A new biocontrol agent for the eucalypt gall wasp, Leptocybe invasa
The end of October saw the first intentional introductions of the parasitoid wasp Quadrastichus mendeli.
9 Nov 2020
6 Nov 2020
FABI scientists present their research at prestigious international plant synthetic biology conference
While a pandemic has brought world travel to a near halt, the international scientific community has shown remarkable resilience in our ability to connect with one another virtually and share research updates at international conferences.
6 Nov 2020
Industry experts unpack the intricacies of maize production in South Africa at MCET lecture
FABI postdoctoral Fellow Dr Godfrey Kgatle chaired a national maize cultivar evaluation trial (MCET) lecture on 3 November. SANSOR and Grain SA are key players in the trials and their relationship with FABI as well as with partners in academia, government and the grain industry culminated in the launch of the Grain Research Programme in August. FABIans have, since 2019, helped to sort and pack seeds for the national maize cultivar evaluation trials.
2 Nov 2020
Arthropod genomics and their applications on plant health explored in the sixth installment of the FABI International Seminar Series
Renowned insect genomics expert Professor Robert Waterhouse presented the sixth lecture in the FABI International Seminar Series on 29 October.
28 Oct 2020
TPCP team members visit the southern Cape
When you think of the southern Cape, you think of the Tsitsikamma: long beaches and the rolling mountains that follow the N2 freeway. In addition to collecting these important logs team members, Prof.
26 Oct 2020
TPCP team members visit plantations on the KZN coast
Some of the most impressive, and in fact some of the earliest, clonal eucalypt plantations can be found on the KwaZulu-Natal Coast of South Africa.
21 Oct 2020
The Hans Merensky Chair in Avocado Research hosts its annual student presentation day
The Avocado Research Programme (ARP) in FABI hosted its annual Student Presentation Day on 15 October.
20 Oct 2020
National monitoring of Eucalyptus pests and their biological control agents
During the week of 5-9 October the members of the Tree Protection Co-operative (TPCP) in FABI conducted the first national monitoring field trip for this year. The survey of these pests, during two seasons per year, aims to evaluate parasitism levels over time, between different Eucalyptus hosts and between different Eucalyptus growing regions of South Africa. The monitoring trips will continue into December, and include Limpopo, central Mpumalanga and lowveld, southern KZN and midlands, and the Eastern Cape.
19 Oct 2020
Inspection of trees dying in the Hennops river valley
Relatively regular reports of trees dying in various parts of Gauteng have emerged during the course of the past five years. One of the areas where trees have been reported dying is in the Hennops river valley, where especially white stinkwood (Celtis africana) and karee (Searsia lancea) are most seriously affected.
15 Oct 2020
Prof. Wilhelm de Beer receives the SAIF Distinguished Forestry Award
Congratulations to Prof. Wilhelm de Beer who was awarded this year’s Distinguished Forestry Award by the Southern African Institute of Forestry (SAIF).
14 Oct 2020
Harvesting Phytophthora pathogenicity trials in the KZN midlands
During the week of 5 October and three months after these inoculations, Tanay, along with FABIans Josephine Queffelec and Matthew Jackson, harvested this trial with the assistance of Sappi's scientific and non-scientific staff members.
13 Oct 2020
NSTF video interview with Mike Wingfield
A video interview with FABI founding Director, Professor Mike Wingfield has been published online on the YouTube channel of the National Science and Technology Forum (NSTF). Click here to watch the full video
8 Oct 2020
Fifth FABI International Seminar explores disease resistance against necrotrophic fungal pathogens
The fifth presentation in FABI’s popular International Seminar Series was by Prof. Katherine also spoke about the Global Burden of Crop Loss, an initiative she is participating in that is modelled after the Global Burden of Disease initiative in human health, which has transformed health policy research, over the last 25 years through better use of data. Click here to view the Global Burden of Crop Loss presentation.
5 Oct 2020
FABI celebrates the achievements of its Spring graduates
Congratulations to 20 graduates affiliated with FABI whose degrees were conferred at the University of Pretoria’s virtual Spring Graduation Ceremony on 29 September.
30 Sep 2020
National Maize Cultivar Evaluation Trials seed packing at FABI
A team of students and interns from theTPCP and CPHB in FABI, took on the mammoth task of packaging a large number maize seed cultivars.
30 Sep 2020
UP Vice-Chancellor visits York Timbers with FABI colleagues
During the week of 21 September, University of Pretoria (UP) Vice Chancellor and Principal, Prof. Tawana Kupe visited York Timbers in Sabie, accompanied by Prof. Bernard Slippers, Prof. Mike Wingfield (FABI) and Prof. Wynand Steyn (UP Department of Civil Engineering).
30 Sep 2020
FABIans’ living heritage comes to life in “Picking the Fruit of the Heritage Tree”
From the mystical to the culinary, FABIans went on a sensory trip down memory lane and around the world in celebration of their living heritage as South Africa marked National Heritage Day on 24 September.
