Rate My Professor Marcia Roye

Professor Marcia Roye is the Director of the Biotechnology Centre and Associate Dean for Graduate Studies and Research in the Faculty of Science and Technology at The University of the West Indies, Mona. She holds the position of Professor of Molecular Virology and earned her Bachelor of Science and Doctor of Philosophy degrees from The UWI, Mona Campus. Throughout her career, Roye has built substantial research capacity in molecular virology, supervised 15 graduate students to completion including 7 PhDs and 8 MPhils, and trained 27 undergraduates in the field. As Associate Dean, she has transformed graduate processes by streamlining student registration and orientation, introducing six new Masters programmes, and initiating workshops on thesis writing, plagiarism, stress management, and project management. Her international collaborations include the Department of Plant Pathology at University of Wisconsin-Madison, Institute of Human Virology at University of Maryland School of Medicine, Danforth Plant Science Centre, University of Toronto Mississauga, and the International Potato Centre in Peru.

Roye's research specializes in the molecular virology of geminiviruses, particularly begomoviruses, which cause significant crop losses in the Caribbean. Her group has characterized over 24 such viruses infecting crops like red pea, broad bean, tomato, scotch bonnet pepper, cabbage, and weeds in Jamaica, as well as in Belize, Barbados, Antigua, and St. Kitts & Nevis, leading to control strategies such as resistant varieties. She has also contributed to health research through a multidisciplinary project with the Jamaican Ministry of Health and University Hospital of the West Indies, determining antiretroviral drug resistance in HIV patients to optimize treatments. With 32 peer-reviewed publications and 60 conference presentations, key works include 'Viral Threats to Fruit and Vegetable Crops in the Caribbean' (2024), 'First report of sweepoviruses infecting Ipomoea batatas L. cultivars and landraces in Trinidad' (2024), and studies on somatic embryogenesis in Ackee (2021). Awards encompass the L’Oréal-UNESCO Fellowships for Young Women in Science (2000) and Special Fellowship in the Footsteps of Marie Curie (2011, first Jamaican recipient), Fulbright Fellowship (2003), and Scientific Research Council/Shell Young Scientist Technologist award (2000). She serves on committees such as the UNESCO National Commission Science Advisory Committee, CARICOM Science Technology and Innovation Committee, American Phytopathology Society, and Caribbean Academy of Sciences.