​Stem cell research at Stellenbosch University's (SU) Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS) recently received a major boost in the form of a R1,93 million grant awarded to Dr Mari van de Vyver from the Division of Endocrinology.

The grant is funded by the National Research Foundation (NRF) and will be used over a period of three years (2017-2019) for research on altered stem cell functionality and its relationship with impaired diabetic wound healing. The money will be allocated to research costs (65%), postdoctoral research fellowships (23%) and postgraduate bursaries (12%).

Dr Van de Vyver, who describes herself as "still very early" in her career, says she feels honoured to have received such a substantial award towards the project and is grateful for the extensive and continued support from the FMHS. She will work in collaboration with Prof Kathy Myburgh (Department of Physiological Sciences at SU) and Prof Carola Niesler from the School of Life Sciences at the University of KwaZulu-Natal.

It was her fascination with the body's ability to heal itself that led to her interest in the research question. "The ultimate goal of regenerative medicine is to be able to use a patient's own stem cells for therapeutic purposes," she explains. "However, scientists have realised that despite the innate regenerative potential of stem cells, their ability to promote wound healing is impaired when they are harvested from patients with an underlying disease such as obesity-associated type 2 diabetes."

She says since the exact nature of these stem cell impairments are still not clear, the new research will build on previous findings and aim and to identify potential therapeutic targets to reverse stem cell impairment.

"This will potentially have a tremendous impact on the advancement of cell therapies aimed at using a patients' own bone-marrow derived stem cells to promote the healing of chronic wounds."

Dr Van de Vyver believes the grant application was successful because of the project's alignment with both the FMHS's research agenda and the Medium Term Strategic Framework of the National Department of Health, as it addresses one of the major health challenges facing the African continent.

"It's predicted that in 2030 over 140 million people in developing countries will be suffering from type 2 diabetes and its associated complications. Non-healing wounds occur in up to 10% of these patients. As a medical scientist, I believe that we as researchers have a social responsibility to focus our research on such prominent issues in society."

She says the grant will enable the formation of a unique research niche within the Division of Endocrinology and will also give her the opportunity to become established as a scientist.

Caption: Dr Mari van de Vyver received a R1.93 million grant from the NRF for her research into the functionality of stem cells.