Dr Balindiwe Sishi from Stellenbosch University is one of 600 young scientists under the age of 35 worldwide who have been selected to participate in this year's Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting in Germany from 24 to 29 June.

Over a six day period the participants, from 84 different countries, will interact with 43 Nobel Laureates in physiology and medicine. This includes the winners of the 2017 Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine. Jeffrey C Hall, Michael Rosbash and Michael W Young were honoured for their discoveries of molecular mechanisms controlling the circadian rhythm.

Dr Sishi, a researcher in the Department of Physiological Sciences, says she only applied after being nominated by Prof Kathy Myburgh, holder of the

SARChI research chair in integrative skeletal muscle physiology, biology, and biotechnology: “I was curious. I didn't even know such events take place!"

Sishi's research focuses on finding new ways to decrease the side-effects of the popular chemotherapy drug, Doxorubicin, on the heart. Cardiotoxicity is now considered one of the most important consequences of chemotherapy, leading to an increase in morbidity and mortality of cancer survivors.

“We use cellular and rat models to simulate the progress of the disease in order to understand which mechanisms are involved. On cellular level, the focus is on understanding the role of organelles such as the dynamic changes in the mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum stress and the intracellular communication between organelles. We use this information to evaluate how Doxorubicin therapy will influence these parameters."

She says in order to be able to develop better treatment strategies, and improve the quality of life of cancer patients, it is essential to understand these complex mechanisms on a cellular level.

On the photo, Dr Balindiwe Sishi in her research laboratory. Photo: Stefan Els