Prof Mahloro Hope Serepa-Dlamini is a Full Professor of Bacterial Genomics and Biotechnology, and the Head of Department of Biotechnology and Food Technology, University of Johannesburg. She leads the Bacterial Genomics and Biotechnology (BGB) research group, which she established in 2017. Her research uses microscopy, molecular biology, and high-throughput genome sequencing to explore the genetic characteristics and biotechnological potential of bacteria associated with indigenous South African medicinal plants, with applications in industries such as food, pharmaceuticals, and agriculture. Through her research activities and achievements, she has established collaborations both nationally and internationally in pursuit of global excellence. As contribution towards capacity building, she has successfully supervised 18 MSc students, 4 PhD candidates, and 2 postdoctoral research fellows. Prof Serepa-Dlamini is a member of several prestigious professional bodies, such as the Royal Society of Biology, the Digital Sequence Information (DSI) network, and Sigma Xi: The Scientific Research Honor Society.
Prof Serepa-Dlamini successfully secured external research grants from the NRF-ZAR and Innovate UK joint grants. Her recent awards and recognition include: i) Emerging Young Woman Leader in Higher Education award from HERS-SA (2023); ii) Corning Life Science and Scientific Group 3D Cell Culture competition (2024); iii) NRF Research Excellence Award for Early Career/Emerging Researcher (2024), and iv) BioScience Scientists Award Winner in the Microbiological Sciences (2024), v) Winner for the SAWiSA- Distinguished Young Woman Researcher: Natural (Life and Physical) and Engineering Sciences category (August 2025) among others. She has made several keynote and guest speaker addressespresentations both nationally and internationally.
