencing 100,000 endemic African species within the next 10 years. Recently, AfricaBP reported the successful implementation of the Open Institute in the journal Nature Biotechnology (https://rdcu.be/dlXYT), a pioneering biodiversity genomics and bioinformatics knowledge exchange programme.
The AfricaBP Open Institute’s framework will establish openly accessible workshops across Africa, crafted in close collaborations with local African Institutions. The primary objective of the Open Institute is to, amongst others, develop biodiversity genomics and bioinformatics curricula and foster grassroots knowledge exchange that revolves around the requirements of African scientists.
Since 2022, the Open Institute has hosted widely-attended workshops in partnership with African institutions and organizations and global partners such as the University of Port Harcourt (Nigeria), Inqaba Biotechnical Industries (South Africa), and the Vertebrate Genome Project (United States) respectively. Over 700 registered participants from 29 countries learned about the cutting-edge technologies shaping the biodiversity and genomics field. The event provided insights into various aspects of genomics and bioinformatics, including understanding current global genomic databases, tools, and resources.
“The high number of applications we are receiving for each workshop shows that there is a need and a hunger for training in bioinformatics and genomics in Africa. The Open Institute seeks to address this by making the workshops and training accessible at almost no cost to the participants”, said Prof. Anne W. T. Muigai, Chair, African BioGenome Project, and Professor at the National Defence University-Kenya, Kenya.
“The African BioGenome Project Open Institute for Genomics and Bioinformatics, a capacity building and knowledge transfer platform is equipping scientists, students and local institutions in Africa with the needed skills and capacity to drive sustainable bioinformatics, data science, genomics research and development. This is our contribution to closing the critical human, infrastructural and technical skills gaps that continue to limit opportunities to leverage innovations in science and technology in Africa”, said Prof. Appolinaire Djikeng, Senior Director, Livestock-Based Systems, CGIAR, Director General, International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), and Co-Founder of AfricaBP.
The Open Institute of AfricaBP aims to lower some of the barriers that prevent the advancement of biodiversity genomics and bioinformatics knowledge exchange across Africa by focusing on five key priority areas:
Curriculum development
Technology development and infrastructure
Promoting grassroot knowledge exchange and equitable partnerships
Maximizing data ownership and sovereignty
Scientific enterprise and industry
Looking to the future of the Open Institute, AfricaBP will broaden outreach to increase representation of participants from across the continent, especially in areas that currently have minimal genomic activity. Attendees of the 2022 events expressed satisfaction with material and content delivery, and had interest in participating in future and upcoming workshops. There are currently five more workshops planned by the end of 2023, including two online and three hybrid workshops.
“One of the major significance of the AfricaBP Open Institute for Genomics and Bioinformatics is its timeliness at a moment when the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement is already in effect. Through such a knowledge exchange platform, there is an economic case and justification for organizations, African national science agencies, local and international partners, to support this effort which keeps Africa on the right track for a federated genomic and bioinformatics infrastructure that will contribute to Africa’s bioeconomy”, said Dr. ThankGod Echezona Ebenezer, Founder & Co-Chair, African BioGenome Project, and a Bioinformatician at the University of Cambridge School of Clinical Medicine, UK.
“As the SFA Foundation, we are laser focused on improving the quantity, quality and productivity of science in Africa, which requires a skilled scientific workforce through the development of globally competitive science leaders in Africa. The Open Institute serves our objective of training future generations of scientists who will generate data to inform policy and Africa’s development agenda”, said Prof. Tom Kariuki, Chief Executive Officer, Science for Africa Foundation, Kenya
Over the next 10 years, if the framework and guidance of the AfricaBP Open Institute are successfully implemented, it is estimated that the Open Institute will train at least 200,000 African scientists in genomics and bioinformatics. This will close the infrastructural and technical capacity gap that exists in the biodiversity and genomics space, and build a critical mass of researchers across Africa, moving forward the mission and vision of the African BioGenome Project.
The AfricaBP is an affiliation project partner to the Earth BioGenome Project and the Vertebrate Genomes Project.
Related links:
Africa: sequence 100,000 species to safeguard biodiversity
The Next Frontier for African Genomics – Safeguarding African Biodiversity
Partnership to safeguard African biodiversity through genomics
Fatu Badiane Markey, Ph.D.
