Elucidating the effect of potential mitochondrial toxicants on glucose handling and insulin signalling in skeletal muscle and liver cell lines in vitro
- Authors: Kuretu, Auxiliare
- Date: 2024-10-11
- Subjects: Uncatalogued
- Language: English
- Type: Academic theses , Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/461830 , vital:76243
- Description: Access restricited. Expected release date 2026. , Thesis (Msc (Pharmacy)) -- Faculty of Pharmacy, Pharmacy, 2024
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- Date Issued: 2024-10-11
Exploring resilience of social workers working within the healthcare system in the Nelson Mandela Metropole, South Africa
- Authors: Deliwe, Olwethu Paul
- Date: 2024-04
- Subjects: Social workers -- Port Elizabeth (South Africa) , Resilience (Personality trait) , Health services administration -- Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (South Africa)
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/63824 , vital:73617
- Description: Social workers working in the health care setting must respond to complex patient needs, a fast paced and multidisciplinary work environment, that are frequently not experienced as equalising platforms for the social work discipline. This requires a high level of resilience in social workers to remain responsive to compassionate human care, quality service delivery and selfcare. This study aimed to explore the resilience of social workers in the healthcare sector, in order to address the knowledge and practice gap and contribute to a better understanding of mental healthcare needs and coping resources of social workers, working in this field of service. The study was guided by two theoretical frameworks: The ecological systems theory and resilience theory. Informed by a constructivism research paradigm, the study employed semi-structures in-depth research interviews as a method to collect data with eight social workers as research participants, recruited via purposive research sampling from health and mental health care settings. The key findings indicate that social workers experience various challenges at work that leads to burnout as a result of the complex work that they do, and they are required to contain these and be resilient using different mechanism. All the ethical protocols were observed, and the necessary measures taken to enhance the trustworthiness of the study. The findings make a valuable contribution to the curriculum input for social work training and valuable insights for continuous professional development for social work practitioners in the health care sector. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Health Science, School of Behavioural & Lifestyle Sciences, 2024
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- Date Issued: 2024-04
Investigation of the host potential of compounds derived from tartaric acid, succinic acid and 1,4-cyclohexanedioic acid
- Authors: Adam, Muhammad Ameen
- Date: 2024-04
- Subjects: Chemical reactions , Chemistry, Organic , Bacteriology
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/63617 , vital:73562
- Description: The present investigation considered the host behaviour of three compounds, namely (+)-(2R,3R)-1,1,4,4-tetraphenylbutane-1,2,3,4-tetraol (H1), 1,1,4,4-tetraphenyl-1,4-butanediol (H2) and cyclohexane-1,4-diylbis(diphenylmethanol) (H3) in various guest mixtures. These host compounds were readily synthesized by means of Grignard addition reactions on the diesters of tartaric acid, succinic acid and 1,4-cyclohexanedioic acid. The guest mixtures included cyclopentanone, cyclohexanone, cycloheptanone and cyclooctanone, γ-butyrolactone, 2-pyrrolidone, N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone and N-ethyl-2-pyrrolidone, and pyridine, 2-methylpyridine, 3-methylpyridine and 4-methylpyridine. Crystals of (+)-(2R,3R)-1,1,4,4-tetraphenylbutane-1,2,3,4-tetraol (H1) were grown from cyclopentanone (5-ONE), cyclohexanone (6-ONE), cycloheptanone (7-ONE) and cyclooctanone (8-ONE,) producing 1:1 host:guest complexes in each instance. Thermal analysis showed the thermal stabilities of these complexes to be in the order 6-ONE > 7-ONE > 8-ONE > 5-ONE which correlated exactly with results from binary guest/guest competition experiments, where 6-ONE was always preferred by H1, while 5-ONE was consistently disfavoured. Single crystal X-ray diffraction (SCXRD) analyses demonstrated that each guest compound was retained in the crystals by means of a hydrogen bond with an alcohol moiety of the host compound. Furthermore, preferred guests 6- and 7-ONE produced crystals with greater densities than guests less favoured (5- and 8-ONE). A conformational analysis of the guest geometries in the four complexes with H1 revealed that the low energy guest conformers were present. The host selectivity for 6- and 7-ONE was proposed to be due to the improved molecular packing in the crystals of the complexes containing these two guest compounds, observed from their higher crystal densities. Hirshfeld surface analyses were not useful in explaining the preference of H1 for 6-ONE relative to 7-ONE (these types of analyses were not possible for the 5-ONE and 8-ONE-containing inclusion compounds due to the nature and degree of disorder present in the guest molecules). H1 was also crystallized from γ-butyrolactone (GBL), 2-pyrrolidone (NP), N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) and