Pub Date : 2023-08-31DOI: 10.17159/sajs.2023/16608
M. Marchetti-Mercer
limited electricity supply by installing inverters, generators and solar panels in their homes and workplaces. The constant disruptions brought about by blackouts have led to an overwhelming sense of frustration and uncertainty, as people feel they have no control of their lives and environment. Breakages, cable theft, and sabotage exacerbate the situation by adding unscheduled outages, some for as long as 10 days. Outages are also increasingly leading to water shortages as reservoirs cannot refill in the short periods between outages, and to telecommunication problems. Significantly, such disruptions in work and educational activities, as well as in the domestic domain, have been shown internationally to increase psychological distress. 7 Disruption in electricity supply potentially further affects people’s physical health, which can in turn increase people’s risk of developing mental health problems. At the most basic level, food safety is affected as constant refrigeration cannot be guaranteed, placing people at risk of food poisoning and diarrhoeal diseases. Water purification systems also require electricity to function optimally, so load shedding leaves people without water or facing the threat of contaminated water. 7 South Africa has recently experienced a cholera outbreak and the contamination of rivers and sea water in different provinces, because sewage plants did not have electricity. 8,9
{"title":"Resilience is not enough: The mental health impact of the ongoing energy crisis in South Africa","authors":"M. Marchetti-Mercer","doi":"10.17159/sajs.2023/16608","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.17159/sajs.2023/16608","url":null,"abstract":"limited electricity supply by installing inverters, generators and solar panels in their homes and workplaces. The constant disruptions brought about by blackouts have led to an overwhelming sense of frustration and uncertainty, as people feel they have no control of their lives and environment. Breakages, cable theft, and sabotage exacerbate the situation by adding unscheduled outages, some for as long as 10 days. Outages are also increasingly leading to water shortages as reservoirs cannot refill in the short periods between outages, and to telecommunication problems. Significantly, such disruptions in work and educational activities, as well as in the domestic domain, have been shown internationally to increase psychological distress. 7 Disruption in electricity supply potentially further affects people’s physical health, which can in turn increase people’s risk of developing mental health problems. At the most basic level, food safety is affected as constant refrigeration cannot be guaranteed, placing people at risk of food poisoning and diarrhoeal diseases. Water purification systems also require electricity to function optimally, so load shedding leaves people without water or facing the threat of contaminated water. 7 South Africa has recently experienced a cholera outbreak and the contamination of rivers and sea water in different provinces, because sewage plants did not have electricity. 8,9","PeriodicalId":21928,"journal":{"name":"South African Journal of Science","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2023-08-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45947455","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"综合性期刊","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-08-31DOI: 10.17159/sajs.2023/16661
J. Bantjes, L. Swartz
) 2 and “toll” ( The Daily Maverick ) 3 which imply that load shedding will lead to mental health casualties, while also framing mental illness as an inevitable and certain consequence of load shedding ( Times Live ) 4 . Crucially, some reports distort the available evidence to fit their account of a crisis by overreaching on what can be concluded from empirical data, as we discuss below. Even more worrying is the potential conflation of something which is clearly disruptive and bad for society (i
{"title":"Load shedding and mental health in South Africa: Methodological challenges of establishing causal links","authors":"J. Bantjes, L. Swartz","doi":"10.17159/sajs.2023/16661","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.17159/sajs.2023/16661","url":null,"abstract":") 2 and “toll” ( The Daily Maverick ) 3 which imply that load shedding will lead to mental health casualties, while also framing mental illness as an inevitable and certain consequence of load shedding ( Times Live ) 4 . Crucially, some reports distort the available evidence to fit their account of a crisis by overreaching on what can be concluded from empirical data, as we discuss below. Even more worrying is the potential conflation of something which is clearly disruptive and bad for society (i","PeriodicalId":21928,"journal":{"name":"South African Journal of Science","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2023-08-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45100462","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"综合性期刊","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-08-08DOI: 10.17159/sajs.2023/15648
Sibusiso Biyela, Ntokozo N. Msomi, Anina Mumm
{"title":"South African iLukuluku podcast shows we can talk about science in African languages","authors":"Sibusiso Biyela, Ntokozo N. Msomi, Anina Mumm","doi":"10.17159/sajs.2023/15648","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.17159/sajs.2023/15648","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":21928,"journal":{"name":"South African Journal of Science","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2023-08-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44451127","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"综合性期刊","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-08-08DOI: 10.17159/sajs.2023/16307
G. Ellis
{"title":"Brian Warner (1939–2023): Astronomer, historian and academic leader","authors":"G. Ellis","doi":"10.17159/sajs.2023/16307","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.17159/sajs.2023/16307","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":21928,"journal":{"name":"South African Journal of Science","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2023-08-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44776683","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"综合性期刊","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-08-08DOI: 10.17159/sajs.2023/16294
L. Manderson, Susan Levine
Biomedical laboratory and field scientists, as well as social scientists, in South Africa and elsewhere on the continent, responded to the challenges of COVID-19 with speed. African-wide experience with infectious disease, and the networks and infrastructure to conduct new research and implement field trials, were part of the global effort to contain the pandemic. But in order to contribute, scientists necessarily set aside ongoing research, including on some of the most persistent infections – HIV, TB, malaria. This situation highlights the precarity of science research programmes and the challenges of sustaining research capacity when agendas, funds and acknowledgements reinforce global inequalities.
