Attending the Hong Kong Laureate Forum 2025 is an extraordinary opportunity for me as a Nanomedicine PhD student. This conference represents a premier global setup where cutting-edge advancements life and medicine studies will be showcased, and it provides an ideal platform for me to enhance my research, gain new insights, and explore connections within the international scientific community. I believe attending this forum will expand my knowledge of the most recent advancements in medicine and nanomedicine research. My research focus is on devising innovative nanotechnological solutions to boost therapeutic methods in medicine. By participating in this forum, I will get a platform to share my research at an international setting. Furthermore, attending the HK Laureate forum will strengthen my academic standing and add to the broader scientific discussion on colon cancer treatment using nanomaterials. The forum will provide a platform for networking and future collaborations. Lastly, I believe attending this forum will give me an opportunity to showcase my research and to bring attention to the advancements and potential of African research institutions. Being part of this forum will not only enhance my academic journey but will also highlight the contributions of South African researchers to the global medicine landscape.

Nelson Mandela University

National Research Foundation

Reference-letter_HK-Laureate-Forum-2025_Itumeleng-Zosela.pdf

It is anticipated that approximately that by 2030, 21.7 million new cancer cases will be diagnosed annually worldwide. Colon cancer accounts for over 8% of all cancer-related deaths worldwide. Conventional treatments, such as chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation therapy, often used in combination, face significant challenges, including lack of specificity and severe side effects. Therefore, there is an urgent need for novel therapeutic agents with fewer adverse events. Nanotechnology, particularly the use of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) synthesized via green methods using phytochemicals as reducing agents, has emerged as a promising avenue for cancer treatment. Preliminary evaluations of these 'green' AuNPs have demonstrated their ability to induce apoptosis in colon cancer cell lines and animal models. However, the in vitro nature of these studies raises concerns regarding their applicability to different colon cancer types as a treatment option. This aims to evaluate the specificity of plant based AuNPs in treating sporadic versus familial colon cancer and investigate the impact of AuNPs on cancer-associated genes. This research aims to validate the therapeutic potential of plant-based AuNPs in a clinically relevant context, thereby contributing to the development of more effective and less harmful cancer treatments.