The (non-)recognition of same-sex marriage in the Recognition of Customary Marriages Act 120 of 1998

The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 provides for all people to be equal, including people of all sexual orientations, and at the same time guarantees the right to participate in the cultural life of one’s choice. This contribution examines the issue of same-sex marriage in South Africa through the combined lens of the right to equality and the right to culture. More specifically, it assesses whether same-sex couples are afforded the right to marry in accordance with their customary cultural beliefs and whether same-sex customary marriage is provided for in the Recognition of Customary Marriages Act 120 of 1998. Following an analysis of Constitutional Court jurisprudence on the right to equality and to culture, certain provisions of the Recognition Act are examined for their in-/exclusion of homosexual persons. It would appear that the only gender-neutrally phrased section in the Recognition Act dealing with customary marriages in particular is sec. 3, which lists the requirements for such marriages to be valid. Whether this was an oversight on the part of the legislature, or whether it was intentional, is uncertain. However, several other sections, notably also the definition of lobolo in sec. 1, are phrased from a distinctly heteronormative perspective. A subsequent discussion of homosexual practices in Africa serves a dual purpose. It not only debunks some prominent African leaders’ contention that homosexuality is “un-African”, but also reveals that homosexual marriage along with a number of ancillary same-sex forms of customary marriage are not catered for in the provisions of the Recognition Act. In light of these findings, the contribution concludes with recommendations for the improvement of the Recognition Act to be less exclusionary and discriminatory. It is further argued that, by adjusting the phrasing of the Act, the South African legislature stands to gain much more than affording same-sex couples recognition in customary law. It would also go a long way towards promoting a culture of tolerance towards all people, in line with what the Constitution demands

Practical challenges relating to the supervision of small estates

Previously, the supervision of the administration of deceased estates was divided along racial lines. Law reform has, however, seen the establishment of a single system that is fair to all South Africans – or is it? Following a brief contextualisation of the legal position on the supervision of deceased estates prior to, and following the definitive Moseneke judgement of 6 December 2000, this article sets out to examine whether the equality envisaged by that judgement and recent legislation pertaining to the supervision of small estates is actually being achieved.The research reveals some practical challenges, including poor service delivery at service points; banks renouncing their nomination as executor of small estates for a lack of sufficient financial benefit; the non-registration of customary marriages; the poor protection currently afforded to vulnerable minor beneficiaries of deceased estates, and the lack of a more affordable, accessible way than lengthy and costly court procedures to challenge a decision of the Master of the High Court. To address these challenges, it is recommended that service point infrastructure be strengthened; that banks be required to communicate more openly with their clients; that extensive awareness campaigns be launched on the urgent need for all customary marriages to be registered; that the agreement between government and Legal Aid South Africa, which is supposed to serve minor beneficiaries of deceased estates, be revisited, and that the possibility of an estate ombudsman be explored

Covalent allosteric inhibitors of Akt generated using a click fragment approach

Akt is a protein kinase that has been implicated in the progression of cancerous tumours. A number of covalent allosteric Akt inhibitors are known, and based on these scaffolds, a small library of novel potential covalent allosteric imidazopyridine-based inhibitors was designed. The envisaged compounds were synthesised, with click chemistry enabling a modular approach to a number of the target compounds. The binding modes, potencies and antiproliferative activities of these synthesised compounds were explored, thereby furthering the structure activity relationship knowledge of this class of Akt inhibitors. Three novel covalent inhibitors were identified, exhibiting moderate activity against Akt1 and various cancer cell lines, potentially paving the way for future covalent allosteric inhibitors with improved properties

The unresolved role of mitochondrial DNA in Parkinson's disease: an overview of published studies, their limitations, and future prospects