{"title":"COVID-19 research and science infrastructure in South Africa","authors":"L. Manderson, Susan Levine","doi":"10.17159/sajs.2023/16294","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.17159/sajs.2023/16294","url":null,"abstract":"Biomedical laboratory and field scientists, as well as social scientists, in South Africa and elsewhere on the continent, responded to the challenges of COVID-19 with speed. African-wide experience with infectious disease, and the networks and infrastructure to conduct new research and implement field trials, were part of the global effort to contain the pandemic. But in order to contribute, scientists necessarily set aside ongoing research, including on some of the most persistent infections – HIV, TB, malaria. This situation highlights the precarity of science research programmes and the challenges of sustaining research capacity when agendas, funds and acknowledgements reinforce global inequalities.","PeriodicalId":21928,"journal":{"name":"South African Journal of Science","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2023-08-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43577557","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"综合性期刊","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-08-08DOI: 10.17159/sajs.2023/13846
Hafizu Muhammed, J. Balogun, M. Dogara, B. Adewale, Abdulganiyu A. Ibrahim, Chinedu B. Okolugbo, Graham Jackson
Schistosomiasis is a neglected tropical disease. Sub-Saharan Africa accounts for 93% of the world’s 207 million schistosomiasis cases. Urogenital schistosomiasis and malaria are both public health problems in Nigeria, where they are endemic. We determined the co-prevalence of urogenital schistosomiasis and malaria in schoolchildren and assessed its implication on anaemia and malnutrition. This cross-sectional study was conducted amongst primary schoolchildren in the Warwade, Saya Saya and Jigawar daha villages of Nigeria. Urine samples were collected to detect Schistosoma haematobium eggs, and finger prick blood was used for haemoglobin concentration and malaria diagnosis. Nutritional status was assessed using anthropometric measurements and a pre-tested questionnaire. The overall prevalence and density of S. haematobium were 27.7% and 9 eggs/10 mL, respectively, with significant differences between villages and sexes. The prevalence of malaria and infection density was 10.4% and 330 mps/μL, respectively. Co-infection prevalence was 3.3%. Anaemia prevalence was 66%, with significant variation across villages and between sexes. Prevalence of stunting, underweight, and wasting was 41.7%, 46%, and 29.7%, respectively. Mean haemoglobin concentrations in Plasmodium and children co-infected with urogenital schistosomiasis were significantly lower than those who were negative for the infection. No significant association was observed between malnutrition and single or co-infection of urogenital schistosomiasis and malaria. After adjusting for variables associated with anaemia, village of residence remained a significant predictor of anaemia. Water contact activities, such as fishing, swimming, and irrigation, emerged as independent risk factors of S. haematobium infection.
