Analysis of non-peptidic compounds as potential malarial inhibitors against plasmodial cysteine proteases via integrated virtual screening workflow
- Musyoka, Thommas M, Kanzi, Aquillah M, Lobb, Kevin A, Tastan Bishop, Özlem
- Authors: Musyoka, Thommas M , Kanzi, Aquillah M , Lobb, Kevin A , Tastan Bishop, Özlem
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/123074 , vital:35403 , https://doi.10.1080/07391102.2015.1108231
- Description: Malaria is an infectious disease caused by a diverse group of erythrocytic protozoan parasites of the genus Plasmodium. It remains an exigent public health problem in the tropical areas of Africa, South America and parts of Asia and continues to take its toll in morbidity and mortality with half of the world’s population under a permanent risk of infection leading to more than half a million deaths annually (WHO, 2013). Five Plasmodium species, namely P. falciparum (Pf ), P. vivax (Pv), P. ovale (Po), P. malariae (Pm) and P. knowlesi (Pk), are known to infect humans with Pf responsible for more than 90% of the malarial fatalities reported in sub-Saharan Africa. The predominance of Pf is attributed to its adaptability (Ashley, McGready, Proux, & Nosten, 2006; Prugnolle et al., 2011). Although the high occurrence of the Duffy negative trait among African populations lowers the threat posed by Pv, it is the most frequent and widely causative agent of benign tertian malaria in other parts of the world (Mendis, Sina, Marchesini, & Carter, 2001). In addition to the listed human malarial parasite forms, several other Plasmodium species, which infect non-human laboratory models, have been identified and are of significant importance in understanding the parasite biology, the host–parasite interactions and in the drug development process (Langhorne et al., 2011).
- Full Text:
- Authors: Musyoka, Thommas M , Kanzi, Aquillah M , Lobb, Kevin A , Tastan Bishop, Özlem
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/123074 , vital:35403 , https://doi.10.1080/07391102.2015.1108231
- Description: Malaria is an infectious disease caused by a diverse group of erythrocytic protozoan parasites of the genus Plasmodium. It remains an exigent public health problem in the tropical areas of Africa, South America and parts of Asia and continues to take its toll in morbidity and mortality with half of the world’s population under a permanent risk of infection leading to more than half a million deaths annually (WHO, 2013). Five Plasmodium species, namely P. falciparum (Pf ), P. vivax (Pv), P. ovale (Po), P. malariae (Pm) and P. knowlesi (Pk), are known to infect humans with Pf responsible for more than 90% of the malarial fatalities reported in sub-Saharan Africa. The predominance of Pf is attributed to its adaptability (Ashley, McGready, Proux, & Nosten, 2006; Prugnolle et al., 2011). Although the high occurrence of the Duffy negative trait among African populations lowers the threat posed by Pv, it is the most frequent and widely causative agent of benign tertian malaria in other parts of the world (Mendis, Sina, Marchesini, & Carter, 2001). In addition to the listed human malarial parasite forms, several other Plasmodium species, which infect non-human laboratory models, have been identified and are of significant importance in understanding the parasite biology, the host–parasite interactions and in the drug development process (Langhorne et al., 2011).
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Are people responsive to a more sustainable, decentralized, and user-driven management of urban metabolism?:
- Chelleri, Lorenzo, Kua, Harn W, Rodriguez Sanchez, Juan P, Nahiduzzaman, Kh M, Thondhlana, Gladman
- Authors: Chelleri, Lorenzo , Kua, Harn W , Rodriguez Sanchez, Juan P , Nahiduzzaman, Kh M , Thondhlana, Gladman
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/144299 , vital:38329 , https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8253-0264
- Description: Smart, green, and resilient city paradigms have been mainly promoted through top-down and technocratic approaches. However, based on the notion to return to “the right to the city”, emerging community-driven initiatives are providing self-managed infrastructures contributing to urban sustainability transitions. This paper explores the relevance of the behavioral aspects of people-centered approaches in dealing with two different facets of urban metabolism: physical infrastructure (involvement with the management of decentralized infrastructures) and consumption patterns (involvement in proactive reduction of resources used). In the first case we assessed community perceptions about the roles, benefits, and willingness to proactively engage in the management of decentralized green infrastructures in Bogotá City, Colombia. For the second facet, we measured the effectiveness of change agents in re-shaping energy consumption decisions within urban social networks in South Africa and Saudi Arabia. This paper’s results show that pre-determined and standardized strategies do not guarantee positive, nor homogeneous, results in terms of meeting sustainability targets, or promoting community involvement. Hence, a better integration of people-centered and top-down approaches is needed through context-dependent policies, for enhancing both users’ appreciation of and commitment to urban metabolism participative management.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Chelleri, Lorenzo , Kua, Harn W , Rodriguez Sanchez, Juan P , Nahiduzzaman, Kh M , Thondhlana, Gladman
