Survival of vine mealybug, Planococcus ficus (Signoret) (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae), on grapevine root remnants in soil in the Western Cape Province, South Africa

Grapevine leafroll is the most damaging grapevine virus disease in South Africa, and the primary vector of Grapevine leafroll-associated virus 3 (GLRaV-3) is vine mealybug, Planococcus ficus (Signoret). Preventing re-infection of newly planted, virus-free grapevines is critical to control and prevent the spread of leafroll disease. Results from a previous survey raised concern that mealybugs surviving on leafroll-infected root remnants in the soil could transmit the virus to newly planted grapevines. This study aimed to determine if P. ficus commonly occurs on grapevine roots in the Western Cape Province of South Africa, if and for how long it can survive on remnant roots in soil, and if it can transmit GLRaV-3 to healthy grapevines after surviving on remnant roots. Surveys to determine the occurrence of mealybugs on grapevine roots were conducted at different times of the growing season in vineyards near Robertson, McGregor, Montagu, Somerset West and Malmesbury over three seasons. A field trial was conducted on a sand-clay-loam soil with 23% clay and a sandy-loam soil with 10% clay over 12 months to determine survival of different life stages of vine mealybug confined on root sections from leafroll-infected Pinotage/R110 grapevines. Resultsindicate that P. ficus does not readily occur on grapevine roots in the Western Cape, and that it does not survive well on root remnants of grapevines for any length of time. Implications for planting virus-free grapevines in soil where leafroll-infected vines were removed, are discussed

Academic Library Consortia in South Africa : where we come from and where we are heading

The purpose of this article is to give an overview of the establishment of the five academic library consortia in South Africa, their status quo, and a summary of their successes and plans for the future. Although useful information can be found from the consortia Web sites, much of it is no longer current. Similarly, there is limited published literature on the academic library consortia in South Africa. Apart from the sources referenced, the authors therefore relied heavily on an unpublished conference paper by Thomas[reference 1], which included findings gathered during a short survey among the five academic library consortia. In addition, Rowley and Slack[reference 2] and Sekabembe[reference 3] provide useful overviews of the library consortia in South Africa at the time of publication. Further information is available in published and unpublished sources

Introduction: Public Values and Public Participation in Decision-Making in Times of Privatisation

__Abstract__ Privatisation poses challenges to the manner in which public values, such as accessibility, affordability, reliability, safety and sustainability, can be secured. In liberal societies the state, legitimised through democratic elections (input legitimacy) and the rule of law upheld by courts (output legitimacy), was traditionally regarded as the entity responsible for securing such values – although these values were perceived rather thinly. During the second half of the 20th century, with the role of the state expanding and public values conceived more thickly, the perception emerged that democratic elections and courts upholding the rule of law were not sufficient for legitimising the exercise of public power by states and that concerned members of the public should play a direct role in securing public values. As a result, public participation in the national context – here defined as consisting of the following elements: transparency (including access to information), public participation in decision-making, and access to courts or court-like institutions – emerged as a tool for securing public values, as well as checking, and thereby legitimising (input legitimacy), the exercise of public power by the state

Promoting deeper learning in pharmacy education using team-based learning

Background. The benefit of deep learning compared with surface learning is the ability to retrieve, apply and integrate previously learnt knowledge rather than simply memorising course content most likely to be evaluated during assessments. Team-based learning (TBL) is an educational strategy that echoes the purpose of deeper learning. Objectives. To identify whether TBL as a teaching strategy increases pharmacy students’ understanding of theoretical work. Method. Fourth-year pharmacy students completed a questionnaire consisting of biographical data (gender, age and ethnicity) and 16 questions on their understanding of course content. A total of 183 students (91.5%) participated after giving informed consent that their data may be included in the study. Results. The results indicated that, due to the implementation of TBL in the course, students perceived that they learnt more and made more effort, experienced increased understanding of content, perceived higher knowledge retention, performed better during assessments in the module where TBL was implemented and felt that course outcomes were achieved more easily. Conclusion. TBL as a teaching strategy could potentially promote deeper learning of course content

The metabolic syndrome and renal function in an African cohort infected with human immunodeficiency virus