Chair, Communication and Public Affairs Subcommittee
African BioGenome Project
Samuel Eziuzor
Co-Chair, Communication and Public Affairs Sub-committee
African BioGenome Project
Chukwuike Ebuzome
Co-Chair, Communication and Public Affairs Sub-committee
African BioGenome Project
END
Accelerating knowledge exchange in biodiversity genomics and bioinformatics
Since its inception in 2021, the African BioGenome Project (AfricaBP), has made significant gains towards its ambitious goal of sequencing 100,000 endemic African species within the next 10 years
2023-09-12
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Call: "Journalist in Residence“ program at Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA)
2023-09-12
The Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) is offering science journalists the opportunity for a paid three-month "Journalist in Residence“ program starting in April 2024. Applications are open until Oct. 31, 2023.
The Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) in Klosterneuburg – in the immediate vicinity of Vienna – is a Ph.D.-granting research institute. Opened in 2009, the Institute is dedicated to basic research in the natural sciences, mathematics and computer sciences. It has a total of 1000 employees and 75 different research ...
COVID-19 can trigger auto-immune disorders-related antibodies, causing thrombosis and other complications
2023-09-12
An article published in NPJ Aging, a Springer Nature journal, reveals that natural production of auto-antibodies increases with age and that infection by SARS-CoV-2 can exacerbate production of auto-antibodies relating to auto-immune diseases, helping to explain why aging increases the chances of developing severe COVID-19. The study also discovered some of the factors that associate the severe form of the disease with blood clotting disorders such as thrombosis.
“These findings open the door to a better ...
Alzheimer’s: An M.D./Ph.D. graduate student’s request for Yuhua Song as mentor leads to two NIH R01 awards totaling $5 million
2023-09-12
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – In the summer of 2018, graduate student Hunter Dean from the Medical Scientist Training Program came to Yuhua Song, Ph.D., with a research idea. He wanted to pursue his doctoral research at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in Alzheimer’s disease — under the joint mentorship of Song, who had never worked in Alzheimer’s, and Erik Roberson, M.D., Ph.D., an Alzheimer’s expert in the UAB Department of Neurology and the Center for Neurodegeneration and Experimental Therapeutics, or CNET.
That collaboration brought Song, a professor in the UAB Department of ...
Recommendations for addressing health-related social needs in cancer care introduced at NCCN Policy Summit
2023-09-12
Today, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®)—an alliance of leading cancer centers—presented new recommendations for screening and addressing health-related social needs (HRSN) in people with cancer during a policy summit in Washington, D.C. The event included a keynote address from Ellen Lukens, Deputy Administrator and Director, The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI), and other speakers representing a diverse group of patient advocates, providers, and policymakers.
The new recommendations for measuring and addressing HRSNs were ...
West Health-Gallup Poll: 70% of Americans uncomfortable with prospect of being admitted to nursing home
2023-09-12
WASHINGTON, D.C. — September 12, 2023 — More than 40% of Americans say nursing homes are unsafe and 7 in 10 say they would be uncomfortable ever having to be admitted to one even if they needed such care, while more than six in 10 (61%) feel similarly anxious about the prospect of admitting family members, according to the latest survey from West Health and Gallup.
Safety was a particular area of perceived concern; 41% of respondents say nursing homes are not safe, 26% say they are, and about a third say they don’t know. Notably, the survey found that people over 35 were much ...
UTHealth Houston researcher to present abstract detailing new mouse model for brain arteriovenous malformations at NIH meeting
2023-09-12
An abstract unveiling a new mouse model for brain arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) developed by UTHealth Houston researchers has been selected for a poster presentation at the second annual National Institutes of Health (NIH) Investigator Meeting for Interoception Research in November.
Eunsu Park, PhD, assistant professor in the Vivian L. Smith Department of Neurosurgery with McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston, will present the abstract at the meeting, hosted by the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) at the NIH campus in Bethesda, Maryland, on Nov. ...
Combination of stressors key to testing perovskite solar cells
2023-09-12
Perovskite solar cells should be subjected to a combination of stress tests simultaneously to best predict how they will function outdoors, according to researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).
Solar cells must endure a set of harsh conditions—often with variable combinations of changing stress factors—to judge their stability, but most researchers conduct these tests indoors with a few fixed stressing conditions. While these tests provide some necessary insight, understanding which stressor applied during indoor tests provided predictive correlations ...