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/144299 , vital:38329 , https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8253-0264
- Description: Smart, green, and resilient city paradigms have been mainly promoted through top-down and technocratic approaches. However, based on the notion to return to “the right to the city”, emerging community-driven initiatives are providing self-managed infrastructures contributing to urban sustainability transitions. This paper explores the relevance of the behavioral aspects of people-centered approaches in dealing with two different facets of urban metabolism: physical infrastructure (involvement with the management of decentralized infrastructures) and consumption patterns (involvement in proactive reduction of resources used). In the first case we assessed community perceptions about the roles, benefits, and willingness to proactively engage in the management of decentralized green infrastructures in Bogotá City, Colombia. For the second facet, we measured the effectiveness of change agents in re-shaping energy consumption decisions within urban social networks in South Africa and Saudi Arabia. This paper’s results show that pre-determined and standardized strategies do not guarantee positive, nor homogeneous, results in terms of meeting sustainability targets, or promoting community involvement. Hence, a better integration of people-centered and top-down approaches is needed through context-dependent policies, for enhancing both users’ appreciation of and commitment to urban metabolism participative management.
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Assessment of water quality based on diatom indices in a small temperate river system, Kowie River, South Africa
- Dalu, Tatenda, Bere, Taurai, Froneman, P William
- Authors: Dalu, Tatenda , Bere, Taurai , Froneman, P William
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/123896 , vital:35514 , http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/wsa.v42i2.02
- Description: This study aimed to assess the impact of land use patterns on water quality and benthic diatom community structure and to test the applicability of diatom indices developed in other regions of the world to a small temperate southern African river system. Sampling was conducted at eight study sites along the length of the river on four separate occasions. Multivariate data analyses were performed on the diatom community dataset to specify the main gradients of floristic variation and to detect and visualize similarities in diatom samples in relation to land-use patterns within the catchment. One hundred and twelve (112) diatom species belonging to 36 genera were recorded during the study. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) demonstrated that variations in the benthic diatom community structure were best explained by ammonium, nitrate, conductivity, pH, temperature, resistivity and water flow. OMNIDIA was used for calculation of selected diatom water quality indices. A number of the indices, e.g., the trophic diatom index (TDI), eutrophication/pollution index and biological index of water quality (BIWQ), either under- or over-estimated the water quality of the system. With few exceptions, there were no significant correlations (p> 0.05) between the diatom indices’ values and the nutrient variables. The absence of any significant correlations between the diatom indices’ values and selected physico-chemical variables suggests that indices developed in other regions of the world may not be suitable for temperate southern African rivers.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Dalu, Tatenda , Bere, Taurai , Froneman, P William
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/123896 , vital:35514 , http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/wsa.v42i2.02
- Description: This study aimed to assess the impact of land use patterns on water quality and benthic diatom community structure and to test the applicability of diatom indices developed in other regions of the world to a small temperate southern African river system. Sampling was conducted at eight study sites along the length of the river on four separate occasions. Multivariate data analyses were performed on the diatom community dataset to specify the main gradients of floristic variation and to detect and visualize similarities in diatom samples in relation to land-use patterns within the catchment. One hundred and twelve (112) diatom species belonging to 36 genera were recorded during the study. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) demonstrated that variations in the benthic diatom community structure were best explained by ammonium, nitrate, conductivity, pH, temperature, resistivity and water flow. OMNIDIA was used for calculation of selected diatom water quality indices. A number of the indices, e.g., the trophic diatom index (TDI), eutrophication/pollution index and biological index of water quality (BIWQ), either under- or over-estimated the water quality of the system. With few exceptions, there were no significant correlations (p> 0.05) between the diatom indices’ values and the nutrient variables. The absence of any significant correlations between the diatom indices’ values and selected physico-chemical variables suggests that indices developed in other regions of the world may not be suitable for temperate southern African rivers.
