Lutho Menyane
Lutho Menyane is enrolled as an MSc student the field of andrology at the University of the Western Cape (UWC). In matric Menyane earned distinctions in life sciences, isiXhosa and life orientation. In the first year of her BSc degree, Menyane received a merit award for her exceptional marks, and was nominated to be a member of the Golden Key Honour Society, which honours top achieving students.
After completing her BSc in 2013, Ms Menyane did a BSc honours in 2014 at UWC with funding support from the NRF. Her BSc honours research focused on the effects of botanical resources indigenous to Southern Africa on prostate cancer cells. This research was based on the claims made by traditional healers that a certain plant’s leaves had cancer-fighting properties. The results obtained are being used by Menyane’s colleagues to establish the effects the plant has on other cancer cells.
Menyane, eager to join the ranks of South African scientists who carry out ground-breaking medical science research, enrolled for a master’s degree in 2015. Her research focuses on understanding how the mechanisms of metabolic syndrome/diabetes cause dysfunction in the male reproductive system, and the potential protective role of traditionally used plants. The research is being conducted in the andrology laboratory of the medical bioscience department at UWC.
On the social responsibility front, Menyane was a mentor for Partners in Sexual Health, a nongovernmental organisation that works to bridge the gap between sexual and reproductive health research and intervention programmes to improve effective, evidence-based practices. She is also part of the Emerging Leaders Programme at UWC.