Bullying and victimization among African American adolescents: a literature review.

Science.gov (United States)

Albdour, Maha; Krouse, Helene J

2014-05-01

Bullying among African American adolescents. This article reviews the current literature on bullying and victimization among African American adolescents. It highlights bullying and violence disparity among African American adolescents, associated risk and protective factors, and effects of bullying on adolescent health. Twenty-three English language peer-reviewed articles from CINAHL, Pubmed, and Psyc-INFO databases. African American adolescents have higher rates of bullying and victimization compared to other adolescent populations. This review found strong associations among bullying involvement, substance abuse, and family factors. Bullying also had a significant impact on adolescent health, particularly psychological symptoms and school performance. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Barack Obama’s Dreams from My Father and African American Literature

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Daniel Stein

2011-09-01

Full Text Available This article provides a series of close readings of Barack Obama’s autobiography Dreams from My Father. It places the narrative within the history of African American literature and rhetoric and argues that Obama uses the text to create a life story that resonates with central concepts of African American selfhood and black male identity, including double consciousness, invisibility, and black nationalism. The article reads Dreams from My Father as an attempt to arrive at a state of “functional Blackness,” which moves away from questions of racial authenticity and identity politics but recognizes the narrative powers of African American literature to shape a convincing and appealing black self.

Book review: Femi Abodunrin, Black African Literature in English ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Book review: Femi Abodunrin, Black African Literature in English 1991-2001: Critical Appreciation and Reception; Mkuki na Nyota Publishers, Dar es Salaam, 2007, 236 pp. ISBN 9987449182/ISBN 13:978-9987-449-18-7.

Afrique-sur-Seine: A new trend in Francophone African literature

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Наталья Сергеевна Найденова

2011-09-01

Full Text Available The article deals with the prerequisites and main stage of formation of a new trend in francophone African literature commonly known as Afrique-sur-Seine. The article outlines its main characteristic features and touches upon its development prospects.

Antiretroviral drug resistance: A guide for the southern African clinician

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Both private and public sector see a bewildering clinical array of patients taking failing antiretroviral (ARV) regimens. We intend this article to provide a practical guide to help clinicians understand and manage ARV drug resistance in an African context. ARV resistance is a rapidly evolving field, requiring expertise in dealing ...

Racial-Ethnic Identity, Academic Achievement, and African American Males: A Review of Literature

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Wright, Brian L.

2009-01-01

This article discusses broadly, the literature on racial-ethnic identity (REI) and its role as a factor to promote academic success in young African American adolescents, in particular males. The review also defines, describes, and interprets styles of self-presentation that reflect aspects of REI among African American males in and outside of…

Specific Cell Targeting Therapy Bypasses Drug Resistance Mechanisms in African Trypanosomiasis.

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Juan D Unciti-Broceta

2015-06-01

Full Text Available African trypanosomiasis is a deadly neglected disease caused by the extracellular parasite Trypanosoma brucei. Current therapies are characterized by high drug toxicity and increasing drug resistance mainly associated with loss-of-function mutations in the transporters involved in drug import. The introduction of new antiparasitic drugs into therapeutic use is a slow and expensive process. In contrast, specific targeting of existing drugs could represent a more rapid and cost-effective approach for neglected disease treatment, impacting through reduced systemic toxicity and circumventing resistance acquired through impaired compound uptake. We have generated nanoparticles of chitosan loaded with the trypanocidal drug pentamidine and coated by a single domain nanobody that specifically targets the surface of African trypanosomes. Once loaded into this nanocarrier, pentamidine enters trypanosomes through endocytosis instead of via classical cell surface transporters. The curative dose of pentamidine-loaded nanobody-chitosan nanoparticles was 100-fold lower than pentamidine alone in a murine model of acute African trypanosomiasis. Crucially, this new formulation displayed undiminished in vitro and in vivo activity against a trypanosome cell line resistant to pentamidine as a result of mutations in the surface transporter aquaglyceroporin 2. We conclude that this new drug delivery system increases drug efficacy and has the ability to overcome resistance to some anti-protozoal drugs.