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Back to the future: revival, relevance and route of an anarchist/syndicalist approach for twenty-first-century left, labour and national liberation movements
- Authors: van der Walt, Lucien
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/144812 , vital:38381 , DOI: 10.1080/02589001.2016.1235365
- Description: The failings of classical Marxism, social democracy and anti-imperialist nationalism point to the need for a radical left politics at a distance from the state. This paper examines the impact, revival and promise of the anarchist/syndicalist tradition, a rich, continuous praxis in labour, left, anti-imperialist, anti-racist and egalitarian movements, worldwide, since the 1860s. Outlining its core ideas – anti-hierarchy, anti-capitalism, anti-statism, opposition to social and economic inequality, internationalist class-based mobilisation – and critique of mainstream Marxism and nationalism, it highlights the arguments there is a basic incompatibility between state rule, and bottom-up, egalitarian, democratic, socialist relationships. The anarchist/syndicalist project cannot be reduced to an organising style, protest politics or spontaneism: for it, transition to a just, self-managed society requires organised popular capacity for a revolutionary rupture, developed through prefigurative, class-based, democratic organs of counter-power, including syndicalist unions aiming at collectivised property, and revolutionary counter-culture. Success needs formal organisation, unified strategy and anarchist / syndicalist political organisations.
- Full Text:
- Authors: van der Walt, Lucien
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/144812 , vital:38381 , DOI: 10.1080/02589001.2016.1235365
- Description: The failings of classical Marxism, social democracy and anti-imperialist nationalism point to the need for a radical left politics at a distance from the state. This paper examines the impact, revival and promise of the anarchist/syndicalist tradition, a rich, continuous praxis in labour, left, anti-imperialist, anti-racist and egalitarian movements, worldwide, since the 1860s. Outlining its core ideas – anti-hierarchy, anti-capitalism, anti-statism, opposition to social and economic inequality, internationalist class-based mobilisation – and critique of mainstream Marxism and nationalism, it highlights the arguments there is a basic incompatibility between state rule, and bottom-up, egalitarian, democratic, socialist relationships. The anarchist/syndicalist project cannot be reduced to an organising style, protest politics or spontaneism: for it, transition to a just, self-managed society requires organised popular capacity for a revolutionary rupture, developed through prefigurative, class-based, democratic organs of counter-power, including syndicalist unions aiming at collectivised property, and revolutionary counter-culture. Success needs formal organisation, unified strategy and anarchist / syndicalist political organisations.
- Full Text:
From global to regional and back again: common climate stressors of marine ecosystems relevant for adaptation across five ocean warming hotspots
- Popova, Ekaterina, Yool, Andrew, Byfield, Valborg, Cochrane, Kevern, Coward, Andrew C, Salim, Shyam S, Gasalla, Maria A, Henson, S.A, Hobday, Alistair J, Pecl, Gretta T, Sauer, Warwick H H, Roberts, Michael J
- Authors: Popova, Ekaterina , Yool, Andrew , Byfield, Valborg , Cochrane, Kevern , Coward, Andrew C , Salim, Shyam S , Gasalla, Maria A , Henson, S.A , Hobday, Alistair J , Pecl, Gretta T , Sauer, Warwick H H , Roberts, Michael J
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/124514 , vital:35623 , https://doi.10.1111/gcb.13247
- Description: Ocean warming ‘hotspots’ are regions characterized by above-average temperature increases over recent years, for which there are significant consequences for both living marine resources and the societies that depend on them. As such, they represent early warning systems for understanding the impacts of marine climate change, and test-beds for developing adaptation options for coping with those impacts. Here, we examine five hotspots off the coasts of eastern Australia, South Africa, Madagascar, India and Brazil. These particular hotspots have underpinned a large international partnership that is working towards improving community adaptation by characterizing, assessing and projecting the likely future of coastal-marine food resources through the provision and sharing of knowledge. To inform this effort, we employ a high-resolution global ocean model forced by Representative Concentration Pathway 8.5 and simulated to year 2099. In addition to the sea surface temperature, we analyse projected stratification, nutrient supply, primary production, anthropogenic CO2-driven ocean acidification, deoxygenation and ocean circulation. Our simulation finds that the temperature-defined hotspots studied here will continue to experience warming but, with the exception of eastern Australia, may not remain the fastest warming ocean areas over the next century as the strongest warming is projected to occur in the subpolar and polar areas of the Northern Hemisphere. Additionally, we find that recent rapid change in SST is not necessarily an indicator that these areas are also hotspots of the other climatic stressors examined. However, a consistent facet of the hotspots studied here is that they are all strongly influenced by ocean circulation, which has already shown changes in the recent past and is projected to undergo further strong change into the future. In addition to the fast warming, change in local ocean circulation represents a distinct feature of present and future climate change impacting marine ecosystems in these areas.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Popova, Ekaterina , Yool, Andrew , Byfield, Valborg , Cochrane, Kevern , Coward, Andrew C , Salim, Shyam S , Gasalla, Maria A , Henson, S.A , Hobday, Alistair J , Pecl, Gretta T , Sauer, Warwick H H , Roberts, Michael J
