When University of Pretoria (UP) lecturer Tshimangadzo “Tshima” Ramakuwela went for a job interview at the Agricultural Research Council, she was asked to transfer mealworms from one dish to another. “With bare hands?” she asked in horror. “Sorry, I can’t. I am terrified.”

When she asked for forceps, her request was declined because working with worms and feeding them would be part of her job as a research technician. Nevertheless, she got the job.

Today, having moved up the ranks, Dr Ramakuwela is a nematologist – a specialist in the scientific discipline of the study of nematodes or roundworms. About 18 months ago, she joined UP as a lecturer in plant pathology in the Department of Plant and Soil Sciences in the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, where she leads its nematology research.

“I enjoy the fact that i'm transfering this knowledge to students from undergraduate teaching to postgraduate projects,” she says. “UP uses advanced teaching techniques and methods for efficiency.”

She also pays credit to UP’s international connections.

“Since I’ve been here, I don't know how many emails came through with opportunities to collaborate, apply for funding and so much more, such that I feel UP has been the best place to be thus far.”

Dr Ramakuwela’s research focuses on entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) found in the soil. These microscopic roundworms have a symbiotic relationship with a type of bacteria, which cannot live independently. EPNs are so special because they act as natural pesticides.

“They kill insect pests that destroy crops,” Dr Ramakuwela says, “and they’re being researched as a potentially safe and environmentally friendly alternative to chemical pesticides.”

This includes being biocontrol agents for diseases such as fusarium head blight (FHB) of wheat, which is ranked fourth in the world in terms of destructive fungal diseases.

“Moreover, FHB produces mycotoxins that are harmful to humans and animals,” Dr Ramakuwela says. “In South Africa, we don't have any registered chemical or biological agent to control this disease. We’re in a race to develop an indigenous EPN biological agent, and you can just imagine the excitement to see who will be first to develop a product.”

Dr Ramakuwela is a hot contender to achieve this honour.

Her research for her master’s degree at the University of KwaZulu-Natal was so innovative and of such value and depth that it was upgraded to a PhD. It involved developing a mass production protocol for a new species of these nematodes, with an estimated retail price of about R90, which is far lower when compared to available international EPN products at R271 to R459.

Despite all the hype about the potential role of these worms in revolutionising agricultural crop protection – they also have pharmaceutical and medical applications – they are so tiny that if they were in a glass of water, you would not know, as they cannot be seen with the naked eye.

“You could drink that water, and nothing would happen to you – they are harmless,” she says.

Dr Ramakuwela is at the forefront of international research on EPNs. In April, she was part of the international organising committee for the conference titled Celebrating 100 Years of the 1st EPN discovery, held in Logroño, Spain.

“Anybody you have cited or met at a conference, as well as my mentors from Turkey and from the US, attended the anniversary,” Dr Ramakuwela says.

These mentors are the scientists who helped her with her initial studies, as EPNs are still a new research field in South Africa. Not only did Dr Ramakuwela review abstracts to be presented at the Spanish conference, but she also chaired a session on commercialisation and presented a paper on EPNs taking root in South Africa.

“The importance of this research cannot be overemphasised, as farmers are desperate for alternatives to the use of chemicals,” she says.

She is no stranger to international exposure. In 2017, Dr Ramakuwela spent three months in Atlanta in the US when she was awarded the Borlaug International Agricultural Science and Technology Fellowship, learning advanced techniques in EPN research.

The fellowship also provided the chance to attend the annual World Food Prize Symposium, which regularly attracts over 1 000 participants from more than 50 countries. It has been referred to as “the premier conference in the world on global agriculture”, and Dr Ramakuwela describes it as the “one event that everybody in the agricultural sector dreams about”.

Her career is on the ascent, despite having entered academia fairly recently and in a way, almost indirectly.

“From 2001 until 2007 I didn’t register to study anything,” she says, referring to the period between completing a National Diploma in Biotechnology at former Wits Technikon and graduating with a B Tech at the Vaal University of Technology. 

Despite not studying during this time, she was hardly lounging about: she was hard at work, exploring different fields using her biotechnological skills and insights in diverse industries – propagating medicinal plants, analysing samples and monitoring beer brewing, and ensuring quality control of foodstuffs such as mayonnaise and margarine.

From the moment she joined the Agricultural Research Council, after that unforgettable interview with the worms, she blossomed. One month into her job, she was offered a bursary to study further, and she has not stopped achieving.

Dr Ramakuwela says being a woman in science is very demanding. She is constantly being chastised “for being too busy”, she says. Culturally, being a woman goes hand in hand with child-raising responsibilities, and she had to work through her maternity leave “to push her research” she says. When she was doing her PhD research on a farm, her two children would camp there all day while she conducted her experiments.

“It is a constant struggle to juggle your work and family responsibilities,” she says. “My favourite quote by Maya Angelou, which has stuck with me throughout, is: ‘When you know better, you do better.’ Knowledge is power, and to the girls and women of South Africa, I would like to say empower yourselves with knowledge and do better.”

She pushes herself in all aspects of her life, even away from the lecture hall and lab. She loves hiking and takes part in a major one every year. The toughest one she has done thus far is the Moshoeshoe Walk in Lesotho – 116km in three days.

“If you know the terrain in Lesotho…,” she says. And last year, she did the Fish River Canyon in Namibia. Ever keen for a challenge, Dr Ramakuwela says, “Next on the bucket list is Mount Kilimanjaro.”