Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases

The Department of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases is part of the School of Pathology in the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. It is a department within the school, and its work sits alongside the broader pathology and health sciences structures of the university.

Its research strengths lie in clinical microbiology, antimicrobial resistance, tuberculosis drug resistance, genomic diagnostics and molecular epidemiology. Publication activity shows work on pathogen characterisation and laboratory-based surveillance, including next generation sequencing in high-burden settings, and studies of organisms such as Vibrio cholerae and Clostridioides difficile.

Further themes include infectious disease epidemiology, pneumococcal vaccine impact and diagnostic strategies for tuberculosis. The research is focused on South Africa and other high-burden settings, connecting laboratory findings with clinical and public health questions.