Monday
Monday, 17 Aug – IPUF 2026 Programme
Indigenous Plant Use Forum (IPUF) Conference Schedule
| Time | Title | Presenter | Session | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 09:00-09:40 | From African traditional medicines to Indigenous food and beverage ingredients: reframing biodiversity commercialisation for greater socio-economic impact | Cyril Lombard | Keynote Session | Karridene Room |
| 09:40-09:55 | Deciphering the multi-target mechanisms of endophytic Bacillus tropicus-derived compounds against bacterial infections | Tsolanku Maliehe | Session 1 – Conservation and Cultivation 1 | Karridene Room |
| 09:55-10:10 | Unlocking the "Honey" behind Honeybush | Rayganah Rhoda | Session 1 – Conservation and Cultivation 1 | Karridene Room |
| 10:10-10:25 | Trade and cultivation of Phoenix reclinata in the Eastern Cape | Kurhula Ndhlovu | Session 1 – Conservation and Cultivation 1 | Karridene Room |
| 10:25-10:40 | UHTO: A game changer for Honeybush processing and community development | Cecilia Bester |
Session 1 – Conservation and Cultivation 1 | Karridene Room |
| 10:40-10:55 | Effect of replacing lucerne hay with Seriphium plumosum meal on live weight gain, meat quality and sensory attributes Nguni steers | Motswapo Phoko | Session 1 – Conservation and Cultivation 1 | Karridene Room |
| 10:55-11:10 | From biopiracy to bio-sovereignty: A blockchain-enabled Helix Protocol for enforcing benefit-sharing in indigenous plant data systems | Tshepo Aphane | Session 1 – Conservation and Cultivation 1 | Karridene Room |
| 11:10-11:20 | Session Questions | |||
| 11:20-11:50 | Tea & Coffee Break | |||
| 11:50-12:05 | Exploring the anticancer and anti-metastatic potential of Nerium oleander plant extracts against cervical cancer cell lines ME-180 | Mbangiseni Muelelwa | Session 2 –Biological Activities and Medicinal Plant Chemistry 1 | Karridene Room |
| 12:05-12:20 | Computational metabolomics identifies flavonoids as chemotaxonomic markers of Plectranthus hadiensis and Plectranthus ambiguus leaf tissues | Akhona Myoli |
Session 2 –Biological Activities and Medicinal Plant Chemistry 1 | Karridene Room |
| 12:20-12:35 | To bee or not to bee: the antimicrobial potential of South African bee products against Helicobacter pylori | Sarhana Dinat |
Session 2 –Biological Activities and Medicinal Plant Chemistry 1 | Karridene Room |
| 12:35-12:50 | Evaluation of South African medicinal plants used for urinary tract infections: antimicrobial activity and phytochemical characterisation of the most active species | Maboka Mabusela | Session 2 –Biological Activities and Medicinal Plant Chemistry 1 | Karridene Room |
| 12:50-13:05 | Antimycobacterial potential of South African propolis: antibiofilm, quorum-sensing inhibition and antibiotic interaction studies | Nyiko Mzimba |
Session 2 –Biological Activities and Medicinal Plant Chemistry 1 | Karridene Room |
| 13:05-13:20 | Secondary metabolites found in Erythrina abyssinica induce apoptosis in ME-180 cervical and A375 melanoma cancer cells | Boitumelo Ntisa | Session 2 –Biological Activities and Medicinal Plant Chemistry 1 | Karridene Room |
| 13:20-13:30 | Session Questions | |||
| 13:30-14:30 | Lunch | |||
| 14:30-14:45 | The contribution of indigenous plants to rural livelihoods in the Wild Coast, Eastern Cape, South Africa | Nasiphi Ntshanga | Session 3 – Ethnobotany and Indigenous Knowledge 1 | Karridene Room |
| 14:45-15:00 | Plant-based drug discovery for neuropharmacology: Putting the IKS into the CNS | Niël De Beer |
Session 3 – Ethnobotany and Indigenous Knowledge 1 | Karridene Room |
| 15:00-15:15 | Ethnobotanical practices and conservation of Stangeria eriopus in South Africa | Sqinisiwe Nyawo | Session 3 – Ethnobotany and Indigenous Knowledge 1 | Karridene Room |
| 15:15-15:30 | Medicinal plant use in KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape Provinces of South Africa: comparisons with data from Eastern Pondoland | Sibulele Fili |
Session 3 – Ethnobotany and Indigenous Knowledge 1 | Karridene Room |
| 15:30-15:45 | Elucidating stress adaptation mechanisms and phytochemical production in Pelargonium sidoides under varying irrigation levels | Palesa Ndlangamandla | Session 3 – Ethnobotany and Indigenous Knowledge 2 | Karridene Room |
| 15:45-15:55 | Session Questions | |||
| 15:55-16:40 | Tea & Coffee Break | |||
| 16:40-16:55 | Honeybush processing reimagined: Development of an ultra-high temperature oxidation (UHTO) process | Dalene De Beer |
Session 4 – Conservation and Cultivation 2 | Karridene Room |
| 16:55-17:10 | The world’s trade in South African succulent plants | Tasneem Variawa | Session 4 – Conservation and Cultivation 2 | Karridene Room |
| 17:10-17:25 | Effects of cutting position and leaf area retention on rooting and growth of vegetatively propagated Cannabis sativa | Azile Dumani |
Session 4 – Conservation and Cultivation 2 | Karridene Room |
| 17:25-17:40 | Importance of indigenous crops in alleviating the double burden of malnutrition and promoting access and equity in Africa | Thierry Regnier | Session 4 – Conservation and Cultivation 2 | Karridene Room |
| 17:40-17:55 | Evaluation of physiological and biochemical responses of Amaranthus genotypes under fieldinduced short-term water stress | Pfunzo Gavhi | Session 4 – Conservation and Cultivation 2 | Karridene Room |
| 17:55-18:05 | Session Questions | |||
| 18:05 | End of Day 1 |