Dr Koketso Mogwera

Koketso S.P Mogwera is a Postdoctoral Research fellow in the biology division of H3D. She works on structure-based design of novel antimalarial agents.

The project entails application of mechanistic enzymology and structural biology principles to investigate a class of kinases from Plasmodium falciparum as potential targets for the development of antimalarials. Koketso obtained her Master's in Science (MSc.) in Biochemistry from the University of Johannesburg in 2015. Her MSc. dissertation focused on the secondary structure determination of N-terminal domains of human linker histones. She obtained a PhD in Biochemistry from Stellenbosch University where she was introduced to the world of membrane biophysics. Her PhD thesis focused on membrane permeability and transport studies of Coenzyme A, its precursors and metabolites. Koketso has always had a passion for drug discovery research, and she identifies with H3D's mission to discover and develop innovative, lifesaving medicines for communicable diseases that predominantly affect African patients. Koketso is excited about her work at H3D as she gets to contribute insights that can aid efforts to combat Malaria – A tropical disease that disproportionately affects the African continent.