Marietjie Venter obtained a PhD in Medical Virology at the University of the Witwatersrand in 2003. From 2005-2012 she established a research programme at the University of Pretoria on respiratory and vectorborne oonotic viruses. She holds a joint appointment since 2009 as Associate Professor, Zoonosis Research Unit, Medical Virology, UP and Co-director of the Centre for Respiratory Diseases and Meningitis, NICD.