Die rol van taalvaardigheid in die verband tussen matrieken universiteitsprestasie van swart eerstejaarstudente

This article highlights some of the factors that play a role in the academic success of black first year students who receive non mother-tongue education in English. Students in the Faculties of Economic and Management Sciences, Natural and Agricultural Sciences, as well as the Humanities/Law at the University of the Free State were involved in the study. It was evident that both matric performance and language ability have predictive value. It was also found that the predictive value of these variables differed between the various faculties (which implies that students’ field of study should be taken into account when decisions regarding access with success is made).Key words: language proficiency, matric performance, academic achievement, non mother-tongue education, black first year students.Hierdie artikel werp lig op sommige faktore wat ’n rol speel in die akademiese prestasie van swart eerstejaarstudente wat nie-moedertaalonderrig in Engels ontvang. Studente in die Fakulteite Ekonomiese en Bestuurswetenskappe, Natuur- en Landbouwetenskappe, asook Geesteswetenskappe/Regte aan die Universiteit van die Vrystaat is by die studie betrek. Dit het geblyk dat beide matriekprestasie en taalvaardigheid voorspellingswaarde het. Verder is ook bevind dat die voorspellingswaarde van hierdie veranderlikes verskil tussen verskillende fakulteite (wat impliseer dat studente se studieveld in ag geneem moet word wanneer besluite rakende toelating met sukses geneem word).Sleutelwoorde: taalvaardigheid; matriekprestasie; akademiese prestasie; niemoedertaalonderrig, swart eerstejaarstudente.The article is in Afrikaans

Genetic analysis of yield and flesh colour in sweetpotato

Pre-breeding information on the inheritance mechanism of important sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas L.) agronomic traits is still limited. This study aimed at assessing the inheritance of five sweetpotato agronomic traits, viz. marketable fresh root yield (MFRY) and number (MNR), total fresh root yield (TFRY) and number (TNR) and root b-carotene content (RBCC). A 5 x 5 full diallel was performed and F1 progenies, evaluated in two environments alongside the parents. The data were subjected to ANOVA and DiallelSAS-05 Griffing’s method 1. Simple Sequence Repeat (SSR) based genetic distance and cluster analysis were performed on the parental lines using Jaccard’s coefficient and the unweighted pair group method with arithmetic averages (UPGMA). Significant differences (P<0.01) were detected among the genotypes for MFRY, MNR, TFRY, TNR and RBCC. Significant general and specific combining ability (P<0.01) effects were observed for all five traits. Additive gene action was predominantly involved in the inheritance of these traits. High broad sense heritability values were observed for the four yield parameters and for RBCC. The Jaccard’s similarity coefficient indicated moderate to low genetic similarity distances among the parents, implying high diversity. The knowledge on the inheritance and diversity of the parental genotypes enables more effective choice of parents in breeding improved varieties

POPULATIONS OF SURFACE-NESTING SEABIRDS AT MARION ISLAND, 1994/95–2002/03

During the 1990s and early 2000s, populations of surface-nesting seabirds at Marion Island showed different trends, but for the majority of species numbers decreased. Reduced numbers of gentoo penguins Pygoscelis papua, eastern rockhopper penguins Eudyptes chrysocome filholi, Crozet shags Phalacrocorax [atriceps] melanogenis and probably macaroni penguins E. chrysolophus are most plausibly attributed to an altered availability of food. Decreases in numbers of dark-mantled sooty albatrosses Phoebetria fusca, light-mantled sooty albatrosses P. palpebrata, southern giant petrels Macronectes giganteus and possibly northern giant petrels M. halli may have resulted from mortality of birds in longline fisheries. However, populations of wandering Diomedea exulans and grey-headed Thalassarche chrysostoma albatrosses fluctuated around a stable level. Numbers of Subantarctic skuas Catharacta antarctica and kelp gulls Larus dominicanus breeding at Marion Island also decreased. Kerguelen Sterna virgata and Antarctic S. vittata terns remain scarce at the island. Trends for king penguins Aptenodytes patagonicus were not reliably gauged, but numbers probably remained stable or increased. There were large fluctuations in numbers of king penguin chicks surviving to the end of winter.Afr. J. mar. Sci. 25: 427–44

