Regional Webinar: Fair, equitable and timely allocation of Covid-19 vaccines in Africa
As the African continent is fast-tracking strategies and plans to roll out immunisation programs, there is a need to engage in continuous public deliberations with healthcare professionals, citizens, civil society organisations, community leaders, the media, policy makers, public health experts, and researchers.
Join a webinar on a Fair, Equitable and Timely Allocation of Covid-19 Vaccines in Africa.
Date and Time:
Wednesday, 14 April 2021
13h00 – 16h00 PM East Africa Time
12h00 – 15h00 PM Central Africa Time
Register in advance for the webinar:
https://unesco-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_mFgVhzRJQiWMU9c86bhUrQ
CONTACT FOR INQUIRIES
Safia Mahomed (South Africa National Bioethics Committee): mahoms1@unisa.ac.za
Phinith Chanthalangsy (UNESCO): p.chanthalangsy@unesco.org
WEBINAR: Pharmacovigilance and clinical trials oversight in sub-Saharan Africa in the era of COVID-19, 12 May 2021
The University of the Western Cape, South Africa and SPaRCS partners invite all interested to this interactive webinar which seeks to sensitise a broader health systems and public health audience to pharmacoviligance (PV) and clinical trials oversight of medicines and vaccines. We will also be sharing information about the SPaRCS project and commence conversations for networking & collaboration within sub-Saharan African countries.
Keynote speaker: Dr Helen Ndagije (Director: Product Safety, National Drug Authority, Uganda)
*SPaRCS aims to strengthen pharmacovigilance (PV) systems and clinical trials oversight of National Regulatory Authorities (NRAs) in Namibia, South Africa, Eswatini and Zimbabwe.
Date and Time: Wednesday, 12 May 2021, 14:00-15:30 South African Standard Time
Registration: https://uwc.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJMuc--hpj8sHdUCzMsh5fy_LZ6fKFw_DKg7
Further information: tpetersen@uwc.ac.za, Tamlin Petersen, School of Public Health, UWC
New ELASA (Aptamer-Based ELISA) for Ebola
Base Pair has been collaborating with Dr. Misaki Wayengera of Makerere (TMA2015CDF1545) University in Uganda to explore aptamers for the development of simpler, more sensitive assays for the diagnosis of Ebolavirus.
Ebolavirus is a filovirus that causes severe hemorrhagic fever with a high rate of mortality. Believed to originate with the fruit bat, the virus can be transferred from infected animals and insects and also through the transfer of blood, mucus, or interaction with infected materials. On August 1, 2018, the Ministry of Health of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in Africa declared a new outbreak of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in the North Kivu Province. As of June 9, 2019, there have been 1,968 confirmed cases and 1,296 confirmed deaths. An experimental vaccine is being administered and a clinical trial for a new therapeutic is underway.
GP1 glycoprotein appears as spikes on the surface of the Ebolavirus virion. The glycoprotein is a heterodimer consisting of a GP1 and GP2 subunit. The glycoprotein forms a trimer consisting of three heterodimers on the virion surface. The GP1 subunit is involved in attachment to host cells and includes a receptor-binding domain. The smaller GP2 subunit includes a fusion peptide, a transmembrane domain and a short cytoplasmic tail. Glycoprotein residues involved in host entry are highly conserved between Zaire, Sudan, Cote d’Ivoire and Reston species of Ebolavirus.
https://www.basepairbio.com/elasa-aptamer-based-elisa/
UKCDR WEBINAR: Equitable Partnerships for Global Research, 10 June 2021
UKCDR will be co-hosting a webinar on the 10th of June on Equitable Partnerships, in partnership with the Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU) and the Research Fairness Initiative: Equitable partnerships for global research webinar │ACU.
To register visit https://www.acu.ac.uk/acu-events/equitable-partnerships-for-global-research-webinar/
The event includes speakers from a range of locations, and UKCDR’s Executive Director, Marta Tufet, will be presenting on the importance of equitable research partnerships, as well as highlighting the recently launched resource hub and equitable partnerships project.