Dialogue and outrage in the literature of the african diaspora ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Regularly, African Diaspora Literature projects characters that are faced with serious challenges that appear to threaten their very survival. Such characters usually express displeasure with issues affecting them and with the general scheme of things in their milieu. Often, such displeasure reveals itself through anger and ...

Reading Female Identity Creation: Self-realization in Colonial and Postcolonial African Literature

OpenAIRE

Jorgensen, Katie Johnson

2018-01-01

The thesis, Re-defining Madness: Reading Female Identity Creation and Self-realization in Colonial and Postcolonial African Literature, compares female identity creation in three novels by African female authors. It reveals how the colonial texts represent extreme female identity formation (stagnation vs. transcendent life) juxtaposed with the dynamic and interconnected identity formation represented in postcolonial writing. The analysis begins with The Joys of Motherhood by Buchi Emecheta (N...

Promoting African American women and sexual assertiveness in reducing HIV/AIDS: an analytical review of the research literature.

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Kennedy, Bernice Roberts; Jenkins, Chalice C

2011-01-01

African American women, including adolescents and adults, are disproportionately affected by the transmission of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS). HIV/AID is a health disparity issue for African American females in comparison to other ethnic groups. According to data acquired from 33 states in 2005, 64% of women who have HIV/ AIDS are African American women. It is estimated that during 2001-2004, 61% of African Americans under the age of 25 had been living with HIV/AIDS. This article is an analytical review of the literature emphasizing sexual assertiveness of African American women and the gap that exists in research literature on this population. The multifaceted model of HIV risk posits that an interpersonal predictor of risky sexual behavior is sexual assertiveness. The critical themes extracted from a review of the literature reveal the following: (a) sexual assertiveness is related to HIV risk in women, (b) sexual assertiveness and sexual communication are related, and (c) women with low sexual assertiveness are at increased risk of HIV As a result of this comprehensive literature, future research studies need to use models in validating sexual assertiveness interventions in reducing the risk of HIV/AIDS in African American women. HIV/AIDs prevention interventions or future studies need to target reducing the risk factors of HIV/AIDS of African Americans focusing on gender and culture-specific strategies.

Sports Biographies of African American Football Players: The Racism of Colorblindness in Children's Literature

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Winograd, Ken

2011-01-01

This is an exploratory study of racism in a genre of children's literature that has been largely overlooked by research and teaching in multicultural children's literature: sports biographies and, in particular, the biographies of African American professional football players. By examining the race bias of this genre of children's literature, the…

Representations of African Americans in the Grief and Mourning Literature from 1998 to 2014: A Systematic Review.

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Granek, Leeat; Peleg-Sagy, Tal

2015-01-01

The authors examined representations of African Americans in the grief literature to assess (a) frequencies; (b) content; and (c) use of universalist or a contextualized framework. They conducted searches in 3 databases that target the grief literature published in the last 15 years. Fifty-nine articles met the criteria. There are a small number of studies published on African Americans and these tend to focus on homicide. Many studies had incomplete methods. Comparison studies were common and pathological grief outcomes that were validated on White populations were used as outcome variables with African American participants.

A GROUNDED THEORY STUDY OF THE PROCESS USED TO NEGOTIATE CONDOM USE AMONG AFRICAN-AMERICAN WOMEN: REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE.

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Hunter, Teressa Sanders; Tilley, Donna Scott

2015-01-01

This review of the literature identifies themes, variable, goals, and gaps in the literature related to HIV and AIDS among African American women. Black Feminist Epistemology and symbolic interactionism are used as a theoretical perspective and philosophical framework to examine experiences and social behaviors of African-American women and to guide and framework to explain the findings from the literature. This theoretical perspective/philosophical framework can also be used in understanding processes used by African-American women in behavioral, social, and intimate interactions.