Communicating stability, strong connections to stakeholders versus shareholders are priorities in Chinese financial reporting, Rotman research finds
2023-09-12
September 12, 2023 Toronto - It’s commonly accepted that U.S. and Chinese companies treat financial reporting and disclosure differently.
New research not only confirms that but digs into the motivations behind the distinction, using surveys with more than 200 Chinese executives who hold reporting responsibility. An overriding interest in communicating long-term stability and inspiring confidence in the company’s prospects among a diverse range of stakeholders, and not primarily shareholders, as in the U.S., was a signature driver for the Chinese business leaders.
“Acknowledging differences in approaches and incentives ...
Morris Animal Foundation funds 6 new studies to advance canine cancer research
2023-09-12
DENVER/Sept. 12, 2023 – Recent findings from the Golden Retriever Lifetime Study confirm the enormous impact of hemangiosarcoma on golden retrievers. To address critical gaps in disease detection and treatment, Morris Animal Foundation announced it is funding six studies focused on this deadly form of canine cancer.
“We are committed to providing resources to the top research teams in the world that can advance our understanding of hemangiosarcoma," said Dr. Kathy Tietje, Chief Program Officer at Morris Animal Foundation. "These innovative research ...
ReMDO grants support commercialization of regenerative medicine therapies
2023-09-12
WINSTON-SALEM, NC, September 12, 2023 - When the RegenMed Development Organization (ReMDO) offered its grant opportunity related to regenerative medicine manufacturing and commercialization, the result exceeded expectations.
The Regenerative Medicine Manufacturing grant call encouraged small, medium, and large companies to submit letters of interest with an accompanying white paper that addressed a gap in technical capabilities for one or more of the following topic areas: Cell and Biomaterial Manufacturing, Standards and Quality Control, Additive Manufacturing and Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Automation.
The grant opportunity will ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
Twelve questions to ask your doctor for better brain health in the new year
Microelectronics Science Research Centers to lead charge on next-generation designs and prototypes
Study identifies genetic cause for yellow nail syndrome
New drug to prevent migraine may start working right away
Good news for people with MS: COVID-19 infection not tied to worsening symptoms
Department of Energy announces $179 million for Microelectronics Science Research Centers
Human-related activities continue to threaten global climate and productivity
Public shows greater acceptance of RSV vaccine as vaccine hesitancy appears to have plateaued
Unraveling the power and influence of language
Gene editing tool reduces Alzheimer’s plaque precursor in mice
TNF inhibitors prevent complications in kids with Crohn's disease, recommended as first-line therapies
Twisted Edison: Bright, elliptically polarized incandescent light
Structural cell protein also directly regulates gene transcription
Breaking boundaries: Researchers isolate quantum coherence in classical light systems
Brain map clarifies neuronal connectivity behind motor function
Researchers find compromised indoor air in homes following Marshall Fire
Months after Colorado's Marshall Fire, residents of surviving homes reported health symptoms, poor air quality
Identification of chemical constituents and blood-absorbed components of Shenqi Fuzheng extract based on UPLC-triple-TOF/MS technology
'Glass fences' hinder Japanese female faculty in international research, study finds
Vector winds forecast by numerical weather prediction models still in need of optimization
New research identifies key cellular mechanism driving Alzheimer’s disease
Trends in buprenorphine dispensing among adolescents and young adults in the US
Emergency department physicians vary widely in their likelihood of hospitalizing a patient, even within the same facility
Firearm and motor vehicle pediatric deaths— intersections of age, sex, race, and ethnicity
Association of state cannabis legalization with cannabis use disorder and cannabis poisoning
Gestational hypertension, preeclampsia, and eclampsia and future neurological disorders
Adoption of “hospital-at-home” programs remains concentrated among larger, urban, not-for-profit and academic hospitals
Unlocking the mysteries of the human gut
High-quality nanodiamonds for bioimaging and quantum sensing applications
New clinical practice guideline on the process for diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease or a related form of cognitive impairment or dementia
[Press-News.org] Accelerating knowledge exchange in biodiversity genomics and bioinformaticsSince its inception in 2021, the African BioGenome Project (AfricaBP), has made significant gains towards its ambitious goal of sequencing 100,000 endemic African species within the next 10 years