Keabetswe Ncube

Dr. Keabetswe T. Ncube holds a PhD in Genetics and is an NRF Scarce Skills-funded Postdoctoral Researcher at the Research Centre for Plant Metabolomics (RCPM), University of Johannesburg (UJ), South Africa, hosted by Dr Fidele Tugizimana. She is an emerging researcher with extensive professional experience in genomics, microbiology, quality control, postgraduate supervision and research translation.

Her current postdoctoral research investigates the medicinal and dermatologically relevant properties of goat milk through an integrated multi-omics approach to identify bioactive compounds and molecular biomarkers with potential applications in dermaceutical product development and entrepreneurship.

In parallel, her other research project is on genotype-by-biostimulant interactions, investigating the interactions between maize genotypes and biostimulant treatments in maize cultivated in Botswana and South Africa. The project integrates genomics and plant phenotyping to elucidate the molecular and physiological responses of maize to biostimulant application, to identify genotype-specific responses, to understand the underlying mechanisms of biostimulant action and to inform the development of context-specific, sustainable crop production strategies.

During her CropPrime secondment under the guidance of Assoc. Prof. Dr. Grigor Zehirov and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Kiril Mishev at the Institute of Plant Physiology and Genetics in Sofia, Bulgaria, Dr. Ncube will contribute to ongoing research investigating the protective effects of Laminaria extracts against pathogen infection in tobacco plants, with a primary focus on metabolomics data analysis and the interpretation of metabolite profiles associated with plant defence responses and the potential modes of action of the extracts. She will also contribute to rosemary research through plant phenotyping, characterising growth and morphological traits to support the assessment of plant responses to treatments and their potential protective effects against model plant pathogens.