Female genital mutilation in African and African American women's literature

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Darja Marinšek

2007-12-01

Full Text Available The article builds on the existing dispute between African and African American women writers on the competence of writing about female genital mutilation (FGM, and tries to determine the existence and nature of the differences between the writings of these two groups. The author uses comparative analysis of two popular African and African American novels, comparing their ways of describing FGM, its causes and consequences, the level ob objectivity and the style of the narrations.This is followed by a discussion on the reasons for such differences, incorporating a larger circle of both African and African American women authors, at the same time analysing the deviance within the two groups. While the differences between African American writers are not that great, as they mostly fail to present the issue from different points of view, which is often the result of their lack of direct knowledge of the topic, African authors' writing is in itself discovered to be ambivalent and not at all invariable. The reasons for such ambivalence are then discussed in greater context, focusing on the effect of the authors' personal contact with circumcision as well as their knowledge and acceptance of Western values. The author concludes by establishing the African ambivalent attitude towards FGM, which includes different aspects of the issue, as the most significant difference between their and African American writers' description of this practice.

Resistance to change in language teaching: some African case ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The conviction with which teachers justify their traditional styles of teaching suggests that they do not teach without deliberation. This presentation looks in some detail at two investigations that serve as case studies for this phenomenon. Is resistance to change in language teaching unique to the African continent? It appears ...

Multiple origins and regional dispersal of resistant dhps in African Plasmodium falciparum malaria.

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Richard J Pearce

2009-04-01

Full Text Available Although the molecular basis of resistance to a number of common antimalarial drugs is well known, a geographic description of the emergence and dispersal of resistance mutations across Africa has not been attempted. To that end we have characterised the evolutionary origins of antifolate resistance mutations in the dihydropteroate synthase (dhps gene and mapped their contemporary distribution.We used microsatellite polymorphism flanking the dhps gene to determine which resistance alleles shared common ancestry and found five major lineages each of which had a unique geographical distribution. The extent to which allelic lineages were shared among 20 African Plasmodium falciparum populations revealed five major geographical groupings. Resistance lineages were common to all sites within these regions. The most marked differentiation was between east and west African P. falciparum, in which resistance alleles were not only of different ancestry but also carried different resistance mutations.Resistant dhps has emerged independently in multiple sites in Africa during the past 10-20 years. Our data show the molecular basis of resistance differs between east and west Africa, which is likely to translate into differing antifolate sensitivity. We have also demonstrated that the dispersal patterns of resistance lineages give unique insights into recent parasite migration patterns.

The classics, African literature, and the critics | Field | English in Africa

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Faced with the criticism that myth and epic poetry have no place in contemporary South African literature departments, there is no point in defending the material on the grounds of intrinsic worth. No text can claim this privilege. Instead, students and lecturers alike may find value and relevance for these works if they explore ...

Anxiety Psychopathology in African American Adults: Literature Review and Development of an Empirically Informed Sociocultural Model

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Hunter, Lora Rose; Schmidt, Norman B.

2010-01-01

In this review, the extant literature concerning anxiety psychopathology in African American adults is summarized to develop a testable, explanatory framework with implications for future research. The model was designed to account for purported lower rates of anxiety disorders in African Americans compared to European Americans, along with other…

Factors Affecting Nontraditional African American Students' Participation in Online World Literature Classes

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Merrills, J. Maria Sweeney

2010-01-01

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine how communication preferences, learning preferences, and perceptions about online learning affect nontraditional African American students' participation in online world literature courses at a historically Black university (HBCU) in the southeastern United States. An instrumental case study was…

"Women...mourn and men carry on": African women storying mourning practices: a South African example.

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Kotzé, Elmarie; Els, Lishje; Rajuili-Masilo, Ntsiki

2012-09-01

African mourning of loss of lives in South Africa has been shaped by discursive practices of both traditional African cultures and the sociopolitical developments under apartheid and in post-apartheid South Africa. This article reports on changes in mourning practices on the basis of a literature review and uses a collection of examples to highlight the navigation of some cultural and gendered issues relating to mourning, against the backdrop of the everyday experiences of loss of life in South Africa due to violence and HIV/AIDS. The article draws on African womanist and feminist scholarship and focuses on the intersections between cultural and gender practices of bereavement in the lives of professional urban African women. The authors argue for the use of positioning theory and witnessing practices to honor and story the ongoing struggle of African women as these women take different agentic positions by accepting, questioning, resisting, and/or changing cultural mourning practices while they compassionately witness the self and others in the narratives they live.

