UCT professor wins international award for TB work

The €500,000 award, made by the Institute's Academy of Sciences, is considered a highly prestigious international accolade and will be presented to Mizrahi at a ceremony in Paris on 5 June 2013.

Member of the Academy of Sciences, Pascale Cossart, has paid tribute to Mizrahi's work: "What characterises Valerie Mizrahi's work is not only her excellent research on mycobacterium tuberculosis and tuberculosis, but also her very active involvement in the tuberculosis community in South Africa, on the African continent and internationally."

The Academy of Sciences, which makes awards to the most meritorious scientists and promising research projects, also lauded Mizrahi for her special qualities in mentoring students, particularly those engaged in TB research.

"Valerie's work is characterised by an incredible ability to engage with students in research, through supervising and coaching. The way she does this is widely acknowledged," said Cossart.

Hiring researchers with prize money

Mizrahi said: "For me the most gratifying part of it is that the award committee recognised my commitment to, and passion for, developing people. I've trained so many young scientists - and this award is for them."

Mizrahi plans to use most of the prize money on hiring senior researchers who are able to bring new skills to the laboratory that she runs with IIDMM colleague, Digby Warner, particularly in chemical biology and bioinformatics.

"Given the shortage of career opportunities for outstanding early-career scientists who are interested in pursuing a career in biomedical research in South Africa, I believe this would be a great investment.

"I also plan to purchase some laboratory equipment and provide opportunities for students from our laboratory to travel abroad for specialised training."

Prior to joining UCT in 2011 as director of the IIDMM, Mizrahi was based at the University of the Witwatersrand and National Health Laboratory Service in Johannesburg.