Using social and behavioural science to support COVID-19 pandemic response

The COVID-19 pandemic represents a massive global health crisis. Because the crisis requires large-scale behaviour change and places significant psychological burdens on individuals, insights from the social and behavioural sciences can be used to help align human behavior with the recommendations of epidemiologists and public health experts. Here we discuss evidence from a selection of research topics relevant to pandemics, including work on navigating threats, social and cultural influences on behaviour, science communication, moral decision-making, leadership, and stress and coping. In each section, we note the nature and quality of prior research, including uncertainty and unsettled issues. We identify several insights for effective response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and also highlight important gaps researchers should move quickly to fill in the coming weeks and months

Why Are Outcomes Different for Registry Patients Enrolled Prospectively and Retrospectively? Insights from the Global Anticoagulant Registry in the FIELD-Atrial Fibrillation (GARFIELD-AF).

Background: Retrospective and prospective observational studies are designed to reflect real-world evidence on clinical practice, but can yield conflicting results. The GARFIELD-AF Registry includes both methods of enrolment and allows analysis of differences in patient characteristics and outcomes that may result. Methods and Results: Patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) and ≥1 risk factor for stroke at diagnosis of AF were recruited either retrospectively (n = 5069) or prospectively (n = 5501) from 19 countries and then followed prospectively. The retrospectively enrolled cohort comprised patients with established AF (for a least 6, and up to 24 months before enrolment), who were identified retrospectively (and baseline and partial follow-up data were collected from the emedical records) and then followed prospectively between 0-18 months (such that the total time of follow-up was 24 months; data collection Dec-2009 and Oct-2010). In the prospectively enrolled cohort, patients with newly diagnosed AF (≤6 weeks after diagnosis) were recruited between Mar-2010 and Oct-2011 and were followed for 24 months after enrolment. Differences between the cohorts were observed in clinical characteristics, including type of AF, stroke prevention strategies, and event rates. More patients in the retrospectively identified cohort received vitamin K antagonists (62.1% vs. 53.2%) and fewer received non-vitamin K oral anticoagulants (1.8% vs . 4.2%). All-cause mortality rates per 100 person-years during the prospective follow-up (starting the first study visit up to 1 year) were significantly lower in the retrospective than prospectively identified cohort (3.04 [95% CI 2.51 to 3.67] vs . 4.05 [95% CI 3.53 to 4.63]; p = 0.016). Conclusions: Interpretations of data from registries that aim to evaluate the characteristics and outcomes of patients with AF must take account of differences in registry design and the impact of recall bias and survivorship bias that is incurred with retrospective enrolment. Clinical Trial Registration: - URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov . Unique identifier for GARFIELD-AF (NCT01090362)

Improved risk stratification of patients with atrial fibrillation: an integrated GARFIELD-AF tool for the prediction of mortality, stroke and bleed in patients with and without anticoagulation.