Antibacterial Resistance in African Catfish Aquaculture: a Review

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Madubuike U. ANYANWU

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Antibacterial resistance (AR is currently one of the greatest threats to mankind as it constitutes health crisis. Extensive use of antibacterial agents in human and veterinary medicine, and farm crops have resulted in emergence of antibacterial-resistant organisms in different environmental settings including aquaculture. Antibacterial resistance in aquaculture is a serious global concern because antibacterial resistance genes (ARGs can be transferred easily from aquaculture setting to other ecosystems and the food chain. African catfish (ACF aquaculture has increased at a phenomenal rate through a continuous process of intensification, expansion and diversification. Risk of bacterial diseases has also increased and consequently there is increased use of antibacterial agents for treatment. Antibacterial resistance in ACF aquaculture has huge impact on the food chain and thus represents risk to public and animal health. In “one health” approach of curbing AR, knowledge of the sources, mechanisms and magnitude of AR in ACF aquaculture and its potential impact on the food chain is important in designing and prioritizing monitoring programs that may generate data that would be relevant for performing quantitative risk assessments, implementation of antibacterial stewardship plans, and developing effective treatment strategies for the control of ACF disease and reducing risk to public health. This review provides insight on the sources, mechanisms, prevalence and impact of antibacterial resistance in ACF aquaculture environment, a setting where the impact of AR is neglected or underestimated.

The triglyceride/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio fails to predict insulin resistance in African-American women: an analysis of Jackson Heart Study.

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Sumner, Anne E; Harman, Jane L; Buxbaum, Sarah G; Miller, Bernard V; Tambay, Anita V; Wyatt, Sharon B; Taylor, Herman A; Rotimi, Charles N; Sarpong, Daniel F

2010-12-01

Compared to whites, insulin-resistant African Americans have worse outcomes. Screening programs that could identify insulin resistance early enough for intervention to affect outcome often rely on triglyceride (TG) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels. Racial differences in TG and HDL-C may compromise the efficacy of these programs in African Americans. A recommendation currently exists to use the TG/HDL-C ratio ≥2.0 to predict insulin resistance in African Americans. The validity of this recommendation needs examination. Therefore, our aim was to determine the ability of TG/HDL-C ratio to predict insulin resistance in African Americans. In 1,903 African Americans [895 men, 1,008 women, age 55 ± 12 years, mean ± standard deviation (SD), range 35-80 years, body mass index (BMI) 31.0 ± 6.4 kg/m(2), range 18.5-55 kg/m(2)] participating in the Jackson Heart Study, a population-based study of African Americans, Jackson, Mississippi tricounty region, insulin resistance was defined by the upper quartile (≥4.43) of homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR). An area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC-ROC) of >0.70 was required for prediction of insulin resistance by TG/HDL-C. The optimal test cutoff was determined by the Youden index. HOMA-IR was similar in men and women (3.40 ± 2.03 vs. 3.80 ± 2.46, P = 0.60). Women had lower TG (94 ± 49 vs. 109 ± 65 mg/dL P Heart Study can help determine the efficacy of screening programs in African-Americans.

The use of film, literature, and music in becoming culturally competent in understanding african americans.

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Martin, Ardis C

2005-07-01

Increasing the cultural competence of child and adolescent psychiatrists through the use of film, literature, and music can improve their ability to understand what African Americans experience and the impact these experiences have on mental health. It also may help clinicians recognize their own underlying biases. This understanding, in turn, could improve their ability to address effectively in treatment the issues pertinent to the African-American community and help eliminate the well-documented disparities in the health care quality and health status of minorities.

