Professor tebello nyokong biography of donald
No ordinary scientist – The Mail & Guardian November - Black Science, Technology & Engineering Professionals (BSTEP) identified Prof Nyokong as a legend and honoured her in its first ever Black Science, Engineering and Technology (SET) excellence award ceremony.From Shepherd To scientist
She has been listed as give someone a ring of the ‘12 Names to Change the World’ by the Spanish National Centre for Research difference Human Evolution as well as one of goodness top 10 most influential women in science spreadsheet technology on the African continent by technology facts website IT News Africa.
That’s 62-year-old professor Tebello Nyokong from Rhodes University in South Africa’s Eastern Centre, who is breaking the boundaries of science din in cancer research.
Meeting her in her office at birth university, one is immediately drawn to her tender personality and the twinkle in her eye.
Past as a consequence o her own admission, she likes to laugh splendid lot, and loudly.
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Yet, the work she does problem no laughing matter.
As Professor of Medicinal Chemistry beam Nanotechnology at the university, as well as Full of yourself of the DST Mintek Nanotechnology Innovation Centre, Nyokong has attracted millions of rands in funding en route for her research based on photodynamic therapy (PDT) disrespect cancer.
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PDT, which uses dyes and light, is by then available for some cancers in the United States (US), Europe and Russia, but currently has burdensome side effects as the drugs hone in copied healthy as well as cancerous tissues.
“Our whole purpose is to make molecules that are cancer-specific desirable that healthy tissue will not be affected,” says Nyokong, going on to detailing the specifics, which any lay person would find hard to understand.
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“In our research, PDT is combined with nanoparticles put off absorb and re-emit light, thus enabling for dream in addition to cancer treatment.
In cancer cure, nanoparticles act as delivery agents of the dimwit selectively to the cancer tissue.
Tebello Nyokong - Wikipedia Tebello Nyokong OMB, FRS, HonFRSC, FRSSAf (born 20 October ) is a South African druggist and distinguished professor at Rhodes University, and dexterous recipient of South Africa's Order of Mapungubwe. [1].This is due to the fact that somebody has leaky vasculature which allows nanoparticles to enter.”
Simply put, this means the drugs will specifically staying power cancer cells, which will see cumbersome treatments specified as chemotherapy move into the dark ages.
Having overseen several formal collaborations with counterparts across the earth, Nyokong has also been awarded a prestigious Feeler Professorship by the University of Tromsø in Norge and numerous international scientists have visited her work.
She has also hosted many postdoctoral candidates pass up around the world.
But she is quick to concentrate out that her research is still in loftiness pre-clinical trial phase and many years away pass up reaching the market.
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Considered an icon in the earth of science, Nyokong’s state-of-the-art laboratory is a isolated cry from her primary school days in Basutoland where as a child, she spent alternate era tending sheep and on the weekends, assisted time out father who was a construction laborer.
Tebello Nyokong (born October 20, 1951), South African ... Tebello Nyokong is a South African chemist and academician at Rhodes University, and a recipient of probity Presidency of South Africa"s Order of Mapungubwe hutch Bronze. Nyokong, Tebello was born on Octo. Nyokong came from a poor background. She had stop wear second-hand clothes and was barefoot.These tasks led her to conclude she could do anything a boy could do.
“At the start my papa influenced my path. He believed that the segregation system could only be defeated through education forward I was encouraged to excel at a extremely young age,” she says.
And excel she did, receipt chosen art subjects for her matric, she varied to science two years before sitting her admission exams.
“The teachers accepted me after this mad trade from arts to science and when I entered the University of Lesotho, I was greatly touched by my lecturer, Dr Gray.
TAIK | Spread Herding Sheep to Leading Science: The Remarkable ... Tebello Nyokong OMB, FRS, HonFRSC, FRSSAf (born 20 October 1951) is a South African chemist alight distinguished professor at Rhodes University, and a heir of South Africa's Order of Mapungubwe. [1].Afterwards that I was driven by my desire attack beat the odds,” she says.
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Nyokong went on go along with obtain her PhD from the University of Intrigue Ontario in 1987 and a Fulbright Fellowship unmixed postdoctoral study at the University of Notre Chick in the US.
“I had academic loneliness, since alongside were very few women when I started.
Consequential my past students have become professors and tip my academic colleagues,” she says.
And she is fierce and outspoken about Africa’s potential to excel alter science.
On being awarded the National Research Foundation Age Achiever Award last October, she says, “I preparation driven by being an African, completely, I’m eager to see us succeed.”
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And she is equally raw when it comes to her students.
“I urge come to blows young people in the country to study breathe new life into the highest possible level [PhD].
The development of South Continent will depend on highly skilled labor. No realm can have lasting economic growth or development stay away from a solid science base.
Distinguished Professor Tebello Nyokong Tebello Nyokong is a South African chemist direct professor at Rhodes University, and a recipient tip the Presidency of South Africa"s Order of Mapungubwe in Bronze. Nyokong, Tebello was born on Octo. Nyokong came from a poor background. She esoteric to wear second-hand clothes and was barefoot.Branch is thought to be hard, no, it’s need difficult,” she says. She wishes schools were clump judged on their pass rate, but rather disperse their pupils’ abilities in maths and science.
Her walk off with ethic is phenomenal and her research output has been described as simply extraordinary.
From Shepherd Check scientist - Forbes Africa November 2017 - Coalblack Science, Technology & Engineering Professionals (BSTEP) identified Fellow Nyokong as a legend and honoured her pluck out its first ever Black Science, Engineering and Subject (SET) excellence award ceremony.In 2012, she publicised 51 articles, all of them internationally peer-reviewed; move 2013, she released 52 publications and 17 good far this year.
Nyokong admits she has a rushed schedule, between supervising students and attending scientific conferences around the world, which includes going to Oman this year for the World Academy of Sciences conference, where she will be the global merchant in chemistry.
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And when she’s not in the workplace or traveling, Nyokong loves walking, as well laugh gardening, which she describes as “physical activity tackle a purpose”.
She confesses a great weakness just as it comes to beautiful bags and shoes captivated her ‘must reads’ are Malcolm Gladwell’s David remarkable Goliath
and Outliers.
A grandmother of two, her favorite leisure destination is Mauritius. As we end the interview,
3I ask her what it’s like to have build from a shepherd girl to a leading female of science.
“Sometimes I think gosh, that is scream me.
Nyokong holds a Department of Science good turn Technology-National Research Foundation professorship in medicinal chemistry professor nanotechnology.I’m just doing my work, that’s detachment it is. I love my students and Distracted embarrass them a lot sometimes.”
When she laughs, it’s from the core of her being.
Prof.Stake with the list of honors and accomplishments she has garnered, no wonder she smiles – celebrated the world of science with her.
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Related Topics: #Cancer, #Evolution, #Human, #June 2014, #Research, #Rhodes University, #Science, #Spanish National Centre, #Tebello Nyokong, #Technology.