OBJECTIVES: To provide an accurate, web-based tool for stratifying patients with atrial fibrillation to facilitate decisions on the potential benefits/risks of anticoagulation, based on mortality, stroke and bleeding risks. DESIGN: The new tool was developed, using stepwise regression, for all and then applied to lower risk patients. C-statistics were compared with CHA2DS2-VASc using 30-fold cross-validation to control for overfitting. External validation was undertaken in an independent dataset, Outcome Registry for Better Informed Treatment of Atrial Fibrillation (ORBIT-AF). PARTICIPANTS: Data from 39 898 patients enrolled in the prospective GARFIELD-AF registry provided the basis for deriving and validating an integrated risk tool to predict stroke risk, mortality and bleeding risk. RESULTS: The discriminatory value of the GARFIELD-AF risk model was superior to CHA2DS2-VASc for patients with or without anticoagulation. C-statistics (95% CI) for all-cause mortality, ischaemic stroke/systemic embolism and haemorrhagic stroke/major bleeding (treated patients) were: 0.77 (0.76 to 0.78), 0.69 (0.67 to 0.71) and 0.66 (0.62 to 0.69), respectively, for the GARFIELD-AF risk models, and 0.66 (0.64-0.67), 0.64 (0.61-0.66) and 0.64 (0.61-0.68), respectively, for CHA2DS2-VASc (or HAS-BLED for bleeding). In very low to low risk patients (CHA2DS2-VASc 0 or 1 (men) and 1 or 2 (women)), the CHA2DS2-VASc and HAS-BLED (for bleeding) scores offered weak discriminatory value for mortality, stroke/systemic embolism and major bleeding. C-statistics for the GARFIELD-AF risk tool were 0.69 (0.64 to 0.75), 0.65 (0.56 to 0.73) and 0.60 (0.47 to 0.73) for each end point, respectively, versus 0.50 (0.45 to 0.55), 0.59 (0.50 to 0.67) and 0.55 (0.53 to 0.56) for CHA2DS2-VASc (or HAS-BLED for bleeding). Upon validation in the ORBIT-AF population, C-statistics showed that the GARFIELD-AF risk tool was effective for predicting 1-year all-cause mortality using the full and simplified model for all-cause mortality: C-statistics 0.75 (0.73 to 0.77) and 0.75 (0.73 to 0.77), respectively, and for predicting for any stroke or systemic embolism over 1 year, C-statistics 0.68 (0.62 to 0.74). CONCLUSIONS: Performance of the GARFIELD-AF risk tool was superior to CHA2DS2-VASc in predicting stroke and mortality and superior to HAS-BLED for bleeding, overall and in lower risk patients. The GARFIELD-AF tool has the potential for incorporation in routine electronic systems, and for the first time, permits simultaneous evaluation of ischaemic stroke, mortality and bleeding risks. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier for GARFIELD-AF (NCT01090362) and for ORBIT-AF (NCT01165710)

Two-year outcomes of patients with newly diagnosed atrial fibrillation: results from GARFIELD-AF.

AIMS: The relationship between outcomes and time after diagnosis for patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) is poorly defined, especially beyond the first year. METHODS AND RESULTS: GARFIELD-AF is an ongoing, global observational study of adults with newly diagnosed NVAF. Two-year outcomes of 17 162 patients prospectively enrolled in GARFIELD-AF were analysed in light of baseline characteristics, risk profiles for stroke/systemic embolism (SE), and antithrombotic therapy. The mean (standard deviation) age was 69.8 (11.4) years, 43.8% were women, and the mean CHA2DS2-VASc score was 3.3 (1.6); 60.8% of patients were prescribed anticoagulant therapy with/without antiplatelet (AP) therapy, 27.4% AP monotherapy, and 11.8% no antithrombotic therapy. At 2-year follow-up, all-cause mortality, stroke/SE, and major bleeding had occurred at a rate (95% confidence interval) of 3.83 (3.62; 4.05), 1.25 (1.13; 1.38), and 0.70 (0.62; 0.81) per 100 person-years, respectively. Rates for all three major events were highest during the first 4 months. Congestive heart failure, acute coronary syndromes, sudden/unwitnessed death, malignancy, respiratory failure, and infection/sepsis accounted for 65% of all known causes of death and strokes for <10%. Anticoagulant treatment was associated with a 35% lower risk of death. CONCLUSION: The most frequent of the three major outcome measures was death, whose most common causes are not known to be significantly influenced by anticoagulation. This suggests that a more comprehensive approach to the management of NVAF may be needed to improve outcome. This could include, in addition to anticoagulation, interventions targeting modifiable, cause-specific risk factors for death. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT01090362

Risk profiles and one-year outcomes of patients with newly diagnosed atrial fibrillation in India: Insights from the GARFIELD-AF Registry.