{"title":"Co-infection of urogenital schistosomiasis and malaria and its association with anaemia and malnutrition amongst school children in Dutse, Nigeria","authors":"Hafizu Muhammed, J. Balogun, M. Dogara, B. Adewale, Abdulganiyu A. Ibrahim, Chinedu B. Okolugbo, Graham Jackson","doi":"10.17159/sajs.2023/13846","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.17159/sajs.2023/13846","url":null,"abstract":"Schistosomiasis is a neglected tropical disease. Sub-Saharan Africa accounts for 93% of the world’s 207 million schistosomiasis cases. Urogenital schistosomiasis and malaria are both public health problems in Nigeria, where they are endemic. We determined the co-prevalence of urogenital schistosomiasis and malaria in schoolchildren and assessed its implication on anaemia and malnutrition. This cross-sectional study was conducted amongst primary schoolchildren in the Warwade, Saya Saya and Jigawar daha villages of Nigeria. Urine samples were collected to detect Schistosoma haematobium eggs, and finger prick blood was used for haemoglobin concentration and malaria diagnosis. Nutritional status was assessed using anthropometric measurements and a pre-tested questionnaire. The overall prevalence and density of S. haematobium were 27.7% and 9 eggs/10 mL, respectively, with significant differences between villages and sexes. The prevalence of malaria and infection density was 10.4% and 330 mps/μL, respectively. Co-infection prevalence was 3.3%. Anaemia prevalence was 66%, with significant variation across villages and between sexes. Prevalence of stunting, underweight, and wasting was 41.7%, 46%, and 29.7%, respectively. Mean haemoglobin concentrations in Plasmodium and children co-infected with urogenital schistosomiasis were significantly lower than those who were negative for the infection. No significant association was observed between malnutrition and single or co-infection of urogenital schistosomiasis and malaria. After adjusting for variables associated with anaemia, village of residence remained a significant predictor of anaemia. Water contact activities, such as fishing, swimming, and irrigation, emerged as independent risk factors of S. haematobium infection.","PeriodicalId":21928,"journal":{"name":"South African Journal of Science","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2023-08-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45720362","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"综合性期刊","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-08-08DOI: 10.17159/sajs.2023/14269
John B. Noonoo, F. Hasford, E. Sosu
We aimed to produce a simple, inexpensive 3D printed phantom as a prototype for image quality assessment of contrast, contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR), signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and resolution in planar X-ray imaging systems. The test phantom was designed using SOLIDWORKS software, printed with a polylactic acid material and filled with paraffin wax. Circular aluminium sheets were used as inserts for contrast evaluation. A planar X-ray system was used for imaging and DICOM images were evaluated using ImageJ software. We evaluated spatial resolution, contrast, CNR and SNR. For resolution, full width at half maximum (FWHM) was measured on different grid sizes. For contrast, intensity of grey values and standard deviation were calculated on the different grid sizes. For CNR and SNR, difference in greyscale of investigated tissue and background per standard deviation of noise in the background was calculated. Resolution of the system was evaluated to be 1.57 and 1.80 lp/mm on grids A and B respectively. Contrast showed differential attenuation per variation in thickness. CNR increased from −13.7 for a thickness of 0.00 mm to 24.90 for a thickness of 28 mm. CNR did not change for a thickness greater than 16.0 mm. The SNR of the system fell in the acceptable range of ≥ 5 . The results from the analyses performed indicate that the test phantom has great potential to be a good substitute for the commercially available phantoms on the market, especially for low-resource settings.