N-ethyl-2-pyrrolidone (NEP), and 1H-NMR spectroscopy revealed that all but GBL were included. The host compound was also presented with these guest solvents in various mixtures, and it was observed that NMP was an extremely favoured guest solvent, followed by NEP and NP, with GBL being consistently disfavoured in every experiment. It was therefore shown that in certain instances, H1 may serve as an alternative tool for separating some of these mixtures through host-guest chemistry strategies. The hydrogen bonding motifs present in each of the successfully formed complexes were extensively investigated through SCXRD analysis, as was the thermal behaviour of these complexes. In the latter instance, the peak temperature of the endotherm (from the DSC trace) representing the guest release was greater for the inclusion compound with favoured NMP (145.5 °C) relative to the complexes with NP (139.8 °C) and NEP (120.5 °C). Host compounds H2 and H3 were revealed to have the ability to include each of pyridine (PYR), 2-methylpyridine (2MP), 3-methylpyridine (3MP) and 4-methylpyridine (4MP). H2 displayed selective behaviour for 3MP and 4MP when presented with mixtures of these guest compounds, whilst H3 preferred PYR. In the latter case, this PYR-containing inclusion compound was also the more stable one (the guest release onset temperature was highest, Ton 66.0 °C). It was demonstrated that H2 has the ability to separate very many binary mixtures of these pyridines on a practical platform, since K (the selectivity coefficient) values were 10 or greater in many instances. However, unfortunately, the more difficult-to-separate mixtures containing 3MP and 4MP cannot be purified or separated by employing H2 and supramolecular chemistry strategies. H3 was also shown to be a likely candidate for binary guest separations in very many of the guest solutions considered here, where K was also 10 or greater, and even infinity in many cases. SCXRD demonstrated that 2MP, 3MP and 4MP were retained in the crystals of their complexes by means of classical hydrogen bonds with the host compound. Satisfyingly, this hydrogen bond between 2MP and H2 (3.0213(18) Å) was significantly longer than that between this host compound and both disorder components of 3MP (2.875(2) and 2.825(9) Å) and that between H2 and 4MP (2.8458(13) Å). This observation explains the affinity of H2 for both 3MP and 4MP, and why 2MP was disfavoured. The results of thermal experiments did not wholly concur with observations from the guest/guest competition experiments. Hirshfeld surface analyses were also conducted but were not entirely conclusive with respect to explaining the host selectivity behaviour. In the case of H3, SCXRD analyses revealed that favoured PYR experienced a classical hydrogen bond with the host compound that was statistically significantly shorter (2.795(2) Å, 165°) than those between the other guest compounds and H3. Additionally, this guest compound was the only one to be involved in a (host)C−H···π(guest) interaction (2.91 Å, 139°) and also a non-classical hydrogen bond with the host compound ((host)C−H···N−C(guest), 2.77 Å (144°)). Finally, Hirshfeld surface analyses showed also that preferred PYR experienced a greater percentage of C···H/H···C (33.1%) and H···N/N···H (11.1%) interactions compared with the complexes with 2MP, 3MP and 4MP. However, it is not clear whether these Hirshfeld observations explain the affinity of H3 for PYR. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, School of Biomolecular & Chemical Sciences, 2024
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- Date Issued: 2024-04
Quantify the shift in critical strain energy density for a dynamic loaded S355J2 weld section by small punch testing
- Authors: Snyman, Ross
- Date: 2024-04
- Subjects: Materials -- Testing , Materials -- Microscopy , Mechanical engineering
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/64830 , vital:73927
- Description: The potential of using “critical strain energy density” as an indicator to detect material degradation on fatigue-loaded components, where the stress amplitude was gradually increased, was investigated by applying the small punch test methodology. Small punch discs were extracted from four fatigue specimens. Discs were extracted from two zones within the fatigue specimens: the heat-affected zone of a shield metal arc welded butt joint, as well as from parent metal plate area. Each fatigue specimen having been exposed to a different stress amplitude but equal number of fatigue cycles of 20 million. This allowed the development of a Small Punch Test results database, permitting the calculation of material properties by using a Finite Element Analysis inverse method. Critical strain energy values did not reveal any conclusive shift or correlation for discs extracted from the HAZ. This is mainly attributed to variance in the grain structure for HAZ samples. For discs extracted from parent metal, a decreasing trend in strain energy density value was noted in relation to an increase in the fatigue test stress amplitude. This observed change was a clear indication of the potential for using “Strain Energy Density”, as extracted from this test methodology, as a ranking tool for quantifying the extent of degradation of in-service components. The application of this study demonstrated the ability to monitor and predict material degradation for a given stress range over the expected life of a cyclically loaded component utilizing strain energy density results. This is useful, particularly in heavy industries where structures and large-scale components are used beyond their original design life. , Thesis (MEng) -- Faculty of Engineering, the Built Environment, and Technology, School of Engineering, 2024
