Marguerite Blignaut is a principle investigator within the Centre for Cardio-metabolic Research in Africa (CARMA), Division of Medical Physiology at Stellenbosch University.

Her research focus on mitochondrial dysfunction in obesity and cardiovascular disease. She has a broad background in genetics (MSc Genetics, SU) and biochemistry with training in mitochondrial function, in vivo and ex vivo cardiovascular function analysis in animal models of obesity, and in vitro cell culture model development. During her PhD, for which she received the prestigious Harry Crossley bursary, she also visited the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) to visit Rutherford Appleton Laboratories (RAL) in the UK for three months as a Newton-funded sandwich student, where she furthered her training in advanced microscopy and cell culture techniques. Dr Blignaut obtained her PhD in Medical Physiology from Stellenbosch University in 2019, and continued with a post-doctoral fellowship, for which she received the National Research Foundation Innovation Post-doctoral fellowship (2019-2020). She also returned to RAL as a visiting scientist during that time, and has since been employed as a researcher at Stellenbosch University.

She most recently led the second-ever research team from Africa on a month-long research visit to the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Janelia research campus in the USA. Dr Blignaut is currently developing a novel 3-dimensional insulin-resistant cardiovascular models to study mitochondrial dysfunction. This exciting project, funded with an NRF Thuthuka award (2022-2025), and MRC Early Investigators programme (2025-2027), has contributed to collaborations with a wide range of scientists, including physicists and engineers.

She was awarded the Discovery Best Oral presentation award at SA Heart in 2022 and has been recognized as a next-generation researcher within CARMA. In 2024, she was was awarded the Excellence in Research and Innovation award in the Early Researcher Career category by Stellenbosch University.

Marguerite also serves on the South African Society for Cardiovascular Research (SASCAR) executive committee, a special interest group.