Dr Nicolene Jooste

Lecturer
Name: Nicolene Jooste
Location: 2304H John Orr Building Doornfontein Campus
Human Anatomy and Physiology Staff  Staff Members

Contact Details:
Tel: +27 011 559 6502

Email: njooste@uj.ac.za

About Dr Nicolene Jooste

Highest Qualification:

PhD (Wits)

Biography:

Dr. Nicolene Jooste obtained her PhD in Anatomical Sciences from the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa, in 2021. Additionally, she will be graduating with her Postgraduate Diploma in Research Supervision in March 2025 from the University of Johannesburg, South Africa.

In addition to her teaching responsibilities, in which she emphasises evidence-based, active-learning strategies to enhance student engagement and comprehension, Dr. Jooste is dedicated to research that enhances the quality of anatomy education. To support her students’ practical learning, she successfully secured funding to develop 3D-printed osteology kits, providing hands-on experience beyond the traditional laboratory setting. She is currently preparing several manuscripts that explore themes of early predictors of academic success in first-year anatomy, and the integration of multidisciplinary approaches in anatomy teaching.

Dr. Jooste’s research expertise lies in osteology, with a particular focus on human variation and forensic applications of the skeleton. She has successfully supervised three master’s students to completion and currently oversees three PhD students, with an additional master’s student set to join in 2025. Her engagement with the broader anatomical community includes serving as an external examiner for undergraduate and postgraduate programs, and reviewer of various international journal manuscripts.

Expertise/ Research Interest:

Anatomy (including Gross Anatomy, Embryology, Histology); Physical Anthropology (including Osteology, Forensic Anthropology and Age-at-death Estimation)

Research Niche:

Physical Anthropology (niche): Age-at-death estimation; Forensic Anthropology

Medical Education (secondary research interest)

Publications:

ORCID:              0000-0001-5678-1035

Scopus ID:       57191414873

VM Thompson, C Hay, C Yelverton, N Jooste. 2024. Bipartition of the atlanto-occipital joint surfaces in a South African population. Translational Research in Anatomy; Vol 37, 100355. DOI: 10.1016/j.tria.2024.100355

N Jooste, M Steyn. 2023. The first rib as a method of adult age-at-death estimation in a modern South African sample. International Journal of Legal Medicine; Vol 137(3), pp 743-752. DOI: 10.1007/s00414-023-02978-3

TMR Houlton, N Jooste, M Steyn, J Hemingway. 2022. Visualising trends in dentition to lip mouth morphology using geometric morphometrics. PlosONE; Vol 17(3), pp e0274127. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0274127

N Jooste, S Pretorius, M Steyn. 2022. Performance of three mathematical models for estimating age-at-death from multiple indicators of the adult skeleton. International Journal of Legal Medicine; Vol 136, pp 739 – 751. DOI: 10.1007/s00414-021-02727-4

TMR Houlton, N Jooste, M Steyn. 2021. Testing regression and mean model approaches to facial soft tissue thickness estimation. Medicine, Science and the Law; Vol 61(3), pp 170-179. DOI: 10.1177/0025802420977018

TMR Houlton, N Jooste, A Uys, M Steyn. 2020. Lip height estimation in a southern African sample. South African Dental Journal; Vol 75(8), pp 415-424. DOI: 10.17159/2519-0105/2020/v75no8a1

TMR Houlton, N Jooste, M Steyn. 2020. Mouth width and cupid’s bow estimation in a southern African population. Journal of Forensic Sciences; Vol 65(2), pp 372-379. DOI: 10.1111/1556-4029.14207

N Jooste, EN L’Abbé, S Pretorius, M Steyn. 2016. Validation of transition analysis as a method of adult age estimation in a modern South African sample. Forensic Science International; Vol 266, pp 580.e1-e7. DOI: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2016.05.020