{"title":"Three-dimensional image quality test phantom for planar X-ray imaging","authors":"John B. Noonoo, F. Hasford, E. Sosu","doi":"10.17159/sajs.2023/14269","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.17159/sajs.2023/14269","url":null,"abstract":"We aimed to produce a simple, inexpensive 3D printed phantom as a prototype for image quality assessment of contrast, contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR), signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and resolution in planar X-ray imaging systems. The test phantom was designed using SOLIDWORKS software, printed with a polylactic acid material and filled with paraffin wax. Circular aluminium sheets were used as inserts for contrast evaluation. A planar X-ray system was used for imaging and DICOM images were evaluated using ImageJ software. We evaluated spatial resolution, contrast, CNR and SNR. For resolution, full width at half maximum (FWHM) was measured on different grid sizes. For contrast, intensity of grey values and standard deviation were calculated on the different grid sizes. For CNR and SNR, difference in greyscale of investigated tissue and background per standard deviation of noise in the background was calculated. Resolution of the system was evaluated to be 1.57 and 1.80 lp/mm on grids A and B respectively. Contrast showed differential attenuation per variation in thickness. CNR increased from −13.7 for a thickness of 0.00 mm to 24.90 for a thickness of 28 mm. CNR did not change for a thickness greater than 16.0 mm. The SNR of the system fell in the acceptable range of ≥ 5 . The results from the analyses performed indicate that the test phantom has great potential to be a good substitute for the commercially available phantoms on the market, especially for low-resource settings.","PeriodicalId":21928,"journal":{"name":"South African Journal of Science","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2023-08-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42015728","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"综合性期刊","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-08-08DOI: 10.17159/sajs.2023/16278
K. Tomaselli
{"title":"Academic xenophobia in South Africa – issues, challenges and solutions: Reflections on an ASSAf Roundtable","authors":"K. Tomaselli","doi":"10.17159/sajs.2023/16278","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.17159/sajs.2023/16278","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":21928,"journal":{"name":"South African Journal of Science","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2023-08-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43686691","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"综合性期刊","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-08-08DOI: 10.17159/sajs.2023/13160
Bongiwe P. Mshengu, Cordelia Z. Buthelezi, R. Moodley
Cissus rotundifolia (Forssk.) Vahl. (Vitaceae) is a wild plant that is commonly used by communities from rural areas as a food and medicine. There are limited studies on the phytochemical composition and the impact of soil quality on the elemental distribution in this plant. In this study, we report a phytochemical analysis to identify the phytocompounds responsible for the reported biological activities of C. rotundifolia. We also examined the impact of soil quality on elemental uptake by the edible parts of C. rotundifolia collected from eight geographical locations in KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa) to assess the nutritional benefits and potential heavy metal toxicities. Three secondary metabolites (stigmasterol, β-sitosterol, and pheophytin a) were isolated, and their structures were characterised by high-resolution mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance data. The plant was found to contribute adequately to the recommended dietary allowances for essential nutrients without exceeding tolerable upper intake limits and with low concentrations of toxic heavy metals. The average concentrations of microelements in the edible parts were found to be in decreasing order of Fe>Mn>Se>Zn>Cu>Cr>Ni>Co. The bioaccumulation factors indicate that the plant controls the uptake of metals from the soil and would make a good indicator and biological monitor for cadmium toxicity. However, a health risk assessment exposed carcinogenic risks on regular consumption of the plant obtained from sites close to pollution sources, such as roads and landfills. The findings from this study show the synergies when consuming medicinal plants and provide evidence for C. rotundifolia as a nutraceutical.
{"title":"Elemental, phytochemical, and toxicological assessment of Cissus rotundifolia (Forssk.) Vahl","authors":"Bongiwe P. Mshengu, Cordelia Z. Buthelezi, R. Moodley","doi":"10.17159/sajs.2023/13160","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.17159/sajs.2023/13160","url":null,"abstract":"Cissus rotundifolia (Forssk.) Vahl. (Vitaceae) is a wild plant that is commonly used by communities from rural areas as a food and medicine. There are limited studies on the phytochemical composition and the impact of soil quality on the elemental distribution in this plant. In this study, we report a phytochemical analysis to identify the phytocompounds responsible for the reported biological activities of C. rotundifolia. We also examined the impact of soil quality on elemental uptake by the edible parts of C. rotundifolia collected from eight geographical locations in KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa) to assess the nutritional benefits and potential heavy metal toxicities. Three secondary metabolites (stigmasterol, β-sitosterol, and pheophytin a) were isolated, and their structures were characterised by high-resolution mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance data. The plant was found to contribute adequately to the recommended dietary allowances for essential nutrients without exceeding tolerable upper intake limits and with low concentrations of toxic heavy metals. The average concentrations of microelements in the edible parts were found to be in decreasing order of Fe>Mn>Se>Zn>Cu>Cr>Ni>Co. The bioaccumulation factors indicate that the plant controls the uptake of metals from the soil and would make a good indicator and biological monitor for cadmium toxicity. However, a health risk assessment exposed carcinogenic risks on regular consumption of the plant obtained from sites close to pollution sources, such as roads and landfills. The findings from this study show the synergies when consuming medicinal plants and provide evidence for C. rotundifolia as a nutraceutical.","PeriodicalId":21928,"journal":{"name":"South African Journal of Science","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2023-08-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43801440","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"综合性期刊","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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