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- Date Issued: 2024-04
Diet and lifestyle changes during the Covid-19 pandemic among health care professionals in the Eastern Cape province
- Authors: Baloyi, Thabile Valentia
- Date: 2023-04
- Subjects: Diet , Lifestyle , Health care Professionals
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/66356 , vital:74718
- Description: Background: The unprecedented COVID-19 era is one that posed drastic changes and challenges to healthcare professionals and healthcare system at large. During disastrous events such as the pandemic, psychosocial stress is expected among health care professionals with the development of different copying mechanisms. It is therefore important to ensure preparedness among these individuals in the event of future pandemics. It is essentials for healthcare professionals to practice healthy dietary habits and regular physical activity which has a positive impact on the immune system by improving its response to viral and bacterial infections and supports mental health. Aim: The aim of the study was to determine dietary and lifestyle changes among healthcare professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methodology: A quantitative, descriptive, and explorative research approach was followed. Data was collected through an online survey and analysed using MS Excel® version 2209, SPSS version 27, cross tabulation and Pearson’s chi-square test (p-value<0.05) The questionnaire consisted of four sections that had demographics, lifestyle, dietary and COVID-19 related questions. The study sample were Eastern Cape healthcare professionals. Results: The findings indicated that health care professionals’ dietary habits and lifestyle were negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 37.5% (n=131) had indicated that their weight had increased, while 20.4% (n=71) indicated a decrease in weight during the pandemic. It is understandable that there was weight gain during the pandemic as these professionals consumed more alcohol and fast foods with less exercise. There was a high caffeine consumption and decreased sleep time, which can affect productivity, resilience and mental health. The negative impacts posed by the pandemic need to be mitigated as it has the potential to lead to non-communicable diseases and cause even more of a burden to the health system. Authorities need to work with different healthcare professionals to develop programmes relating to coping mechanisms during any state of disaster and support wellness initiatives. Dietitians should be involved in order to coordinate and promote healthy eating through regular training and education of other HCP. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Health Sciences, School of Behavioural & Lifestyle Sciences, 2023
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- Date Issued: 2023-04
Perceptions of Role Players in the Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Sector in South Africa Regarding the Proposal of a National Health Insurance System
- Authors: Essex, Laycan
- Date: 2022-04
- Subjects: Pharmaceutical industry -- South Africa , National Health Insurance
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/58849 , vital:60218
- Description: The proposed implementation of National Health Insurance (NHI) is attracting considerable interest among healthcare workers, as observed in the large quantity of available literary evidence. The available research is mainly focused on the perceptions of healthcare workers, working under the proposed NHI reform. Based on a literature gap observed in recently published articles on perceptions of healthcare professionals regarding the implementation of NHI, the researcher aimed to assess the opinions of key stakeholders in the pharmaceutical manufacturing sector in South Africa. This study employed a qualitative approach, using semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders employed in the pharmaceutical manufacturing sector. Their perceptions regarding the NHI were analysed and interpreted through thematic analysis in order to determine whether they have a positive or a negative perception towards the introduction of the NHI reform in South Africa. The majority of role players are in full support of NHI and there was a consensus amongst the participants that there will be great opportunities for the pharmaceutical manufacturing sector. Regarding the capabilities relating to capacity to supply, participants felt that South Africa’s pharmaceutical manufacturing sector has sufficient infrastructure to support the roll out of the NHI. Furthermore, participants felt positive about increased accessibility to pharmaceutical care by all South Africans, regardless of race, social and economic status. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Health Sciences, 2022
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- Date Issued: 2022-04
The criminal liability of health care practitioners for culpable homicide
