A collaborative auto-ethnographic exploration of socially just practices by new academics in two South African higher education institutions

Challenges experienced in the higher education context require new academics to engage with issues of social justice in their pedagogical practices. This article focuses on such challenges and how these are met by the authors, who are new academics from two higher education institutions in South Africa. Using a collaborative auto-ethnographic approach to analyse and interpret practices from different disciplines and higher education institutions, critical insights into “response-able pedagogies” are highlighted. “Response-able pedagogies” may be described as those which foreground attentiveness, responsibility, curiosity and capability, are used as a lens to examine the pedagogical practices of the authors, as new academics. This lens is useful in that it illuminates ethical dimensions of how a socially just pedagogy might be enacted in disparate South African higher education contexts. Issues of language, academic literacies, resources, employability, cultural diversity, large classes, and student abilities are reflected upon in relation to new academics’ engagement with socially just pedagogies. The article is intended to be a useful resource specifically, but not exclusively for, new academics entering the field of higher education in South Africa

SARS-CoV-2 variant Alpha has a spike-dependent replication advantage over the ancestral B.1 strain in human cells with low ACE2 expression

Epidemiological data demonstrate that Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) variants of concern (VOCs) Alpha and Delta are more transmissible, infectious, and pathogenic than previous variants. Phenotypic properties of VOC remain understudied. Here, we provide an extensive functional study of VOC Alpha replication and cell entry phenotypes assisted by reverse genetics, mutational mapping of spike in lentiviral pseudotypes, viral and cellular gene expression studies, and infectivity stability assays in an enhanced range of cell and epithelial culture models. In almost all models, VOC Alpha spread less or equally efficiently as ancestral (B.1) SARS-CoV-2. B.1. and VOC Alpha shared similar susceptibility to serum neutralization. Despite increased relative abundance of specific sgRNAs in the context of VOC Alpha infection, immune gene expression in infected cells did not differ between VOC Alpha and B.1. However, inferior spreading and entry efficiencies of VOC Alpha corresponded to lower abundance of proteolytically cleaved spike products presumably linked to the T716I mutation. In addition, we identified a bronchial cell line, NCI-H1299, which supported 24-fold increased growth of VOC Alpha and is to our knowledge the only cell line to recapitulate the fitness advantage of VOC Alpha compared to B.1. Interestingly, also VOC Delta showed a strong (595-fold) fitness advantage over B.1 in these cells. Comparative analysis of chimeric viruses expressing VOC Alpha spike in the backbone of B.1, and vice versa, showed that the specific replication phenotype of VOC Alpha in NCI-H1299 cells is largely determined by its spike protein. Despite undetectable ACE2 protein expression in NCI-H1299 cells, CRISPR/Cas9 knock-out and antibody-mediated blocking experiments revealed that multicycle spread of B.1 and VOC Alpha required ACE2 expression. Interestingly, entry of VOC Alpha, as opposed to B.1 virions, was largely unaffected by treatment with exogenous trypsin or saliva prior to infection, suggesting enhanced resistance of VOC Alpha spike to premature proteolytic cleavage in the extracellular environment of the human respiratory tract. This property may result in delayed degradation of VOC Alpha particle infectivity in conditions typical of mucosal fluids of the upper respiratory tract that may be recapitulated in NCI-H1299 cells closer than in highly ACE2-expressing cell lines and models. Our study highlights the importance of cell model evaluation and comparison for in-depth characterization of virus variant-specific phenotypes and uncovers a fine-tuned interrelationship between VOC Alpha- and host cell-specific determinants that may underlie the increased and prolonged virus shedding detected in patients infected with VOC Alpha

Comparing the effect of hydroxyethyl starch 130/0.4 with balanced crystalloid solution on mortality and kidney failure in patients with severe sepsis (6S-Scandinavian Starch for Severe Sepsis/Septic Shock trial): Study protocol, design and rationale for a double-blinded, randomised clinical trial

Peer reviewe

Death in long-term care: focus groups and interviews identify strategies to alleviate staff burnout

