A critical arts-based narrative of five educators working in higher education during an era of transformation in South Africa

In this paper I explore creative ways to engage critically with educator identity and experience during an era of transformation and decolonisation. I have written it as an illustrated arts-based narrative that revolves around the experiences of five educators working at the University of the Free State between 2014 and 2016. The narrative was created as part of a collaborative research project in which participants shared their experiential knowledge of anti-oppressive practice. In working with these portraits of five South African educators, I explore the connections between educator identity and social justice in the broader South African higher educational landscape as the call for transformation and decolonisation intensifies. The narrative is intended to trouble the identities and experiences of educators as they make their way through this messy terrain in an attempt to learn from uncertainty and crisis

Having fun seriously matters: A visual arts-based narrative of methodological inventiveness

The purpose of this article is to explore of what methodological inventiveness has made possible for me as a self-reflexive researcher. As South African educational researchers, we need to consider how a better understanding of our own experiences, identities and subjectivities correspond with a context of change and transformation. Within this understanding it is useful to think of methodological inventiveness as a form of post qualitative inquiry, which embraces the possibilities of different educational methodologies to open up and resists pre-determined and formulaic ways of doing and knowing. Through a playful engagement with the children’s book ‘Zog’ I create an arts-based narrative to show how my journey of becoming an educational researcher unfolds. I use playfulness and joy to show how methodological inventiveness makes it possible for me, as a self-reflexive researcher, to engage with fluid and complex identities and contextual realities

A short upstream promoter region mediates transcriptional regulation of the mouse doublecortin gene in differentiating neurons.

peer reviewedABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Doublecortin (Dcx), a MAP (Microtubule-Associated Protein), is transiently expressed in migrating and differentiating neurons and thereby characterizes neuronal precursors and neurogenesis in developing and adult neurogenesis. In addition, reduced Dcx expression during development has been related to appearance of brain pathologies. Here, we attempt to unveil the molecular mechanisms controlling Dcx gene expression by studying its transcriptional regulation during neuronal differentiation. RESULTS: To determine and analyze important regulatory sequences of the Dcx promoter, we studied a putative regulatory region upstream from the mouse Dcx coding region (pdcx2kb) and several deletions thereof. These different fragments were used in vitro and in vivo to drive reporter gene expression. We demonstrated, using transient expression experiments, that pdcx2kb is sufficient to control specific reporter gene expression in cerebellar cells and in the developing (E14.5) brain. We determined the temporal profile of Dcx promoter activity during neuronal differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESC) and found that transcriptional activation of the Dcx gene varies along with neuronal differentiation of mESC. Deletion experiments and sequence comparison of Dcx promoters across rodents, human and chicken revealed the importance of a highly conserved sequence in the proximal region of the promoter required for specific and strong expression in neuronal precursors and young neuronal cells. Further analyses revealed the presence in this short sequence of several conserved, putative transcription factor binding sites: LEF/TCF (Lymphoid Enhancer Factor/T-Cell Factor) which are effectors of the canonical Wnt pathway; HNF6/OC2 (Hepatocyte Nuclear Factor-6/Oncecut-2) members of the ONECUT family; and NF-Y/CAAT (Nuclear Factor-Y). CONCLUSIONS: Studies of Dcx gene regulatory sequences using native, deleted and mutated constructs suggest that fragments located upstream of the Dcx coding sequence are sufficient to induce specific Dcx expression in vitro: in heterogeneous differentiated neurons from mESC, in primary mouse cerebellar neurons (PND3) and in organotypic slices cultures. Furthermore, a region in the 3'-end region of the Dcx promoter is highly conserved across several species and exerts positive control on Dcx transcriptional activation. Together, these results indicate that the proximal 3'-end region of the mouse Dcx regulatory sequence is essential for Dcx gene expression during differentiation of neuronal precursors

Working toward a socially just curriculum in South Africa: a collaborative autobiographical narrative inquiry

