Philosophiae Doctor - PhD (Bioinformatics)
Browse by
Recent Submissions
-
Observations on the ecology and life-history of Chrysaora fulgida (Reynaud 1830) (Scyphozoa: Semaeostomeae) and other pelagic cnidarians in the inshore waters off central Namibia
(University of the Western Cape, 2019)Although jellyfish are recognised recently as key components that can influence ecosystem functioning and trophic flows in the northern Benguela upwelling ecosystem, the number of published studies on their abundance, ... -
Baobab LIMS: An open source biobank laboratory information management system for resource-limited settings
(University of the Western Cape, 2019)A laboratory information management system (LIMS) is central to the informatics infrastructure that underlies biobanking activities. To date, a wide range of commercial and open source LIMS are available. The decision ... -
Exploring the role of the “glycan-shield” of human immunodeficiency virus in susceptibility to, and escape from, broadly neutralising antibodies
(University of the Western Cape, 2018)The HIV-1 envelope (Env) glycoprotein is the primary target of the humoral immune response and a critical vaccine candidate. However, Env is densely glycosylated and thereby substantially protected from neutralisation. ... -
Development of a data processing toolkit for the analysis of next-generation sequencing data generated using the primer ID approach
(University of the Western Cape, 2018)Sequencing an HIV quasispecies with next generation sequencing technologies yields a dataset with significant amplification bias and errors resulting from both the PCR and sequencing steps. Both the amplification bias ... -
Identification of coding variants associated with familial systemic lupus erythematosus through whole exome sequencing
(University of the Western Cape, 2016)Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic inflammatory autoimmune disease characterized by the production of a wide range of autoantibodies directed against selfantigens. SLE can influence almost any organ system and ... -
Identification and ranking of pervasive secondary structures in positive sense single-stranded ribonucleic acid viral genomes
(University of the Western Cape, 2018)The plasticity of single-stranded viral genomes permits the formation of secondary structures through complementary base-pairing of their component nucleotides. Such structures have been shown to regulate a number of ... -
Computational prediction of host-pathogen protein-protein interactions
(University of the Western Cape, 2017)Supervised machine learning approaches have been applied successfully to the prediction of protein-protein interactions (PPIs) within a single organism, i.e., intra-species predictions. However, because of the absence of ... -
Computational strategies to identify, prioritize and design potential antimalarial agents from natural products
(University of the Western Cape, 2015)Introduction: There is an exigent need to develop novel antimalarial drugs in view of the mounting disease burden and emergent resistance to the presently used drugs against the malarial parasites. A large amount of natural ... -
Computational genomics approaches for kidney diseases in Africa
(University of the Western Cape, 2015)End stage renal disease (ESRD), a more severe form of kidney disease, is considered to be a complex trait that may involve multiple processes which work together on a background of a significant genetic susceptibility. ... -
Computational analysis of multilevel omics data for the elucidation of molecular mechanisms of cancer
(University of the Western Cape, 2015)Cancer is a group of diseases that arises from irreversible genomic and epigenomic alterations that result in unrestrained proliferation of abnormal cells. Detailed understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying a ... -
Computational characterisation of DNA methylomes in mycobacterium tuberculosis Beijing hyper- and hypo-virulent strains
(University of the Western Cape, 2014)Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the causative agent of tuberculosis, is estimated to infect approximately one-third of the world’s population and is responsible for around 2 million deaths per year. The disease is endemic in ... -
Modulation of soybean and maize antioxidant activities by Caffeic acid and nitric oxide under salt stress
(University of the Western Cape, 2012)This study explores the roles of exogenously applied nitric oxide, exogenously applied caffeic acid and salt stress on the antioxidant system in cereal (exemplified by maize) and legume (using soybean as an example) plants ... -
Evolution of HIV-1 subtype C gp120 envelope sequences in the female genital tract and blood plasma during acute and chronic infection
(University of the Western Cape, 2014)Heterosexual transmission of HIV-1 via the female genital tract is the leading route of HIV infection in sub-Saharan Africa. Viruses then traffic between the cervical compartment and blood ensuring pervasive infection. ... -
Genome-wide annotation of chemosensory and glutamate-gated receptors, and related genes in Glossina morsitans morsitans tsetse fly
(University of the Western Cape, 2014)Tsetse flies are the sole vectors of trypanosomes that cause nagana and sleeping sickness in animals and humans respectively in tropical Africa. Tsetse are unique: both sexes adults are exclusive blood-feeders, females are ... -
Identification and characterization of microRNAs and their putative target genes in Anopheles funestus s.s
(2013)The discovery of microRNAs (miRNAs) is one of the most exciting scientific breakthroughs in the last decade. miRNAs are short RNA molecules that do not encode proteins but instead, regulate gene expression. Over the past ... -
Development of a hepatitis C virus knowledgebase with computational prediction of functional hypothesis of therapeutic relevance
(2011)To ameliorate Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) therapeutic and diagnostic challenges requires robust intervention strategies, including approaches that leverage the plethora of rich data published in biomedical literature to gain ... -
Computational characterization of IRE-regulated genes in Glossina morsitans
(University of Western Cape, 2013)Blood feeding is a habit exhibited by many insects. Considering the devastating impact of these insects on human health, it is important to focus research on understanding the biology behind blood-feeding, disease ... -
Development and implementation of ontology-based systems for mammalian gene expression profiling
(2009)The use of ontologies in the mapping of gene expression events provides an effective and comparable method to determine the expression profile of an entire genome across a large collection of experiments derived from ... -
Development of a Hepatitis C Virus knowledgebase with computational prediction of functional hypothesis of therapeutic relevance
(University of the Western Cape, 2011)To ameliorate Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) therapeutic and diagnostic challenges requires robust intervention strategies, including approaches that leverage the plethora of rich data published in biomedical literature to gain ... -
Prediction of antimicrobial peptides using hyperparameter optimized support vector machines
(University of the Western Cape, 2011)Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) play a key role in the innate immune response. They can be ubiquitously found in a wide range of eukaryotes including mammals, amphibians, insects, plants, and protozoa. In lower organisms, ...