- Authors: Dweba, Asavela
- Date: 2022-04
- Subjects: South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/55511 , vital:52594
- Description: South African health societies and associations have allied to call for reform in the criminal law system involving the prosecution of health care practitioners, specifically on charges of culpable homicide. Warranted by the spate of criminal prosecutions against healthcare practitioners and the need for reform, this treatise investigates the criminal liability of healthcare practitioners for culpable homicide. Overall, this study aims to determine the recognition of criminal liability of healthcare practitioners, requirements for culpability, the level of negligence that constitutes culpable homicide, and whether the South African law can adjust the threshold for criminal liability in culpable homicide. An analysis of the consequences of legal literature concerning the offence of culpable homicide and medical negligence is provided. In addition, this study examines pertinent case law to devise a strategy for law reform in South Africa and the development of common law. The study includes a comparative study of foreign jurisdictions to incorporate the position in England, Scotland, New Zealand, India, and Canada from which South Africa can adopt some principles within the South African context. The analysis revealed that South Africa has a low threshold in the form of ordinary negligence required to establish criminal liability in cases of culpable homicide while a higher threshold is required for the selected foreign jurisdictions. Furthermore, this treatise contends that the current South African criminal justice regime is lacking in identifying the ideal degree of fault required for criminal conduct. Thus, reform of South Africa’s approach in dealing with healthcare practitioners suspected/ accused of causing the death of patients under medical care is necessary. This study recommends that the South African criminal law justice system should be developed by way of legislative intervention in which ‘gross negligence or recklessness’ will serve as a measure to criminalise the conduct of healthcare practitioners. This study acknowledges the noble role played by healthcare practitioners in the society and notes that medicine is not an exact science. Therefore, this treatise does not advocate a mandatory exoneration of criminal liability of healthcare practitioners. Rather, for a fair and evidence-based prosecution of reckless medical practices. , Thesis (LLM) -- Faculty of Law, Department of Criminal and Procedural Law, 2021
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- Date Issued: 2022-04
Translation strategies and procedures Used in the translation of culture-specific lexical Items from English to Sepedi
- Authors: Maboke, Emmanuel
- Date: 2021-12
- Subjects: Translating and interpreting , Pedi (African people)--Social life and customs , Technology--Translating History
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/54191 , vital:46317
- Description: This study investigates effective translation strategies and procedures used in the translation of culture-specific lexical items from English to Sepedi. The premise is that current translations from English to Sepedi are inadequate because they are not culture-specifically grounded. The purpose of this study is to overcome this shortcoming. Culture-specific lexical items such as idioms, proverbs, quotes and other fixed expressions are notorious for their untranslatability and non-equivalence, both of which are cumbersome to the transference of stylistic features and meaning between English and Sepedi as a language pair. The researcher employs a qualitative approach and the interpretivist paradigm, which originates from hermeneutics to investigate the research question. This study adopts a multi-theoretical approach. However, hermeneutics and mainly seven translation procedures proposed by Vinay and Darbelnet (1958/1995: 31-32) are used for analysing and interpreting data. The sample units are drawn using a purposive sampling method. The data collected, reviewed and analysed comprise source and target texts (ST-TT) pairs from various genres. Translation with commentary is also used as a complementary research method to examine the effective application of the investigated translation strategies and procedures to address non-equivalence and pre-empt ambiguity. The results of this study reveal that translation strategies and procedures coincide with the theories from which they originate. Secondly, it was found that the efficacy of translation strategies and procedures employed to translate culture-specific lexical items from English to Sepedi is influenced by the translator’s lexical choice. Thirdly, this study highlights the importance of linguistic and cultural competence in the translation of culture-specific lexical items from English to Sepedi. Lastly, this study discovered that the effective application of translation strategies and procedures to translate culture-specific lexical items from English to Sepedi depends on the translator’s adherence to principles of translation. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, Applied Language Studies, 2021
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- Date Issued: 2021-12
Evaluating the influence of electoral violence on democratic consolidaton in Sub-Saharan Africa: the case of the democratic republic of congo from 2006-2018
