Highlights from Our Annual H3D Open Day

On 19 October 2024, H3D proudly held its annual Open Day, a day dedicated to inspiring the next generation of scientists. The highly anticipated event took place at the University of Cape Town's Institute for Infectious Diseases and Molecular Medicine (IDM).

The Open Day focused on building awareness of H3D’s work in drug discovery, aiming to encourage undergraduate and postgraduate students to continue their scientific journey and to understand career opportunities in drug discovery. Open to the public, the event provided an engaging experience with lab tours, scientific displays, and interactive panel discussions hosted by the H3D team.
 
Our panel of esteemed speakers included Dr. Dale Taylor (Malaria Parasitology), Dr. Keabetswe Masike (Drug Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics), Dr. Andre Horatscheck (Medicinal Chemistry), Dr. Charles Omollo (Tuberculosis Biology), Dr. McQuillan Moyo (Flow Chemistry), Dr. Zaahida Sheik Ismail (Enzymology), and Jessica Akester (Project Management).
 
Forty attendees, including students from various academic institutions and industry representatives from across the Western Cape, were introduced to H3D’s ground-breaking work in fields such as Medicinal Chemistry, Computer Aided Drug Design, Antimicrobial Resistance Biology, Tuberculosis Biology, Enzymology, Parasitology, and Drug Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics. Breakaway lab tours allowed participants to explore H3D’s facilities and gain insight into the work being conducted at the research centre.
 
Engagement with H3D scientists provided participants with a deeper understanding of specialized drug discovery fields and showcased Africa’s rapidly advancing capabilities in this domain. When asked about their experience, participants shared some enthusiastic feedback:
 
“I enjoyed the Q&A session. It was encouraging to see how diverse qualifications can still lead to opportunities in drug discovery if you’re willing to learn.”
“The lab tours were fantastic. Being surrounded by H3D scientists was incredibly inspiring. It gave me hope that, as an undergraduate, I too can become a research scientist someday.”
 
H3D celebrates the success of this year’s Open Day, which met its objectives and motivated a new generation of scientists. Thank you to all the participants, H3D staff, postdocs, and Prof Kelly Chibale academic group students who made the 2024 H3D Open Day a memorable success!