Miss Francina Mbongwa

Francina has completed her BSc. Degree in Genetics and Biochemistry (2017), BSc. (Hons) in Forensic Genetics (2019) and MSc. In Genetics (2022) at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. Her honors project titled “Comparison of diversity revealed by Y-STR Profiling of South Indians and Zulus in the Durban region using Y-filer Plus Amplification kit” focused on investigating genetic variability between Indian and Zulu males using forensic genetic techniques. Her Masters in Genetics focused on the genetic analysis of the cytochrome c region in Nguni × Nondescript cattle Populations in KwaZulu-Natal. She has recently joined the Pharmacogenomics and Drug Metabolism Research group at the University of Cape Town as a PhD candidate. Her PhD project focuses on investigating the genetic variability in diabetic patients on pharmacological treatment. Her interest is in making significant contributions to the critical public health in South Africa through genetics research.