Profession & Current Position
Professor of Cell Biology, Department of Human Biology, University of Cape Town

Area of Expertise

• Cancer cell and molecular biology, focusing on mechanistic drivers of tumour initiation and progression.
• Oncogenic T-box transcription factors TBX2 and TBX3 in cancer: their roles in senescence bypass, proliferation, invasion, migration, DNA repair and therapy resistance, their interactions with key partners (e.g. nucleolin, HPV proteins), and the development of TBX2/3-targeted therapies (drug repurposing, natural products, aptamers and other preclinical strategies).
• Drug repurposing for cancer, including repositioning non-cancer drugs (e.g. anti-malarial and anti-psychotic agents) for anti-tumour activity.
• Natural product-based therapeutics, especially marine-derived compounds with anti-cancer potential.
• Organometallic/PGM complexes (e.g. palladacycles) as early-lead anti-cancer compounds in multiple tumour types.
• Human Papilloma Virus (HPV)-related oncogenesis and cooperation between viral oncoproteins and host factors in cervical and other cancers.
• Academic leadership and capacity building in cancer research, including large-scale grant management and postgraduate/postdoctoral training.

Declaration of Interests