Dr Le Roes-Hill's interest in Microbiology was sparked during Cape Technikon Hotel School training when introduced to Food Microbiology. Upon completion of her National Diploma, She was enrolled at the University of Cape Town (UCT) for an undergraduate degree in Microbiology and Biochemistry. During BSc Honours studies in Microbiology (2001), her supervisor showed her a Gram stain of a filamentous actinobacterium. The unusual morphology of the bacterium, its ability to produce antibiotics, and the fact that it represented a novel species, had me hooked for life. Dr Le Roes-Hill continued to work on actinobacteria for my MSc; later upgrading to a PhD (UCT), focusing on the description of novel species and production of antibiotics. This was followed by postdoctoral research at the Department of Chemical Engineering, UCT (2006-2008), and the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT; 2009/2010) Where she focused on screening for oxidative enzymes produced by actinobacteria.
Dr Le Roes-Hill specific research interests has evolved over the years to include oxidative enzymes (laccase, peroxidase, tyrosinase) produced by actinobacteria; secondary metabolite production by actinobacteria (with a focus on bioactive compounds); the classification of actinobacterial oxidative enzymes and how structure, function, and evolutionary information can be merged in the classification of these enzymes; the description of novel actinobacterial species; and exploring bio-diverse environments (terrestrial and aquatic, including wastewater) in the search for novel actinobacteria.
In 2011, when She became the head of the Biocatalysis and Technical Biology Research Group, Dr Le Roes-Hill managed an SA-Germany bilateral project (2011-2013) focused on multicopper oxidases (MCOs) and in 2012, received University Research Funding from CPUT, for a project focused on actinobacterial oxidative enzymes. In 2014, She was successful in an application for the NRF competitive support for unrated researchers, focusing on actinobacterial bio-active compounds, while in 2015, She received an NRF Foundational Biodiversity Information programme award, to focus on actinobacterial biodiversity in South African peatlands. In 2017, Dr Le Roes-Hill was awarded a DST/NRF SA-Germany research grant, allowing for the exchange of students with prominent universities in Germany (project: Synergistic effect of actinobacterial enzymes and expansins), and more recently (2018), an NRF Marine & Coastal research grant to explore marine actinobacteria as a novel source of bio-active compounds and oxidative enzymes. In addition, in 2019 Dr Le Roes-Hill was awarded an NRF C2 rating.
Since joining CPUT She served on various committees, including the Advisory Committee for the Biotechnology program (2010- present), the Senate Research Ethics Committee (2011-2016), the Senate Research and Innovation Committee (2011-2014), as well as the Faculty Research and Research Ethics committees of the Faculty of Health and Wellness Sciences (2012-present). Dr Le Roes-Hill invited to be a part of the local organising committee for a South African Society for Microbiology (SASM) conference (2011), and the organising committee for the Royal Society of South Africa (RSSAf) Western Cape Branch (2013-2018). Since 2011, She has also hosted scholars from local and international schools for job-shadowing (2012/2013), as well as hosted and co-supervised eleven international students, including students from Algeria, France, Belgium, and Germany.