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/124514 , vital:35623 , https://doi.10.1111/gcb.13247
- Description: Ocean warming ‘hotspots’ are regions characterized by above-average temperature increases over recent years, for which there are significant consequences for both living marine resources and the societies that depend on them. As such, they represent early warning systems for understanding the impacts of marine climate change, and test-beds for developing adaptation options for coping with those impacts. Here, we examine five hotspots off the coasts of eastern Australia, South Africa, Madagascar, India and Brazil. These particular hotspots have underpinned a large international partnership that is working towards improving community adaptation by characterizing, assessing and projecting the likely future of coastal-marine food resources through the provision and sharing of knowledge. To inform this effort, we employ a high-resolution global ocean model forced by Representative Concentration Pathway 8.5 and simulated to year 2099. In addition to the sea surface temperature, we analyse projected stratification, nutrient supply, primary production, anthropogenic CO2-driven ocean acidification, deoxygenation and ocean circulation. Our simulation finds that the temperature-defined hotspots studied here will continue to experience warming but, with the exception of eastern Australia, may not remain the fastest warming ocean areas over the next century as the strongest warming is projected to occur in the subpolar and polar areas of the Northern Hemisphere. Additionally, we find that recent rapid change in SST is not necessarily an indicator that these areas are also hotspots of the other climatic stressors examined. However, a consistent facet of the hotspots studied here is that they are all strongly influenced by ocean circulation, which has already shown changes in the recent past and is projected to undergo further strong change into the future. In addition to the fast warming, change in local ocean circulation represents a distinct feature of present and future climate change impacting marine ecosystems in these areas.
- Full Text:
Planning adaptation to climate change in fast-warming marine regions with seafood-dependent coastal communities
- Hobday, Alistair J, Cochrane, Kevern L, Howard, James, Aswani, Shankar, Byfield, Val, Duggan, Greg, Duna, Elethu, Dutra, Leo X C, Frusher, Stewart D, Fulton, Elizabeth A, Gammage, Louise, Gasalla, Maria A, Griffiths, Chevon, Guissamulo, Almeida, Haward, Marcus, Jarre, Astrid, Jennings, Sarah M, Jordan, Tia, Joyner, Jessica, Ramani, Narayana K, Shanmugasundaram, Swathi L P, Malherbe, Willem, Ortega-Cisneros, Kelly, Paytan, Adina, Pecl, Gretta T, Plagányi, Éva E, Popova, Ekaterina E, Razafindrainibe, Haja, Roberts, Michael J, Rohit, Prathiba, Sainulabdeen, Shyam S, Sauer, Warwick H H, Valappil, Sathianandan T, Zacharia, Paryiappanal U, Van Putten, E Ingrid
- Authors: Hobday, Alistair J , Cochrane, Kevern L , Howard, James , Aswani, Shankar , Byfield, Val , Duggan, Greg , Duna, Elethu , Dutra, Leo X C , Frusher, Stewart D , Fulton, Elizabeth A , Gammage, Louise , Gasalla, Maria A , Griffiths, Chevon , Guissamulo, Almeida , Haward, Marcus , Jarre, Astrid , Jennings, Sarah M , Jordan, Tia , Joyner, Jessica , Ramani, Narayana K , Shanmugasundaram, Swathi L P , Malherbe, Willem , Ortega-Cisneros, Kelly , Paytan, Adina , Pecl, Gretta T , Plagányi, Éva E , Popova, Ekaterina E , Razafindrainibe, Haja , Roberts, Michael J , Rohit, Prathiba , Sainulabdeen, Shyam S , Sauer, Warwick H H , Valappil, Sathianandan T , Zacharia, Paryiappanal U , Van Putten, E Ingrid
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/125675 , vital:35806 , https://doi.10.1007/s11160-016-9419-0
- Description: Many coastal communities rely on living marine resources for livelihoods and food security. These resources are commonly under stress from overfishing, pollution, coastal development and habitat degradation. Climate change is an additional stressor beginning to impact coastal systems and communities, but may also lead to opportunities for some species and the people they sustain. We describe the research approach for a multi-country project, focused on the southern hemisphere, designed to contribute to improving fishing community adaptation efforts by characterizing, assessing and predicting the future of coastal-marine food resources, and codeveloping adaptation options through the provision and sharing of knowledge across fast-warming marine regions (i.e. marine ‘hotspots’). These hotspots represent natural laboratories for observing change and concomitant human adaptive responses, and for developing adaptation options and management strategies. Focusing on adaptation options and strategies for enhancing coastal resilience at the local level will contribute to capacity building and local empowerment in order to minimise negative outcomes and take advantage of opportunities arising from climate change. However, developing comparative approaches across regions that differ in political institutions, socio-economic community demographics, resource dependency and research capacity is challenging. Here, we describe physical, biological, social and governance tools to allow hotspot comparisons, and several methods to evaluate and enhance interactions within a multi-nation research team. Strong partnerships within and between the focal regions are critical to scientific and political support for development of effective approaches to reduce future vulnerability. Comparing these hotspot regions will enhance local adaptation responses and generate outcomes applicable to other regions.