Introduction: The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is often accompanied by renal dysfunction. It is expected that metabolic syndrome (MetS) may exacerbate renal impairment.Objective: We therefore determined the prevalence of MetS and the association thereof with renal function in a South African cohort infected with HIV.Methods: We matched 114 HIV-infected (77.3% on antiretroviral therapy [ART] and 22.7% ART-naïve) and 114 HIV-uninfected individuals according to age, sex and locality. We examined cardiovascular, anthropometric and metabolic measurements and determined the MetS. Renal function was assessed using standardised procedures.Results: The prevalence of MetS was lower in the HIV-infected individuals as compared to the uninfected individuals (28% vs. 44%, p = 0.013). The HIV-infected group presented with a lower body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC) (all p < 0.001), as well as blood pressure (BP) ( p ≤ 0.0021). The results were confirmed when comparing the HIV-infected group using ART (N = 85) and the HIV-uninfected group. When comparing the HIV-infected individuals with MetS to the HIV-uninfected individuals with MetS, no differences in BP were seen. With regard to renal function, the HIV-infected individuals with MetS (n = 32) had 43% higher urinary albumin-creatinine ratio (uACR) compared to the HIV-uninfected individuals with MetS, after adjusting for age, sex and WC (p = 0.032). None of the other renal function markers differed after adjustments for WC or BMI.Conclusion: The HIV-infected Africans with MetS had almost twofold higher uACR, despite the low prevalence of MetS, compared to their uninfected counterparts. The combination of HIV and MetS seemed to increase the risk for renal impairment

How South African open distance learning students use social media: a survey

Various studies have been conducted on the use of social media but there is a gap in the literature with regard to social media use in South Africa as well as the difference in social media usage between Generation Y and older students. Thus the main purpose of this article is to determine how open distance learning (ODL) students use social media and if age makes a difference in social media usage. An online self-administered questionnaire was sent to a sample of first year ODL students via email that consisted of a Likert scale that surveyed how they used social media. The results indicate that students mostly use social media for entertainment purposes. A slight difference in the use of social media by Generation Y students and older students are found. Generation Y use social media mainly for entertainment purposes whereas older students indicate that they use it more for information seeking purposes. By taking these results into consideration, organizations can develop more tailored marketing messages to the consumers in the different age groups. If they want to reach Generation Y with a marketing message it should be more entertaining. Whereas marketing message aimed at older students should be in the form of more informative message

Non-Standard Workers: The South African Context, International Law and Regulation by The European Union

The current labour market has many forms of employment relations that differ from full-time employment. "Atypical," "non-standard," or even "marginal" are terms used to describe these new workers and include, amongst others, parttime work, contract work, self-employment, temporary, fixed-term, seasonal, casual, piece-rate work, employees supplied by employment agencies, home workers and those employed in the informal economy. These workers are often paid for results rather than time. Their vulnerability is linked in many instances to the absence of an employment relationship or the existence of a flimsy one. Most of these workers are unskilled or work in sectors with limited trade union organisation and limited coverage by collective bargaining, leaving them vulnerable to exploitation. They should, in theory, have the protection of current South African labour legislation, but in practice the unusual circumstances of their employment render the enforcement of their rights problematic. The majority of non-standard workers in South Africa are those previously disadvantaged by the apartheid regime, compromising women and unskilled black workers. The exclusion of these workers from labour legislation can be seen as discrimination, which is prohibited by almost all labour legislation in South Africa. This contribution illustrates how the concept of indirect discrimination can be an important tool used to provide labour protection to these workers. The purpose of this article is to explore the scope of the extension of labour rights to non-standard workers in the context of South African labour laws and the international framework.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN BLUE COLLAR EMPLOYEE FATIGUE, LEVEL OF SUBSTANCE USE, ABSENTEEISM BASED ON THE DEMOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION OF EMPLOYEES

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN BLUE COLLAR EMPLOYEE FATIGUE, LEVEL OF SUBSTANCE USE, ABSENTEEISM BASED ON THE DEMOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION OF EMPLOYEE

In vitro fertilisation when normal sperm morphology is less than fifteen per cent: Results of in vitro fertilisation and embryo transfer at H. F. Verwoerd Hospital, Pretoria

The outcome of in vitro fertilisation and embryo transfer in 90 couples where the husband's normal sperm morphology was less than 15% were analysed. Based on the percentage of morphologically normal spermatozoa the patients were divided into three groups: group A - normal morphological features 0 - 5%; group B - 6 - 10%; and group C - 11 - 14%. A control group had normal morphological features ≥ 15%. The fertilisation rate and number of embryos transferred was not significantly different in these groups. However, the pregnancy rate per embryo transfer was significantly different for groups A and B compared with group C and the control group (0% and 5,9% for groups A and B v. 13,9% and 18,3% for group C and the control group, respectively). It is concluded that when the normal sperm morphology is less than 11% the prospect of a pregnancy is poor