Parkinson's disease (PD), a progressive neurodegenerative disorder, has long been associated with mitochondrial dysfunction in both sporadic and familial forms of the disease. Mitochondria are crucial for maintaining cellular homeostasis, and their dysfunction is detrimental to dopaminergic neurons. These neurons are highly dependent on mitochondrial adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and degenerate in PD. Mitochondria contain their own genomes (mtDNA). The role of mtDNA has been investigated in PD on the premise that it encodes vital components of the ATP-generating oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) complexes and accumulates somatic variation with age. However, the association between mtDNA variation and PD remains controversial. Herein, we provide an overview of previously published studies on the role of inherited as well as somatic (acquired) mtDNA changes in PD including point mutations, deletions and depletion. We outline limitations of previous investigations and the difficulties associated with studying mtDNA, which have left its role unresolved in the context of PD. Lastly, we highlight the potential for further research in this field and provide suggestions for future studies. Overall, the mitochondrial genome is indispensable for proper cellular function and its contribution to PD requires further, more extensive investigation

Mitochondrial DNA variation in Parkinson's disease: Analysis of "out-of-place" population variants as a risk factor.

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), a potential source of mitochondrial dysfunction, has been implicated in Parkinson's disease (PD). However, many previous studies investigating associations between mtDNA population variation and PD reported inconsistent or contradictory findings. Here, we investigated an alternative hypothesis to determine whether mtDNA variation could play a significant role in PD risk. Emerging evidence suggests that haplogroup-defining mtDNA variants may have pathogenic potential if they occur "out-of-place" on a different maternal lineage. We hypothesized that the mtDNA of PD cases would be enriched for out-of-place variation in genes encoding components of the oxidative phosphorylation complexes. We tested this hypothesis with a unique dataset comprising whole mitochondrial genomes of 70 African ancestry PD cases, two African ancestry control groups (n = 78 and n = 53) and a replication group of 281 European ancestry PD cases and 140 controls from the Parkinson's Progression Markers Initiative cohort. Significantly more African ancestry PD cases had out-of-place variants than controls from the second control group (P < 0.0125), although this association was not observed in the first control group nor the replication group. As the first mtDNA study to include African ancestry PD cases and to explore out-of-place variation in a PD context, we found evidence that such variation might be significant in this context, thereby warranting further replication in larger cohorts

Ecology and epidemiology of rabies in humans, domestic animals and wildlife in Namibia, 2011-2017.

Rabies is a fatal zoonotic disease that causes a heavy burden on societies. Namibia, a country in southern Africa, is aiming at controlling the disease in its main reservoir, the domestic dog. To facilitate the implementation comprehensive information on the ecology and epidemiology of the disease and surveillance is of utmost importance. The study presented assesses the baseline data for both human and animal rabies surveillance in Namibia in recent times and establishes correlations with ecological and socio-economic data in order to provide an up-to-date picture on the epidemiology of rabies in Namibia. For instance, it was important to identify the main drivers in the epidemiology, and whether the control strategy by mass vaccination of dogs is undermined by cycles of rabies in wildlife. Rabies in humans was reported mainly from the Northern Communal Areas (NCAs), with a total of 113 cases from 2011 to 2017, representing an incidence of between 1.0 and 2.4 annual human rabies deaths per 100,000 inhabitants. Kavango, the region with the highest human rabies incidence was also the region with the lowest animal rabies surveillance intensity. Generally, the vast majority (77%) of dog samples originated from communal farm land, followed by urban areas (17%), while only a small fraction (3%) was submitted from freehold farm areas. In contrast, kudu and eland submissions were almost exclusively from freehold farmland (76%) and urban areas (19%), whereas the submission of cattle samples was evenly distributed among freehold farms (46%) and communal farm land (46%). The likelihood of sample submission decreased exponentially with distance to one of the two laboratories. Overall, 67% (N = 1,907) of all samples submitted tested rabies-positive, with the highest positivity rate observed in kudus (89%) and jackals (87%). The transmission cycle of rabies in dogs appears restricted to the northern communal areas of Namibia, whilst rabies in wildlife species is predominately reported from farmland in central Namibia, mostly affecting kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros) and livestock with a likely reservoir in wildlife canids such as jackals or bat-eared foxes. The analysis confirms the presence of two independent transmission cycles in Namibia with little geographic overlap, thus allowing for a sustainable control of rabies in dogs in the NCAs

