Professor Santhosh Pillai is an NRF C2-rated researcher and an Associate Professor in the Department of Biotechnology and Food Science at Durban University of Technology. With over 15 years of experience as an academic in the higher education sector, he has lectured undergraduate and postgraduate students in mycology, bacteriology, and fermentation science, among other specialised subjects. Prof Pillai’s research expertise spans multiple cutting-edge areas, including: Biomass valorisation for bioenergy and value-added products (biohydrogen, bioethanol, biobutanol, biomethane, oligosaccharides), Bioactive proteins and peptides from microbial and marine sources for industrial applications, Microbial antagonists and their metabolites for food and feed preservation, Bioremediation of environmental pollutants and Microbiome studies of fermented foods.
Prof Pillai has significantly contributed to postgraduate student capacity development, having successfully graduated 3 PhD and 10 Master’s students, mentored 3 postdoctoral fellows, and trained 4 HSRC (Human Sciences Research Council) interns. He currently supervises 7 PhD and 7 Master’s students, while mentoring 3 postdoctoral fellows and 2 HSRC (Human Sciences Research Council) interns.
Prof Pillai’s research impact is evident in his 60+ publications in high-impact journals, 13 book chapters, and over 40 presentations at national and international conferences. He actively contributes to the scientific community as: A panel member for various National Research Foundation (NRF), South Africa funding calls, An external examiner and reviewer for multiple universities, A reviewer for national and international funding agencies, A peer reviewer for over 50 ISI-listed journals, An editorial panel member for 3 Biotech and Frontiers in Microbiology Journals.
Beyond his academic contributions, Prof Pillai is a key member of the BRICS consortium and has established strong national and international collaborations with institutions such as ARC (Agricultural Research Council), CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research), CPUT (Cape Peninsula University of Technology), NICD (National Institute for Communicable Diseases), TIA (Technology Innovation Agency), UKZN (University of KwaZulu-Natal), University of Minnesota (USA), Northwest A&F University (China), CSIR-NIIST (India), Kazimierz Wielki University (Poland), Slovak Academy of Sciences (Slovakia), and Federal University of Paraná (Brazil).
His research has been successfully funded by the ARC (Agricultural Research Council), TIA (Technology Innovation Agency), and NRF (National Research Foundation), and he is a recipient of Faculty and Institutional awards in recognition of his academic excellence and research contributions.
