Cape Town - Stellenbosch University’s (SU) recently inaugurated Biomedical Research Institute (BMRI) is not only capacitating young researchers and scientists in South Africa and Africa, but also providing access to world-class facilities and experts in the various fields.
After having recently completed the final touches to the BMRI, the facility commenced its week-long launch with a media briefing on Friday.
Research and Internationalisation Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS) vice-dean Professor Nico Gey van Pittius said the R1.2 billion state-of-the-art facility, situated at SU’s FMHS on its Tygerberg Campus, was a 10-year dream that had come to fruition, “on time and on budget”.
Biomedical research refers to the basic understanding of diseases, as well as trying to find solutions in the form of diagnostics and treatments.
“We bear the brunt of the global burden of disease, but as a top Medicine and Health Sciences faculty on this continent, we do have a very unique role to play in providing the solutions, through diagnostics, drugs and treatments, for all of these illnesses that our populations face,” he said.
“And this facility is absolutely geared for us to be at the forefront of this field of science.” The funding had come primarily through the SU Council, the FMHS, and the Department of Higher Education and Training.
Centre for Epidemic Response and Innovation (CERI) director Professor Tulio de Oliveira said CERI, based at the facility, was one of only two specialised genomics facilities on the African continent, with the other in Nigeria.
On the BMRI, he said this was one of the biggest investments in scientific research in South Africa, and the largest genomics facility in Africa.
The building received a 4-star rating from the Green Building Council of South Africa. Its open-plan design was made to facilitate dialogue and active collaboration between staff and students, regardless of their positions or field of study/discipline.
Said Jasmine Andrews, Master’s student in medical physiology: “It’s really amazing, I feel super-privileged to have all these resources at our disposal.”
BMRI holds the largest Biosafety level 3 (BSL-3) laboratory in Africa. BSL-3 labs are used to study highly infectious and potentially lethal agents and toxins.
The Sunskill Laboratory contains advanced medical technology, worth R129 million, allowing medical professionals to mimic what they would do in surgery, and with the equipment making it possible to perform surgery inside the laboratory.
The department has a robust body donation programme to assist with the training of postgraduate students.
The Medical Morphological Learning Centre, opened in 1979, displays 92 specimens of the human body in the exhibition space for researchers, SU students and Grade 11 and 12 Life Sciences.
The BMRI houses the largest-in-Africa and first-in-southern Africa fully automated bio-repository, with the capacity to store 3.5 million clinical samples and the possibility to expand the store by a further five million.