In this article we foreground the lived experiences of a group of post-graduate education students at the University of the Free State as they explore issues of social justice in the curriculum. Our contextual and local experiences are situated within a call for decolonisation of the curriculum. Within this context we view curriculum as an autobiographical, lived and storied practice (Pinar 2012). Through our creative collaborative narrative, we focus on teacher identity and experience as this has been shown to have a major impact on the curriculum (Clandinin & Connelly 2000). We believe that, “[s]ocial justice practices at their best should also awaken our senses and the ability to imagine alternatives that can sustain the collective work necessary to challenge entrenched patterns and institutions and build a different world” (Bell & Desai 2011, p.287). Therefore, we use Kumashiro’s (2002) conceptualisation of anti-oppressive education to highlight the messiness and discomfort of our experiences as we re-learn and unlearn and trouble oppressive knowledge in order to imagine alternatives. As such, our article contributes to an existing body of work that use collaborative and narrative methods to research issues of social justice. However, as much of the international literature on social justice education and curriculum is written in contexts far removed from our everyday experiences we wish to make a unique contribution that is rooted in our local context and highlight the unique experiences of South African teachers in relation to issues of social justice in the curriculum

Information searching seminar

Papers presented at the first seminar on information searching presented in the Merensky Library Auditorium, University of Pretoria, on 14 September 2017. The seminar was organised by the Department of Library Services’ (DLS) Library Technical Services Unit. The aim of the seminar was to address challenges related to developments in open access information; evolving interest in commodities such as data and patents; changing information seeking behaviour of information users; challenges related to the newly implemented cloud based WorldCat Discovery tool on the OCLC WorldShare Management Services platform. A number of experts participated in the seminar programme which was compiled to address different aspects related to information searching and aiming to facilitate the sharing of ideas, techniques and methods to assist in more efficient, effective and productive information retrieval.Seminar report and papers presented at the Information searching seminar, Merensky Library, University of Pretoria, 14 September 2017.SABINET; Elsevier; LIASAmn201

A Computational Framework for Ultrastructural Mapping of Neural Circuitry

Circuitry mapping of metazoan neural systems is difficult because canonical neural regions (regions containing one or more copies of all components) are large, regional borders are uncertain, neuronal diversity is high, and potential network topologies so numerous that only anatomical ground truth can resolve them. Complete mapping of a specific network requires synaptic resolution, canonical region coverage, and robust neuronal classification. Though transmission electron microscopy (TEM) remains the optimal tool for network mapping, the process of building large serial section TEM (ssTEM) image volumes is rendered difficult by the need to precisely mosaic distorted image tiles and register distorted mosaics. Moreover, most molecular neuronal class markers are poorly compatible with optimal TEM imaging. Our objective was to build a complete framework for ultrastructural circuitry mapping. This framework combines strong TEM-compliant small molecule profiling with automated image tile mosaicking, automated slice-to-slice image registration, and gigabyte-scale image browsing for volume annotation. Specifically we show how ultrathin molecular profiling datasets and their resultant classification maps can be embedded into ssTEM datasets and how scripted acquisition tools (SerialEM), mosaicking and registration (ir-tools), and large slice viewers (MosaicBuilder, Viking) can be used to manage terabyte-scale volumes. These methods enable large-scale connectivity analyses of new and legacy data. In well-posed tasks (e.g., complete network mapping in retina), terabyte-scale image volumes that previously would require decades of assembly can now be completed in months. Perhaps more importantly, the fusion of molecular profiling, image acquisition by SerialEM, ir-tools volume assembly, and data viewers/annotators also allow ssTEM to be used as a prospective tool for discovery in nonneural systems and a practical screening methodology for neurogenetics. Finally, this framework provides a mechanism for parallelization of ssTEM imaging, volume assembly, and data analysis across an international user base, enhancing the productivity of a large cohort of electron microscopists

