Lupenga Mphande, Crackle at Midnight (Poems), Ibadan: Heinemann Educational Books (Nigeria) Pie. 1998, 147pp. (paperback)

Lupenga Mphande, Crackle at Midnight (Poems), Ibadan: Heinemann Educational Books (Nigeria) Pie. 1998, 147pp. (paperback

An exploration of menstruation hygiene management among high school learners: the case of Fezeka High School, Gugulethu

Menstruation is an issue of great importance. Today, despite menstruation being a natural process, it affects the education of girls. A qualitative study was conducted in Gugulethu, where face to face interviews were conducted with nineteen girls from Fezeka High school. The purpose of the study was to explore menstruation hygiene management among high school learners. Specifically, the study explored the experience of menstruation hygiene, the challenges faced during menstruation, coping mechanisms during menstruation and the support system available for menstruating girls. The study adopted a qualitative design because such an approach helps in examining a phenomenon from the subject's perspective. The findings established that girls knew about menstruation before the first onset. A mother or grandmother was a commonly mentioned source of information on menstruation. The study further showed that most girls use sanitary materials supplied by a mother or guardian, during menstruation. It showed that challenges that girls experienced include: emotional changes; physical discomfort (stomach cramps, tiredness, and loss of appetite); public shame; changes in social interactions and inadequate sanitation hygiene facilities. Additionally, the study showed that most girls still attend school during menstruation. The girls coped by wearing many clothes to prevent leaks; constantly checking their skirts; sitting differently on the chairs and taking medication to relieve menstrual pain. Friends were also found to help in alleviating the challenges faced by the girls; they were the main social support system for girls during menstruation. However, while school attendance was maintained, class participation was shown to be affected because of discomfort and menstrual pains. Based on the research findings, the study concluded that there is inadequate sanitation and hygiene for girls to comfortably change sanitary materials and there is a lack of communication on menstrual hygiene management between the girls and their teachers. As such, integrating menstruation hygiene management in the curriculum and providing for appropriate facilities to ensure privacy is recommended

The impact of democratisation on state media system in Zambia : the case of The Times newspapers

This thesis explores the manner in which political-economic forces born of democratisation have shaped media developments in Zambia, affected the welfare of journalists and the viability of the state owned press epitomised by the Times Newspapers. The aim is to inform the privatisation policy discourse. Using a political economy analysis, the thesis unveils the historical intimacy between nationalist administrations and multinational business elites and how these forces - often working in collusion - influenced patterns of media ownership, inhibited labour rights and controlled communicative activity – indicative of how the state and markets can constrain freedom of expression and association, despite democratisation. The thesis contends that the uncertainty of neo-patrimonial conditions that characterised the post colonial era has not dissipated to a great extent and continues to undermine media and institutional reform in today’s liberally inclined Zambia. Pervasive clientelism has also compromised popular perceptions of state media systems, subverting competitiveness and the propagandist function of the Times Newspapers in the liberalised market, a point empirically illustrated through the analysis of market and public opinion data.Communication ScienceD. Litt. et Phil. (Communication

The role played by alkaline phosphatase in lipid droplet formation in different lipid-storing cell types

Thesis (Ph.D. (Chemical Pathology))--University of the Witwatersrand, Faculty of Health Sciences, 2012Alkaline phosphatases (ALPs) are a group of membrane-bound glycoproteins that occur in many species of animals and have a wide tissue distribution. ALPs have been shown to play a role in cell differentiation and organogenesis. In humans, the physiological role of ALP in skeletal mineralization is well documented. In routine clinical practice, ALP measurement is frequently used in the differential diagnosis of liver and bone diseases. Studies have shown the presence of tissue non-specific ALP (TNSALP) activity in rat adipocytes, human preadipocytes and in a murine preadipocytic cell line, 3T3-L1. ALP has also been shown to play a role in adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 cells and human preadipocytes. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether the ALP that is expressed in a human hepatocarcinoma cell line, HepG2 has a role in intracellular lipid accumulation. Intracellular lipid droplet accumulation in HepG2 cells was induced by addition of oleic acid coupled to albumin (Sigma-Aldrich, UK) to culture medium (Earle’s Minimum Essential Medium [EMEM]) and used at a final concentration of 400M. Tissue non-specific ALP inhibitors (levamisole and histidine) inhibited ALP activity and intracellular lipid accumulation in both the 3T3-L1 and HepG2 cells. Post-transcriptional silencing of the tissue non-specific alkaline phosphatase (TNSALP) gene using siRNA oligos inhibited intracellular lipid accumulation in both 3T3-L1 and HepG2 cells. In both cell lines, the ALP mRNA levels decreased in cells transfected with the anti-ALP siRNA compared to untransfected cells. This decrease in gene expression was mirrored by a corresponding fall in ALP activity in both cell lines. Quantification of the expression levels of the peroxisome proliferator activated receptor gamma (PPAR) gene (an important regulator of adipogenesis) using real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (real-time qPCR) showed an upward regulation of its expression four days after induction of intracellular lipid droplet accumulation in both cell types after which the levels declined. Neither levamisole nor histidine affected the expression of PPAR. Immunostaining of HepG2 cells with monoclonal antibodies against adipophilin and staining for ALP using the ELF 97 kit (Molecular Probes, Holland) demonstrated that ALP activity was localized to the surface of the lipid droplet membrane. A previous investigation has shown that ALP activity is higher in preadipocytes isolated from black compared to white females. Investigation of single nucleotide polymorphisms in the promoter region of the human TNSALP gene shows that genetic variation in the ALP promoter is not responsible for the ethnic differences in ALP activity observed in black and white South Africans. In conclusion, the close association of ALP activity with the lipid droplet membrane in HepG2 and 3T3-L1 cells and the ability to block intracellular lipid accumulation using sequence specific oligonucleotides for ALP and pharmacological agents (histidine & levamisole) strongly indicates that ALP is involved in intracellular lipid accumulation in HepG2 cells and 3T3-L1 cells. This study also shows that PPAR gene expression increases during lipid accumulation in HepG2 cells but that inhibition of ALP with histidine or levamisole does not affect the expression of this gene. Thus, ALP must act downstream of PPAR during intra-cellular lipid accumulatio