BACKGROUND: The Global Anticoagulant Registry in the FIELD-Atrial Fibrillation (GARFIELD-AF) is an ongoing prospective noninterventional registry, which is providing important information on the baseline characteristics, treatment patterns, and 1-year outcomes in patients with newly diagnosed non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). This report describes data from Indian patients recruited in this registry. METHODS AND RESULTS: A total of 52,014 patients with newly diagnosed AF were enrolled globally; of these, 1388 patients were recruited from 26 sites within India (2012-2016). In India, the mean age was 65.8 years at diagnosis of NVAF. Hypertension was the most prevalent risk factor for AF, present in 68.5% of patients from India and in 76.3% of patients globally (P < 0.001). Diabetes and coronary artery disease (CAD) were prevalent in 36.2% and 28.1% of patients as compared with global prevalence of 22.2% and 21.6%, respectively (P < 0.001 for both). Antiplatelet therapy was the most common antithrombotic treatment in India. With increasing stroke risk, however, patients were more likely to receive oral anticoagulant therapy [mainly vitamin K antagonist (VKA)], but average international normalized ratio (INR) was lower among Indian patients [median INR value 1.6 (interquartile range {IQR}: 1.3-2.3) versus 2.3 (IQR 1.8-2.8) (P < 0.001)]. Compared with other countries, patients from India had markedly higher rates of all-cause mortality [7.68 per 100 person-years (95% confidence interval 6.32-9.35) vs 4.34 (4.16-4.53), P < 0.0001], while rates of stroke/systemic embolism and major bleeding were lower after 1 year of follow-up. CONCLUSION: Compared to previously published registries from India, the GARFIELD-AF registry describes clinical profiles and outcomes in Indian patients with AF of a different etiology. The registry data show that compared to the rest of the world, Indian AF patients are younger in age and have more diabetes and CAD. Patients with a higher stroke risk are more likely to receive anticoagulation therapy with VKA but are underdosed compared with the global average in the GARFIELD-AF. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION-URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT01090362

The effect of the addition of a lactic acid bacterial inoculant to maize at ensiling on silage composition, silage intake, milk production and milk composition

CITATION: Meeske, R., et al. 2002. The effect of the addition of a lactic acid bacterial inoculant to maize at ensiling on silage composition, silage intake, milk production and milk composition. South African Journal of Animal Science, 32(4):263-270.The original publication is available at https://www.sasas.co.za/The aim of the study was to determine the effect of the addition of a lactic acid bacterial inoculant to maize at ensiling on the fermentation dynamics during ensiling, aerobic stability of the silage as well as the intake, milk production and milk composition of Jersey cows fed maize silage diets. The inoculant contained Lactobacillus plantarum and Pediococcus acidilactici as well as amylase. Maize was ensiled in laboratory and bunker silos. The inoculant did not result in a more rapid lowering of the pH or a more rapid lactic acid production compared to untreated maize silage made in laboratory silos. Both the control and inoculated maize silages were well preserved with a pH of 3.57 and 3.62, a lactic acid concentration of 66 and 63 g/kg DM and an ammonia nitrogen concentration of 5.88 and 5.10 g/100 g of total nitrogen respectively. No butyric acid was found in either untreated or inoculated maize silage. The maize silages made in the bunker silos were well preserved with a DM of 283 and 307 g/kg silage, pH of 3.50 and 3.51, lactic acid of 37.0 and 35.3 g/kg DM for the control and inoculated maize silage, respectively. The addition of the inoculant to maize at ensiling improved the palatability, intake and the aerobic stability of maize silage compared to the untreated control maize silage. The intake of untreated and inoculated maize silage by Jersey cows was 7.6 and 8.4 kg DM/day for the control and inoculant treatment, respectively. Milk production, milk composition, live weight and condition score of Jersey cows was not significantly affected by the addition of the inoculant to maize silage.https://www.sasas.co.za/journals/the-effect-of-the-addition-of-a-lactic-acid-bacterial-inoculant-to-maize-at-ensiling-on-silage-composition-silage-intake-milk/Publisher's versio

The Prince Edward Islands Millennium Expedition: News and views

An expedition to survey bird and seal populations on the Prince Edward Islands took place from 11 to 31 December 2001. The first priority was to undertake a count of the breeding birds during the peak of the summer breeding season. An additional objective was to obtain estimates of the numbers of fur seals (Arctocephalus species) breeding at Prince Edward Island