Valentine Saasa

Valentine Saasa obtained a BSc honours in biochemistry in 2012 at the University of Limpopo, where she specialised in medicinal plant extraction for diabetes mellitus management. In 2016, she received an MSc in biochemistry cum laude from UJ, with the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) as a sponsor. Her master’s project was aimed at developing a technology to allow diabetic patients to check their glucose levels without using needles. She is enrolled for a PhD in biochemistry at UJ and is doing her research project at the CSIR.

Saasa’s PhD research focuses on screening different nanomaterials for their potential use in the non-invasive diagnosis and monitoring of diseases such as diabetes mellitus and cancer. She hopes to replace the current methods for diagnosing diabetes and monitoring the blood glucose of diabetic patients, which involves the use of blood tests that can accidentally infect patients with other diseases, especially in South Africa, where HIV is a prevalent blood-borne illness. Saasa is also interested in ensuring that patients monitor their disease by providing a cost-effective and pain-free device, which requires only breath to measure glucose levels.

She has published articles in the Journal of Diabetes Science and Technology (in press) and articles and a book chapter in Sensors and Transducers, and her presentation on the “Detection of acetone in diabetes mellitus using gas chromatography mass spectrometry and tungsten oxide” was published in conference proceedings. Saasa presented her work in the area of nanotechnology for the development of sensors for disease detection. She has co-authored one technology demonstration titled “Development and calibration of breath analyser device for diabetics, liver failure and kidney failure”.

Saasa has been interviewed on several radio stations about her innovative research. She was one of five young South African women researchers chosen by the British Council and the Academy of Science of South Africa to attend a Best Practice in Science Communication UK study tour in 2016. This was the culmination of the Women in Science project, part of the British Council’s Professional Development and Engagement programme under the UK-SA Newton Fund.