Proximate Composition, Mineral Composition and Phytic Acid in Three Common Malawian White Rice Grains

Rice is the second most important food crop in Malawi, after maize. Some studies have reported on losses of macro- and micronutrients in rice grains subjected to different polishing rates. In this study, the proximate composition, mineral contents and phytic acid profile of three white (i.e. polished) rice varieties in Malawi were investigated. Proximate composition was determined by adopting AOAC method. Mineral contents were determined using flame atomic absorption spectrophotometer and phytic acid determined using standard procedures. The results show that proximate composition for the three varieties were variable in the with ranges being 9.35-10.42%, 0.69-0.90%, 5.43-7.03%, 0.72-1.71%, 1.42-3.15%, 81.41-82.45% and 39.56-42.10%, for moisture, ash, crude protein, crude fat, crude fibre, carbohydrate and energy content, respectively. Significant amounts of minerals were present in all three rice varieties in the ranges: 5.19-7.81 mg/100g for calcium; 30.21-40.32 mg/100g for magnesium; 216-268 mg/100g for potassium; 0.33-0.58 mg/100g for manganese; 0.77-1.40 mg/100g for zinc; 0.26-0.47 mg/100g for copper; and .83-2.49 mg/100g for iron. Phytic acid ranged between 93.10 and 204.92 mg/100g in all the three rice varieties, whereas heavy metals such as lead, chromium and cadmium were not detected in all varieties. The results suggest that the white rice varieties could serve as an alternative source of food for humans and animals after quality processing. Keywords: Malawian White Rice Grains, Proximate Composition, Minerals, Nutrient Content, Phytic Acid

Insights into Social and Institutional Innovations for Enhancing Energy Decentralisation and Climate Change Mitigation in Developing Countries

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) require state and non-state actors to reduce the vulnerability of communities to climate related extreme events, and other economic, social and environmental shocks; and for universal access to modern energy by 2030. Achieving this will require implementing new radical approaches to accelerate decen¬tralised energy services provision. Through an analysis of data from various research articles, policy briefs and project reports, the paper discovered that polycentric governance systems can enhance Africa's renewable energy institutional capacity and create new social systems to facilitate successful climate change mitigation and energy transitions for universal energy access. Moreover, despite the presence on various climate finance mechanisms to promote transitions towards low carbon development, in the absence of restrictive supply-side policy instruments targeting fossil fuels, Africa will be locked-in fossil fuel energy supply systems rather than directly leapfrogging from little or no energy infrastructure directly to low carbon energy supply systems

Hepatitis B virus seroprevalence among Malawian medical students: A cross-sectional study

Background: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) predominantly spreads through contact with infected blood or other body fluids and causes liver disease. HBV vaccination for students at the College of Medicine, University of Malawi, is done without screening for the virus. It is important to assess the prevalence of HBV antigens among foundation-year students in order to consolidate evidence in support of HBV screening before vaccination. The aim of this study was to determine the seroprevalence of HBV antigens among 2013-2014 foundation-year students at the University of Malawi College of Medicine.Methods: A prospective cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted among 2013-2014 foundation year students at the Malawi College of Medicine. Out of the 234 foundation-year students, written consent was obtained from 89 students. Venous blood samples were collected and tested for HBV surface antigen using SD Bioline immunochromatographic rapid assays.Results: Out of the 62 (69.7%) male students, none tested HBV-positive, and out of 27 (30.3%) female students, none were seropositive. This suggested the absence of HBsAg among students or presence of HBsAg levels below detectable limits.Conclusions: This study showed levels of HBsAg below detectable limits among healthy young adults in Malawi. HBV screening for medical students should further be assessed to ensure adequate protection before they are assigned clinical duties. These findings provide enough grounds to agitate for further surveys to support the establishment of a universal HBV immunisation programme in Malawi

Fighting HIV/AIDS: Reconfiguring the State?

The author wishes to thank the anonymous reviewers of the article and the ESRC for funding part of this research