Dr. Michelle Lowe

Michelle Lowe is a South African microbiologist and infectious diseases researcher whose work centres on antimicrobial resistance, molecular epidemiology, and genomic surveillance of priority pathogens. Affiliated with national laboratory–based surveillance initiatives, her research supports public health responses to multidrug-resistant organisms in both hospital and community settings, with a strong focus on bloodstream infections and emerging threats.

Her publications highlight expertise in whole-genome sequencing, outbreak investigation, and resistance mechanism characterisation in organisms such as Acinetobacter baumannii, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Escherichia coli, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Notable contributions include investigations of carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales, neonatal unit outbreaks, colistin resistance, and genomic analyses of monkeypox virus, demonstrating strength in integrating molecular tools with epidemiological data.

Recent work extends into One Health research, examining antibiotic use in livestock and resistance dynamics at the human–animal interface, as well as food microbiology and metagenomics. Through national surveillance studies and applied genomic research, Lowe contributes to antimicrobial stewardship strategies, infection prevention policies, and a deeper understanding of resistance trends in South Africa.