CK2 Phosphorylation of Schistosoma mansoni HMGB1 Protein Regulates Its Cellular Traffic and Secretion but Not Its DNA Transactions

parasite resides in mesenteric veins where fecundated female worms lay hundred of eggs daily. Some of the egg antigens are trapped in the liver and induce a vigorous granulomatous response. High Mobility Group Box 1 (HMGB1), a nuclear factor, can also be secreted and act as a cytokine. Schistosome HMGB1 (SmHMGB1) is secreted by the eggs and stimulate the production of key cytokines involved in the pathology of schistosomiasis. Thus, understanding the mechanism of SmHMGB1 release becomes mandatory. Here, we addressed the question of how the nuclear SmHMGB1 can reach the extracellular space. eggs of infected animals and that SmHMGB1 that were localized in the periovular schistosomotic granuloma were phosphorylated.We showed that secretion of SmHMGB1 is regulated by phosphorylation. Moreover, our results suggest that egg-secreted SmHMGB1 may represent a new egg antigen. Therefore, the identification of drugs that specifically target phosphorylation of SmHMGB1 might block its secretion and interfere with the pathogenesis of schistosomiasis

Stroke genetics informs drug discovery and risk prediction across ancestries

Previous genome-wide association studies (GWASs) of stroke — the second leading cause of death worldwide — were conducted predominantly in populations of European ancestry1,2. Here, in cross-ancestry GWAS meta-analyses of 110,182 patients who have had a stroke (five ancestries, 33% non-European) and 1,503,898 control individuals, we identify association signals for stroke and its subtypes at 89 (61 new) independent loci: 60 in primary inverse-variance-weighted analyses and 29 in secondary meta-regression and multitrait analyses. On the basis of internal cross-ancestry validation and an independent follow-up in 89,084 additional cases of stroke (30% non-European) and 1,013,843 control individuals, 87% of the primary stroke risk loci and 60% of the secondary stroke risk loci were replicated (P < 0.05). Effect sizes were highly correlated across ancestries. Cross-ancestry fine-mapping, in silico mutagenesis analysis3, and transcriptome-wide and proteome-wide association analyses revealed putative causal genes (such as SH3PXD2A and FURIN) and variants (such as at GRK5 and NOS3). Using a three-pronged approach4, we provide genetic evidence for putative drug effects, highlighting F11, KLKB1, PROC, GP1BA, LAMC2 and VCAM1 as possible targets, with drugs already under investigation for stroke for F11 and PROC. A polygenic score integrating cross-ancestry and ancestry-specific stroke GWASs with vascular-risk factor GWASs (integrative polygenic scores) strongly predicted ischaemic stroke in populations of European, East Asian and African ancestry5. Stroke genetic risk scores were predictive of ischaemic stroke independent of clinical risk factors in 52,600 clinical-trial participants with cardiometabolic disease. Our results provide insights to inform biology, reveal potential drug targets and derive genetic risk prediction tools across ancestries

Stroke genetics informs drug discovery and risk prediction across ancestries

Previous genome-wide association studies (GWASs) of stroke - the second leading cause of death worldwide - were conducted predominantly in populations of European ancestry(1,2). Here, in cross-ancestry GWAS meta-analyses of 110,182 patients who have had a stroke (five ancestries, 33% non-European) and 1,503,898 control individuals, we identify association signals for stroke and its subtypes at 89 (61 new) independent loci: 60 in primary inverse-variance-weighted analyses and 29 in secondary meta-regression and multitrait analyses. On the basis of internal cross-ancestry validation and an independent follow-up in 89,084 additional cases of stroke (30% non-European) and 1,013,843 control individuals, 87% of the primary stroke risk loci and 60% of the secondary stroke risk loci were replicated (P < 0.05). Effect sizes were highly correlated across ancestries. Cross-ancestry fine-mapping, in silico mutagenesis analysis(3), and transcriptome-wide and proteome-wide association analyses revealed putative causal genes (such as SH3PXD2A and FURIN) and variants (such as at GRK5 and NOS3). Using a three-pronged approach(4), we provide genetic evidence for putative drug effects, highlighting F11, KLKB1, PROC, GP1BA, LAMC2 and VCAM1 as possible targets, with drugs already under investigation for stroke for F11 and PROC. A polygenic score integrating cross-ancestry and ancestry-specific stroke GWASs with vascular-risk factor GWASs (integrative polygenic scores) strongly predicted ischaemic stroke in populations of European, East Asian and African ancestry(5). Stroke genetic risk scores were predictive of ischaemic stroke independent of clinical risk factors in 52,600 clinical-trial participants with cardiometabolic disease. Our results provide insights to inform biology, reveal potential drug targets and derive genetic risk prediction tools across ancestries.</p