Context: Interdisciplinary long-term care staff are being challenged with increasing numbers of resident deaths as well as complex resident and family needs. Studies warn that staff responses to the stress generated by residents’ deaths can lead to increased ill health, sick time, burnout, and attrition. Objectives: To alleviate and prevent workplace stress and burnout in staff related to long-term care resident deaths. Methods: Participatory action research design. Qualitative individual interviews and focus groups were carried out within five long-term care homes, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Findings: Two key themes emerged: Challenges Staff Experienced and Supporting Action Strategies. Challenges are reported under five sub-themes: 1) Differing Expectations, 2) Communication, 3) Acknowledgement, 4) Support, and 5) Education. Supporting Action Strategies to minimize the impact of resident death on staff are presented under four sub-themes: 1) the Individual: Practice self-care, awareness, mindfulness; 2) Team: Enhance end-of-life comfort for residents, strengthen support for families, maximize the use of palliative and spiritual care; 3) Organization: Nurture supportive leadership, improve communication, education, resources and 4) Higher learning: Build palliative care/emotional preparation into the curriculum and promote long-term care as a specialist area of healthcare. Limitations: Results may not generalize to other practice contexts; long-term care homes studied are part of a faith-based organization. Implications: Long-term care policy and system changes are needed to support interdisciplinary care staff and provide them with tools, resources, and supports to prevent burnout and cope with the increasing stress of working in long-term care

Relationship of Photosynthetic Activity of <i>Polygonum acuminatum</i> and <i>Ludwigia lagunae</i> with Physicochemical Aspects of Greywater in a Zero-Liquid Discharge System

Landscape harmony is a key factor in the application of nature-based solutions to provide green areas. The search for plants that meet this requirement is crucial in this context. We evaluated the adaptation, resistance, and performance of Polygonum acuminatum and Ludwigia lagunae, macrophytes from the Pantanal biome, in greywater-fed mesocosms simulating zero-liquid discharge systems. Four irrigation solutions were tested for 212 d. Neither species exhibited stress conditions in the adaptation phase, with photosynthetic activity (Fv/Fm) close to that obtained in Pantanal. However, over time, the mesocosms irrigated with greywater (GW) without nutrient supplementation exhibited stress according to correlation analyses of photosystem PSII and physicochemical parameters; L. lagunae for dissolved oxygen below 3 mg L−1 and P. acuminatum for water temperatures above 27 °C. Supplementation of GW with nutrients resulted in good growth and performance. Both species were able to receive high chemical oxygen demand (COD) loads, averaging 34 g m−2 day−1 for L. lagunae and 11 g m−2 day−1 for P. acuminatum, with an average removal of 85% by both. L. lagunae had better evapotranspiration capacity, with greater potential for use in cooling islands, whereas P. acuminatum showed a more resistant metabolism without nutrient supplementation

Antimicrobial activity of Pantanal macrophytes against multidrug resistant bacteria shows potential for improving nature-based solutions

The presence of macrophytes in constructed wetlands (CW) applied within the concept of nature-based solution (NBS) is crucial. Besides their role in the phytoremediation of pollutants, the cultivated plants, if properly selected, can also produce a range of bioactive compounds, including those with potential inhibitory effects against pathogenic bacteria. Bioactive compounds, such as flavonoids and ellagitannins, known for their remarkable antimicrobial properties, offer a sustainable solution to the global challenge of antibiotic resistance. In this study, we investigated macrophyte species adapted to the water variations in the Pantanal region (flood and dry seasons), focusing on those with both antimicrobial and ornamental potential, that could improve the ability of a CW system to treat greywater. Seven different macrophyte species were collected, cultivated, and evaluated for their antimicrobial activity (AA) against five standard bacterial strains and five multidrug-resistant clinical bacterial strains. Extracts from the leaf, stem, and root of Polygonum acuminatum showed the best AA against clinical multidrug-resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecium, and Escherichia coli, with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values ranging from 78.13 to 312.5 µg.mL−1. Furthermore, the leaves of Ludwigia lagunae and P. acuminatum also showed considerable AA against standard strains of Enterococcus faecalis (MIC = 19.5 and 39.06 µg.mL−1, respectively) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MIC = 156.25 µg.mL−1 for both). High-Performance Liquid Chromatography with Ultraviolet and Mass Spectrometry analysis of these extracts identified important bioactive compounds, including flavonoids (quercetin 3-rhamnoside, hydropiperoside, quercetin 3-O-rutinoside, quercetin, myricetin 3-O-rhamnoside, kaempferol 3-O-rhamnoside, formononetin, and calycosin) and ellagitannins (3,3′4-tri-O-methylelagic acid, galloys-HHDP-glucose, and ellagic acid), along with other bioactive compounds. These results indicate that P. acuminatum and L. lagunae hold potential for application in CW owing to their antimicrobial property, local adaptability, and ornamental appeal