Dr Marleen Kock

Marleen Kock obtained her BSc, BSc Hons (cum laude), MSc (cum laude) and PhD at the University of Pretoria in the Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology.  After completion of her PhD she worked as a contract researcher at the Sappi Biotechnology Institute (Innovation Hub) until 2006 when she was appointed as a post-doctoral fellow in the Department of Medical Microbiology.  In July 2007 she was jointly appointed as a lecturer / senior medical scientist in the Department of Medical Microbiology (UP/NHLS). 

She has published 13 research papers and handbook chapters.

IRT-related research

Marleen Kock's research focuses on antimicrobial resistance mechanisms of several pathogens, which include those responsible for healthcare-associated infections (Klebsiella pneumoniae, Escherichia coli, Acinetobacter baumannii, vancomycin-resistant enterococci and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus), tuberculosis (multi-drug and extremely drug resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis) as well as sexually transmitted infections (Trichomonas vaginalis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae).  Her first genomics project will focus on metronidazole-resistant Trichomonas vaginalis.

Key publications

Ehlers MM, Veldsman C, Makgotlho EP, Dove MG, Hoosen AA, Kock MM (2009) Detection of bla_SHV, bla_TEM and _blaCTX-M antibiotic resistance genes in randomly selected bacterial pathogens from the Steve Biko Academic Hospital. FEMS Immunology and Medical Microbiology 56:191-196.

Halima M Said, Marleen M Kock, Nazir A Ismail, Kamaldeen Baba, Shaheed V Omar, Ayman G Osman, Anwar A Hoosen and Marthie M Ehlers (2012). Molecular characterization and second-line anti-TB drug-resistance patterns of multidrug resistant tuberculosis isolates from the northern region of South Africa.  Journal of Clinical Microbiology 50(9):2857-2862