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Hobday, Alistair J , Cochrane, Kevern L , Howard, James , Aswani, Shankar , Byfield, Val , Duggan, Greg , Duna, Elethu , Dutra, Leo X C , Frusher, Stewart D , Fulton, Elizabeth A , Gammage, Louise , Gasalla, Maria A , Griffiths, Chevon , Guissamulo, Almeida , Haward, Marcus , Jarre, Astrid , Jennings, Sarah M , Jordan, Tia , Joyner, Jessica , Ramani, Narayana K , Shanmugasundaram, Swathi L P , Malherbe, Willem , Ortega-Cisneros, Kelly , Paytan, Adina , Pecl, Gretta T , Plagányi, Éva E , Popova, Ekaterina E , Razafindrainibe, Haja , Roberts, Michael J , Rohit, Prathiba , Sainulabdeen, Shyam S , Sauer, Warwick H H , Valappil, Sathianandan T , Zacharia, Paryiappanal U , Van Putten, E Ingrid
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/125675 , vital:35806 , https://doi.10.1007/s11160-016-9419-0
- Description: Many coastal communities rely on living marine resources for livelihoods and food security. These resources are commonly under stress from overfishing, pollution, coastal development and habitat degradation. Climate change is an additional stressor beginning to impact coastal systems and communities, but may also lead to opportunities for some species and the people they sustain. We describe the research approach for a multi-country project, focused on the southern hemisphere, designed to contribute to improving fishing community adaptation efforts by characterizing, assessing and predicting the future of coastal-marine food resources, and codeveloping adaptation options through the provision and sharing of knowledge across fast-warming marine regions (i.e. marine ‘hotspots’). These hotspots represent natural laboratories for observing change and concomitant human adaptive responses, and for developing adaptation options and management strategies. Focusing on adaptation options and strategies for enhancing coastal resilience at the local level will contribute to capacity building and local empowerment in order to minimise negative outcomes and take advantage of opportunities arising from climate change. However, developing comparative approaches across regions that differ in political institutions, socio-economic community demographics, resource dependency and research capacity is challenging. Here, we describe physical, biological, social and governance tools to allow hotspot comparisons, and several methods to evaluate and enhance interactions within a multi-nation research team. Strong partnerships within and between the focal regions are critical to scientific and political support for development of effective approaches to reduce future vulnerability. Comparing these hotspot regions will enhance local adaptation responses and generate outcomes applicable to other regions.
- Full Text:
Reflections on Teaching Africa in South Africa:
- Authors: Matthews, Sally
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/142235 , vital:38061 , DOI: 10.1111/1467-9256.12107
- Description: This article draws on the author’s experience of teaching African Studies to undergraduate South African students in order to reflect on some of the key challenges facing teachers of African Studies, both in South Africa and beyond. In particular, it discusses challenges relating to teaching a field as contested as African Studies, looking at whether teaching African alternatives to mainstream African politics is helpful and at whether and how one can teach Africa in a way that encourages and develops critical thinking. The article also explores how the racial politics of the context in which one teaches African Studies inevitably affects the way in which students engage with the content of the course. While the article discusses these issues in relation to the South African higher education context in particular, implications for other contexts are also highlighted.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Matthews, Sally
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/142235 , vital:38061 , DOI: 10.1111/1467-9256.12107
- Description: This article draws on the author’s experience of teaching African Studies to undergraduate South African students in order to reflect on some of the key challenges facing teachers of African Studies, both in South Africa and beyond. In particular, it discusses challenges relating to teaching a field as contested as African Studies, looking at whether teaching African alternatives to mainstream African politics is helpful and at whether and how one can teach Africa in a way that encourages and develops critical thinking. The article also explores how the racial politics of the context in which one teaches African Studies inevitably affects the way in which students engage with the content of the course. While the article discusses these issues in relation to the South African higher education context in particular, implications for other contexts are also highlighted.
- Full Text:
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