28 Sep 2020
New publication explores genetic diversity hidden within natural populations of Eucalyptus grandis
In the study recently published in Molecular Ecology by Mostert-O’Neill et al., the population structure and patterns of genetic differentiation of E. grandis was determined in terms of neutral and adaptive genetic diversity in 596 individuals sampled from 32 provenances covering the natural species range.
23 Sep 2020
NSTF Award video interview
A film team visited FABI on 16 September to record an interview with Prof.
21 Sep 2020
FABI students and postdocs engage on lab etiquette
FABI labs are buzzing again with activity, albeit within strict schedules to manage the number of people in the building and to adhere to safety regulations during the COVID-19 lockdown.
17 Sep 2020
A different way of communicating our research
Early in 2020, Dr Andi Wilson and her PhD supervisors published a paper in the journal Fungal Genetics and Biology that detailed the knockout of a novel mating gene in Huntiella omanensis using the CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing system. The video represents a new way of communicating research - particularly novel techniques and protocols that are not always fully described in research papers. Excitingly, the video produced for this project is the first JoVE video to have been shot in Africa.
17 Sep 2020
FABI presents at the SAMAC Webinar
On 3 September, Dr Gerda Fourie, research leader of the Macadamia Protection Programme (MPP) and Prof. Zander Myburg, research leader of the Forest Molecular Genetics (FMG) Programme participated in a live webinar.
15 Sep 2020
Agreement to fund the York Timbers Chair in Wood Structural Engineering signed
The launch of the trans-disciplinary York Timbers Chair in Data-Driven, Wood Structural Engineering for a Sustainable Built Environment and African Bioeconomy is a step closer following the signing of a funding agreement between the University of Pretoria (UP) and York Timbers.
11 Sep 2020
FABIans participate in bark beetle mycobiome research network meeting
On 2 September, several FABIans that form part of the bark beetle mycobiome research network took part in their 9th virtual meeting.
10 Sep 2020
FABI advances plant health research in Africa with the launch of two satellite laboratories
FABI launched the Remote Sensing of Plant Health satellite laboratory with the University of Ghent in Belgium and the Artificial Intelligence in Farming satellite laboratory with Université de Québec à Montréal in Canada on 7 September.
9 Sep 2020
Attending the NAPB 2020 virtual meeting
FABI MSc student Ingrid Marais attended the National Association of Plant Breeders (NAPB) 2020 annual meeting thanks to a South-African Plant Breeders Association (SAPBA) sponsorship.
8 Sep 2020
Phyloge-knows-it crowned “brains” of FABI at first virtual quiz night
Phyloge-knows-it outwitted 12 teams to be crowned winners at FABI’s first virtual Quiz Night on 4 September.
7 Sep 2020
Sampling the iconic and declining cedars in the Cedarberg mountains
Professor Mike Wingfield, together with Prof. Brenda Wingfield, recently joined Stellenbosch University colleagues Prof. Francois Roets, Dr Casper Crous and Dr Gabi Kietzka to sample Widdringtonia cedarbergensis in the Cedarberg Mountain Range of the Western Cape Province.
2 Sep 2020
The plant pathogenic bacterium Xylella fastidiosa under the spotlight at FABI’s monthly International Seminar
The plant pathogenic bacterium Xylella fastidiosa is a devastating pathogen that poses a huge threat to crops and the environment. The bacterium was first reported in 1892 by Newton Pierre as ‘California vine disease’ but it was not isolated until 1978. Dr Jacques explained how comparative genomics was used to track the introduction of X.
28 Aug 2020
FABI launches its multi-disciplinary Grain Research Programme
FABI launched its multidisciplinary Grain Research Programme (GRP) during an online event on 21 August.
21 Aug 2020
Christian Pirk elected a Fellow of the African Academy of Sciences
FABI congratulates Prof. AAS is a non-aligned, non-political, not-for-profit pan African organisation whose vision is to see transformed lives on the African continent through science.
20 Aug 2020
RGE-FABI THP team meet - another Zoom event
The RGE-FABI Tree Health Programme team met on the Zoom virtual platform on 18 August.
18 Aug 2020
FABIans participate in virtual APS Plant Health 2020 meeting
FABI research Fellow Dr Trudy Paap participated as an invited speaker in the special session, ‘Emerging endemic pathogens behaving as exotic invasives in changing climates in forest systems’.
13 Aug 2020
FABIans take part in the first virtual SASBi-SC student symposium
FABIans joined young researchers from several countries for the South African Society of Bioinformatics Student Council (SASBi-SC) Online Student Symposium from 4-6 August. FABIans contributed two oral presentations and a project overview to the 30 presentations at the online symposium.
11 Aug 2020
FMG members attend a virtual PB20 conference
Twenty two members of the FMG research group in FABI attended this year's virtual-hosted ASPB Plant Biology Worldwide Summit 2020.
7 Aug 2020
FABIans participate in FAO forest invasive species webinar
FABI founding Director and Immediate Past President IUFRO, Prof. Mike Wingfield along with Prof. Brett Hurley were invited to present in a FAO webinar covering the topic “Forest invasive species - the next global pandemic?” on 29 July.