- Authors: Poggi, Giovanni
- Date: 2020-12
- Subjects: Port Elizabeth (South Africa) , Eastern Cape (South Africa) , South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/55073 , vital:49035
- Description: The democratic legitimacy of African executives has been called into question substantially over the last decade. Using the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as a case study, this evaluative research seeks to analyse how African executives and political elites continue to play a crucial role in inducing civil unrest and electoral violence. For African democracy to develop, there must be enforced resolutions to eradicate issues facing both procedural and substantive democracy on the continent. This research examined electoral violence and unconstitutional acts that aggravate electoral system abuse and diminish the consolidation of democracy in sub-Saharan African states, in particular the DRC. A specific focus on the leadership of Joseph Kabila in the DRC forms the case study component of this research. In 2016, elections were postponed in the DRC and the DRC’s constitutional court interpreted Article 70 and Article 73 of the constitution in a manner that allowed President Kabila to remain in office until a newly elected president was installed. The court’s ruling and interpretation of Article 70 and Article 73 was an attempt to avoid a power vacuum. The study evaluated the components that trigger the escalation of electoral violence in Sub-Saharan African states. The study reports on different contributory factors, including but not limited to, the impact of predatory and rent-seeking leadership towards electoral manipulation; and the effect of patron-client relations on democratic institutions. Even though elections are not the only indicator of democracy stability in a state, this study demonstrated how electoral violence threatens the consolidation of democracy in sub-Saharan African states, in particular the DRC. In examining electoral violence, a desktop analysis method, which was used in the study, involved the collection of data from existing resources in order to provide a more critical lens to understanding electoral violence in the DRC. The theoretical analysis used in the study is the Höglund (2009) framework on electoral institutions which outlined how political violence remains a pervasive feature in Sub-Saharan countries by linking the framework to patron-clientelism. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, School of Governmental and Social Sciences, 2020
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- Date Issued: 2020-12
The relevance of sustainable development principles and goals through a case study of Gold Fields and Living Gold
- Authors: Ferreira, Adrian
- Date: 2007
- Subjects: Uncatalogued
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/192977 , vital:45286
- Description: The conventional definition of sustainable development as proposed by the Brundtland Report (United Nations, 1987), involving the integration of economic, social and environmental components, is widely accepted. Presumed benefits of these current framework applications tend to perpetuate a business as usual status, with no real sustainable development occurring. The growing debate surrounding this topic makes the case for relevant and contextual inputs to be included into sustainable development objectives. A case study, of Gold Fields and Living Gold, attempts to create a deeper understanding of the components of this debate, and begins to contextualise sustainable development principles, goals and their outcomes. This is carried out though an enquiry of the use of cultural development as a fourth sustainable development category. The case study includes the opinions of a directly affected local community entity (Living Gold) in order to observe the difference between the two organisations (Gold Fields and Living Gold). During the study, the focus began to move away from purely unabated growth impacts and looked to the creation and fostering of resilience and flexibility by the use of adaptive management. In breeding states of resilience, it was recognised that cultural impacts played an important role in ensuring long term systemic resilience. The case study involved assessing the feedback and responses of strategically selected individuals at both organisations, with Gold Fields representing a more western centric entity and Living Gold a formal representation of a traditional/ indigenous community. Similarities and differences were assessed in order to understand how current sustainable development criteria might differ between organisations that have different end objectives in mind, yet are dependent on each other. The findings resulted in a perspective of how culture could be used to describe the qualities of a local community, and how to begin aligning development goals with affected communities. The result was the development of the Integrated Resilience Sustainability Method and the consequent development of the Balanced Bottom Line Framework, which seeks to promote sustainable development along the lines of economic, social, environmental and cultural development. , Thesis (MBA) -- Faculty of Commerce, Rhodes Investec Business School, 2007
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- Date Issued: 2007