The remarkable contributions of Professor Marla Trindade, Director of the Institute for Microbial Biotechnology and Metagenomics at the University of the Western Cape (UWC), has earned her a distinguished place in South Africa’s most prestigious science community.

A SARChI Chair in Microbial Genomics, Prof Trindade was recently awarded a lifelong membership by the Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAF) in recognition of her scientific activities and research work in life sciences. She is one of only a few of the country’s leading scholars and scientists who were inaugurated in this year.

Members of ASSAF are regarded as the “brains trust” of the nation and through its memberships it represents the collective voice of the most active scholars in all fields of scholarly inquiry.

Prof Trindade’s appointment is seen as a feather in the cap for any scientist as the academy’s mission is to investigate and provide evidence-based solutions to national problems. Her research, conducted with students and collaborators, focuses on seeking treatment for various diseases, particularly in the early stages.

“We take what microorganisms do naturally for their own survival and develop technologies or products for human application” Prof Trindade explains. “We have projects involved in human therapeutics, as well as for environmental, industrial and agriculture applications. So, it's very broad and targets many of the Sustainable Development Goals.”

Prof Trindade added: “We have quite a large program investigating marine endosymbionts that can produce compounds or activities that haven't been discovered before for the treatment of a variety of diseases. This includes new antibiotics for infectious diseases but also to treat cancer, inflammation and neurological diseases like parkinsons or Alzheimer's. We operate at the early stages of the drug discovery pipeline, and partner with industry partners for further development” She proudly adds.

The ASSAF award is not the first accolade for Prof Trindade. Her sterling work won her the DSI Distinguished Young Woman of the Year in 2015, she was a finalist for the Business Women of the Year in 2019, and she was a finalist in the 2018/2019 NSTF-South32 awards.

Prof Trindade is also a member of the Royal Society of South Africa and of the South African Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

She has held the position of President and Vice President and council member of the South African Society for Microbiology.

Prof Trindade was quick to credit UWC for her successful career and achievements, and expressed her commitment to the institution. “Many industry partners have this stigma view of UWC. But once they work with us, they see the real University of the Western Cape. For me, its an amazing experience to see their complete transformation of ideas of what UWC has and can do.”