Monday

Monday, 17 August 2026

Monday, 17 Aug - IPUF 2026 Programme

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
15:30-15:40 Session Questions
15:40-16:40 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