IDM Seminar Program
Hosted by the IDM Mentorship Working Group

Wednesday, 10 June 2026 | 13:00 - 14:00
Wolfson Pavilion Lecture Theatre, IDM Building

RSVP Here for Catering Purposes

Speakers

Dr Nicki Adams

Nicki Adams is a Field Application Scientist for Oxford Nanopore Technologies based in Cape Town, South Africa. She holds a PhD in Molecular and Cell Biology from the University of Cape Town (UCT) and has conducted research at both the University of Warwick and UCT. She later joined the Centre for Proteomic and Genomic Research (CPGR), where she helped establish Artisan Biomed, a diagnostic division providing screening service for non-invasive prenatal testing and oncology panels, using short-read NGS technology. At Roche Diagnostics, she contributed to the development and improvement of KAPA RNA and DNA library preparation and target enrichment products. She is passionate about empowering scientists through knowledge sharing and training.

Dr Mbandi Kimbung

Mbandi Kimbung is a Principal Scientist at ROCHE Diagnostics in Cape Town, South Africa. He holds a PhD in Bioinformatics from the South Africa National Bioinformatics Institute (SANBI) at the University of the Western Cape (UWC). His prior research experience includes conducting sero-epidemiological studies at the University of Buea for Malaria candidate vaccine discovery. He also worked at the University of Cape Town, where he integrated bioinformatics approaches with unique clinical and epidemiological study designs to address key gaps in the immunopathogenesis of tuberculosis. In his current role at Roche, Mbandi's work bridges computational science with the commercial value chain, focusing on developing and prototyping reagents for next-generation sequencing workflows. He is deeply passionate about research and translating scientific innovation into practical solutions.