UP scientists home in on gene that could play pivotal role in diet-induced obesity

Posted on May 12, 2025

Researchers at the University of Pretoria (UP) may have identified the gene that is responsible for diet-related obesity. By exploring the role of the novel gene Slc7a8, they have made a potential breakthrough in current knowledge about the cellular mechanisms that drive fat accumulation. This...

RE.SEARCH 11: Digital Worlds

Posted on April 17, 2025

The latest issue of the University of Pretoria’s award-winning RE.SEARCH magazine is available now and reflects a shift towards both a fresher design and outlook. This edition is curated under the theme ‘Digital’, and offers a glimpse into some of the fascinating research...

RE.SEARCH 10: Make today matter

Posted on November 22, 2024

The articles in this edition showcase work from all nine of our faculties, and underscore our University’s slogan ‘Make today matter’. RE.SEARCH has been named South Africa's top corporate publication as the winner of the 2024 SA Publication's Forum Awards. It is a runner up and...

RE.SEARCH 8: Connect

Posted on May 07, 2024

In a world in which there is an ever-encroaching digital footprint and high-tech solutions, it is vital that we reconnect with an outlook of compassion, care and communication. We do this through connection and connectivity. The theme of our latest issue, ‘Connect’, highlights how UP...

UP researchers find environmental toxins poison epigenetic inheritance

Posted on February 09, 2024

In a study that signals potential reproductive and health complications in humans, now and for future generations, researchers at the University of Pretoria and Canada’s McGill University and Université Laval have concluded that toxins in the environment, notably DDT, modify the sperm...

UP researchers close in on the secret to aging

Posted on October 23, 2023

The quest for immortality has long fascinated humans, and inspired countless tales – now, in two new studies published in the journals Nature and Science, University of Pretoria (UP) researchers, along with a team of global experts known as the Mammalian Methylation Consortium, are a step...

RE.SEARCH Issue 5: Impact

Posted on April 17, 2023

This issue of RE.SEARCH looks at the impact of the University of Pretoria's research from early childhood interventions and the use of traditional medicines for holistic nursing to the role of women in peacekeeping efforts. The issue also provides insight into the critical question of coal power...

Microorganisms could be the cause of ‘fairy circle’ phenomenon – UP microbiologists

Posted on March 29, 2023

University of Pretoria (UP) scientists have posited a theory that could explain the tens of thousands of “fairy circles” that can be seen dotted across the arid landscape of Namibia.

RE.SEARCH Issue 4: Transdisciplinary

Posted on November 28, 2022

Our latest issue of RE.SEARCH is out and focuses on how the University of Pretoria (UP) is implementing transdisciplinary research to co-create new knowledge to develop solutions and design new futures for us all.

UP hydrogeologists use isotopes to pinpoint root of Hartbeespoort Dam’s water hyacinth problem

Posted on November 21, 2022

For years now, invasive water hyacinth plants have clogged up the North West’s Hartbeespoort Dam, which lies downstream from Pretoria and Johannesburg. In new research, hydrogeologists from the University of Pretoria (UP) have used the internal workings of the plants themselves to reiterate...

Breast cancer awareness in the genomic landscape

Posted on October 10, 2022

Researchers at the University of Pretoria (UP) are making today matter by battling aggressive breast cancer through identifying genes that make African women more susceptible to certain forms of breast cancer. However, this is no easy task as very little genomic information is known about African...

Flour power: UP researchers boost nutritive benefits of sweet potato with novel drying technology

Posted on September 20, 2022

Researchers at the University of Pretoria (UP) have found a way to make orange-fleshed sweet potato last longer in an effort to benefit from this smart crop and address micronutrient deficiencies among young children and pregnant women.

Ancestral heritage linked to aggressive prostate cancer, study finds

Posted on August 31, 2022

Two pioneering studies published simultaneously today in Nature and Genome Medicine have identified genetic signatures explaining ethnic differences in the severity of prostate cancer, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa.

Making light work: UP chemists pave the way towards an ultra-sensitive analytical instrument that can detect water pollutants

Posted on June 27, 2022

A UP-led team is using the momentum of light to trap particles. This optical trap has been used with collaborators to demonstrate a hidden property in light that remains unchanged even when it passes through turbulence.

Re.Search Issue 2: Innovation

Posted on April 26, 2022

Innovation is the next step forward. The innovations highlighted in this edition show us that the knowledge we create today is a step forward to future.