1KSA Project Launch

The vision behind 1KSA, or "1000 Genomes South Africa," is an ambitious initiative to sequence the genomes of 1,000 unique animals, plants, and fungi found within the country's borders.

By sequencing 1000 genomes, 1KSA is building an invaluable resource for research, conservation, and cultural understanding of indigenous species. This isn't just about collecting data; it's about empowering local researchers and students. Through 1KSA, they gain access to cutting-edge facilities and training opportunities, fostering a new generation of scientific leaders in South Africa.

Explore 1KSA Stories

Spekboom Diaries

DIPLOMICS spoke with Shannon Derman, one of the lead researchers from CenGen, about their most recent and exciting research project - sequencing the Spekboom Genome.

Plant Genome Symposium 2023

In February 2023, FABI and the University of Pretoria hosted this inspiring symposium, bringing together experts around South Africa and abroad, to discuss the rich biodiversity that our country has to offer.

Much of this resource remians untapped and provides an exciting opportunity for future collaboration and research. DIPLOMICS was proud to help sponsor this event and help enable this productive gathering of passionate scientists.

ONT Train the Trainer Workshop

One of the highlights of last month was our "Train the Trainer" workshop, hosted in collaboration with Oxford Nanopore Technologies. This training was provided to some of our key partner lab and power NGS users.

The objective of the training is to enable our key users to become trainers themselves and to take this capacity building ability back to their own labs and institutions. With the help of partners like ONT, DIPLOMICS is gearing up to be more involved in the genome sequencing space here in South Africa. Watch this space for similar opportunities to follow.

IMBM Sea Sponge Sample Collection

As part of an on going project looking into the unique bioactive compounds of marine inverterbrates, DIPLOMICS accompanied the IMBM team to Kalk Bay in Cape Town, where they spent the morning collecting samples. The huge chemical diversity in the bacteria found here holds many anti-cancer, anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory benefits.

Sequencing Nguni sheep

The DNA Sequencing Unit at Stellenbosch University's CAF completed their first MinION run, assisting PhD student, Nxumalo Nkosinathi, with his research on the Nguni Sheep breed. The genome sequence generated is the first of its kind for this indigenous South African sheep breed and will help in comparative analysis against other breeds from around the world.

Cederberg Projects

The Cederdiv project has been ongoing since 2002, investigating the diversity of arthropods along an altitudinal gradient in the Cederberg Wilderness Area, South Africa. The combination of traditional taxonomy and DNA barcoding of specimens will contribute to the understanding of how global change is impacting arthropods in this region.

DIPLOMICS hosted a workshop for the Soil Ecology and Entomology Research Group from the University of Cape Town on the DNA extraction of arthropods.