Replica - Doty Ojwach
Dr Doty Ojwach: Post-doctoral fellow, UKZN HIV Pathogenesis Programme(HPP); SANTHE (Sub-Saharan African network for TB/HIV research) fellow; Best SANTHE trainee of the year (2017, 2018); Lindau Nobel laureate young scientist (2020). I am an African woman juggling career and family together with the hope of changing lives!
Her Research: Doty wants to find the weaknesses in HIV proteins with the ultimate goal to contribute to the development of a HIV vaccine. Her work is focused on two genes in the HIV genome, reverse transcriptase and integrase. HIV, like most viruses, tricks the cells that it infects into making millions of copies of itself. HIV is an RNA virus. After it has entered the host cell it has infected it uses reverse transcriptase to turn it’s RNA into DNA. The second trick is to get that new DNA piece spliced into the genome of the cell it has infected, that’s what the integrase protein does, it integrates the HIV DNA into the cell’s DNA. After that, the infected cell is fully under siege and it will make tons of HIV viruses.
To study these two genes, reverse transcriptase and integrase, Doty uses blood samples from people that have agreed to be part of scientific studies. She isolates the virus RNA from many different HIV+ people and clones it into a lab version of HIV. Cloning means that you insert the piece of DNA that you want into another piece of DNA. Now she can infect cells in the lab with this version of HIV and see how well that specific reverse transcriptase and integrase work. She infects cells and then 16 days later, she looks to see how many copies of the virus have grown in what are known as replication assays.
To really understand these proteins and find versions of the genes that are better or worse virus replication, she needs to study as many viruses as possible. So far she has cloned almost 500 different viruses! To do all of this work requires lots of pipetting and doing assays in triplicate. Her multichannel pipettor on her chest and the assay plates on her costume help, and are good friends.
Her Heroes: “Dr. Faith Osier (also a SuperScientist) she is an African female scientist and is doing WOW! science.”
Her Top Tip: Everything worth doing takes patience. The rewards for science come only later in a person’s career.
What does it take to succeed in science? We asked everyone to rank the following from most important to least: Hardwork, Communication, Curiosity, Creativity
What else do you need? Enthusiasm, focus, and self-motivation
Her Superpowers! Culturing viruses and cells, DNA sequencing, taking minute cells and viruses and multiplying them and watching them grow
Her scientific strengths: She’s efficient, super organised and meticulous, consistent, and keeps an amazing lab notebook. All of these help her generate reams of data that she is then able to analyse.
Connect: Facebook @Doty Brenda Achieng
In isiZulu
UDkt Doty Ojwach: Uzakwethu ngemuva kokuthola ubudokotela, Uhlelo lwe-UKZN lwe-HIV Pathogenesis(HPP); I-SANTHE (inethiwekhi ye-Sub-Saharan Africa yocwaningo lwe-TB/HIV) uzakwethu; Umqeqeshi ongcono kakhulu we-SANTHE wonyaka (2017, 2018); Usosayensi osemusha uLindau Nobel (2020). Ngingowesifazane wase-Afrika omatasatasa ngomsebenzi nomndeni kanye nethemba lokushintsha izimpilo!
Ucwaningo lwakhe: U-Doty ufuna ukuthola ubuthakathaka kumaprotheni e-HIV ngenhloso yokugcina yokufaka isandla ekwakhiweni komgomo we-HIV. Umsebenzi wakhe ugxile ezakhini zofuzo ezimbili ku-HIV genome, i-reverse transcriptase ne-integrase. I-HIV, njengamagciwane amaningi, ikhohlisa amaseli ewathelelayo ukuze enze izigidi zamakhophi ayo. I-HIV igciwane le-RNA. Ngemuva kokuthi ingene kuseli yokusingathwa ilithelelele isebenzisa i-reverse transcriptase ukuze iguqule i-RNA yayo ibe yi-DNA. Iqhinga lesibili liwukwenza leso siqeshana se-DNA esisha sihlukaniseke ku-genome yeseli elithelelekile, yilokho okwenziwa yi-integrase protein, ihlanganisa i-HIV DNA ku-DNA yeseli. Ngemva kwalokho, ingqamuzana elinegciwane selivinjezelwe ngokugcwele futhi lizokwenza amathani amagciwane e-HIV.
Ukutadisha lezi zakhi zofuzo ezimbili, i-reverse transcriptase ne-integrase, u-Doty usebenzisa amasampula egazi avela kubantu abavumile ukuba yingxenye yezifundo zesayensi. Uhlukanisa igciwane i-RNA kubantu abaningi abahlukene be-HIV+ futhi alihlanganise libe inguqulo yelebhu ye-HIV. Ukuhlanganisa kusho ukuthi ufaka ucezu lwe-DNA olufunayo kolunye ucezu lwe-DNA. Manje usengakwazi ukuthelela amaseli elebhu ngale nguqulo ye-HIV futhi abone ukuthi leyo reverse transcriptase ne-integrase isebenza kanjani. Uthelela amaseli bese kuthi ezinsukwini eziyi-16 kamuva, abheke ukuthi mangaki amakhophi aleli gciwane akhule kulokho okwaziwa ngokuthi ama-replication assays.
Ukuze awaqonde ngempela lawa maprotheni futhi athole izinguqulo zezakhi zofuzo eziphindaphinda igciwane ezingcono noma ezimbi kakhulu, udinga ukufunda amagciwane amaningi ngangokunokwenzeka. Kuze kube manje usezakhele cishe amagciwane ahlukahlukene angama-500! Ukwenza wonke lo msebenzi kudinga ukufakwa kwamapayipi amaningi nokwenza izivivinyo ngokuphindwe kathathu. I-pipettor yakhe yama-multichannel esifubeni sakhe kanye namapuleti e-assay akusizo lwemvunulo yakhe, futhi bangabangane abakhulu.
Amaqhawe Akhe: “UDkt. U-Faith Osier (ophinde abe yi-SuperScientist) ungusosayensi wesifazane wase-Afrika futhi wenza WOW! Isayensi.”
Ithiphu Lakhe Eliphezulu: Konke okufanele ukwenze kudinga isineke. Imivuzo yesayensi iza kuphela kamuva emsebenzini womuntu.
Yini edingekayo ukuze uphumelele kwisayensi? Sicele wonke umuntu ukuthi aklelise okulandelayo kusukela kokubaluleke kakhulu kuye kokuncane: Ukusebenza Ngokuzikhandla, Ukuxhumana, Ilukuluku, Ukusungula
Yini enye oyidingayo? Ukushisekela, ukugxila, nokuzikhuthaza
Amandla Akhe Amakhulu! Ukuhlakulela amagciwane namaseli, ukulandelana kwe-DNA, ukuthatha amaseli amancane nama-virus futhi uwaphindaphinde futhi uwabuke ekhula
Amandla akhe esayensi: Usebenza kahle, uhleleke kakhulu futhi uyacophelela, akaguquki, futhi ugcina incwadi yaselabhu emangalisayo. Konke lokhu kuyamsiza ukuthi akhiqize izingcezu zedatha azokwazi ukuyihlaziya.
Xhuma: Facebook @Doty Brenda Achieng