Characterization of selected strains of mucorales using fatty acid profiles Caracterização de linhagens de mucorales através do perfil de ácidos graxos

The fatty acid profiles of several fungi of the order Mucorales (Zygomycetes), including Backusella lamprospora (Lendner) Benny and R.K. Benj., Benjaminiella youngii P.M. Kirk, Circinella simplex van Tieghem, Cunninghamella blakesleeana Lendner, Mortierella ramanniana (Möller) Linnem., Mucor circinelloides f. janssenii (Lendner) Schipper, Mycotypha microspora Fenner, Rhizomucor miehei (Cooney and R. Emerson) Schipper and Rhizomucor pusillus (Lindt) Schipper, and of Volutella sp. Fr., from the class Ascomycetes, were qualitatively analysed by gas-liquid chromatography in order to determine the taxonomic value of these chemotaxonomic markers. The fatty acids present in all strains were palmitic (16:0), oleic (18:1), linoleic (18:2) and <FONT FACE="Symbol">g</FONT>-linolenic (18:3) acid, with the exception that the latter was not found in Volutella sp. Chemotaxonomic markers for some species and genera were obtained, including a non-identified fatty acid, FAME8 (minimum and maximum retention times of 27.92 and 28.28 minutes) for Rhizomucor miehei CCT 2236 and Rhizomucor pusillus CCT 4133, and FAME3 (minimum and maximum of 16.53 and 16.61 minutes) for Benjaminiella youngii CCT 4121. The chemotaxonomic marker of the order Mucorales was the fatty acid 18:3<FONT FACE="Symbol">w</FONT>6, confirming previous data from literature. The results of the present study suggest that qualitative fatty acid analysis can be an important chemotaxonomic tool for the classification of fungi assigned to the order Mucorales (Zygomycetes).<br>O perfil de ácidos graxos de Backusella lamprospora (Lendner) Benny e R.K. Benj., Benjaminiella youngii P.M. Kirk, Circinella simplex van Tieghem, Cunninghamella blakesleeana Lendner, Mortierella ramanniana (Möller) Linnem., Mucor circinelloides f. janssenii (Lendner) Schipper, Mycotypha microspora Fenner, Rhizomucor miehei (Cooney e R. Emerson) Schipper e Rhizomucor pusillus (Lindt) Schipper, da ordem Mucorales (Zygomycetes), e Volutella sp. Fr., da classe Ascomycetes, foram analisados qualitativamente por cromatografia gás-líquida, tendo como objetivo determinar o valor taxonômico destes marcadores quimiotaxonômicos. Os ácidos palmítico (16:0), oléico (18:1), linoléico (18:2) e <FONT FACE="Symbol">g</FONT>-linolênico (18:3) foram encontrados em todas as linhagens, com exceção do último, o qual não foi encontrado na linhagem de Volutella analisada. Foram obtidos marcadores quimiotaxonômicos para algumas espécies e gêneros estudados, incluindo um ácido graxo não-identificado, FAME8 (tempos de retenção mínimo e máximo de 27,92 e 28,28 minutos) para Rhizomucor miehei CCT 2236 e Rhizomucor pusillus CCT 4133 e FAME3 (tempos de retenção mínimo e máximo de 16,53 e 16,61 minutos) para Benjaminiella youngii CCT 4121. Para a ordem Mucorales, o marcador quimiotaxonômico obtido foi o ácido graxo 18:3<FONT FACE="Symbol">w</FONT>6, confirmando dados da literatura. Os resultados do presente estudo sugerem que a análise qualitativa do perfil de ácidos graxos pode ser uma ferramenta importante na classificação de fungos da ordem Mucorales (Zygomycetes)