The Impact of Family Functioning on African American Males' Academic Achievement: A Review and Clarification of the Empirical Literature

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Mandara, Jelani

2006-01-01

This article reviews and clarifies many inconsistencies and misconceptions in the research literature on the effects of family functioning on African American male academic achievement. It was concluded that when parents use an African American version of authoritative parenting, teach children about their cultural heritage and personal power to…

The African Diaspora in continental African struggles for freedom ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

In light of this realization, this article discusses the contributions of the African Diaspora towards continental African liberation from European colonial domination, with a view to theorizing the implications of this history on the criticism of African Renaissance literature. Focusing on Diasporan African agency in organizing ...

See No Evil Write No Evil: Sexual Deviance In African Literature During Colonialism

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Wazha Lopang

2014-10-01

Full Text Available This paper argues that writers of African literature during colonialism differed in their portrayal of sexuality, particularly that which was considered deviant by nature, because of their need to build an ‘upright’ African image, no matter how artificial this was. The paper looks at how the political environment dictated sexual expression amongst characters and that the urban setting was more candid in its narrative style. There was also a total blackout on homosexuality between characters and where this took place, it was presented as something that was alien to the African culture in general and to the personality in particular. Writers who depicted pre-colonial settings limited sexuality to procreation and as a comment to the African’s link with the ancestors. There is also a correlation between the geographic location of texts and the degree of sexual expression that the writer engages in. As such the paper argues that sexual deviance is depicted as a matter of geography over and above thematic concerns.

Suicidal behaviour across the African continent: a review of the literature.

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Mars, Becky; Burrows, Stephanie; Hjelmeland, Heidi; Gunnell, David

2014-06-14

Suicide is a major cause of premature mortality worldwide, but data on its epidemiology in Africa, the world's second most populous continent, are limited. We systematically reviewed published literature on suicidal behaviour in African countries. We searched PubMed, Web of Knowledge, PsycINFO, African Index Medicus, Eastern Mediterranean Index Medicus and African Journals OnLine and carried out citation searches of key articles. We crudely estimated the incidence of suicide and suicide attempts in Africa based on country-specific data and compared these with published estimates. We also describe common features of suicide and suicide attempts across the studies, including information related to age, sex, methods used and risk factors. Regional or national suicide incidence data were available for less than one third (16/53) of African countries containing approximately 60% of Africa's population; suicide attempt data were available for men are typically at least three times higher than in women. The most frequently used methods of suicide are hanging and pesticide poisoning. Reported risk factors are similar for suicide and suicide attempts and include interpersonal difficulties, mental and physical health problems, socioeconomic problems and drug and alcohol use/abuse. Qualitative studies are needed to identify additional culturally relevant risk factors and to understand how risk factors may be connected to suicidal behaviour in different socio-cultural contexts. Our estimate is somewhat lower than GBD, but still clearly indicates suicidal behaviour is an important public health problem in Africa. More regional studies, in both urban and rural areas, are needed to more accurately estimate the burden of suicidal behaviour across the continent. Qualitative studies are required in addition to quantitative studies.

Antibiotic resistance in primary care in Austria - a systematic review of scientific and grey literature

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-01

Background Antibiotic resistance is an increasing challenge for health care services worldwide. While up to 90% of antibiotics are being prescribed in the outpatient sector recommendations for the treatment of community-acquired infections are usually based on resistance findings from hospitalized patients. In context of the EU-project called "APRES - the appropriateness of prescribing antibiotic in primary health care in Europe with respect to antibiotic resistance" it was our aim to gain detailed information about the resistance data from Austria in both the scientific and the grey literature. Methods A systematic review was performed including scientific and grey literature published between 2000 and 2010. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were defined and the review process followed published recommendations. Results Seventeen scientific articles and 23 grey literature documents could be found. In contrast to the grey literature, the scientific publications describe only a small part of the resistance situation in the primary health care sector in Austria. Merely half of these publications contain data from the ambulatory sector exclusively but these data are older than ten years, are very heterogeneous concerning the observed time period, the number and origin of the isolates and the kind of bacteria analysed. The grey literature yields more comprehensive and up-to-date information of the content of interest. These sources are available in German only and are not easily accessible. The resistance situation described in the grey literature can be summarized as rather stable over the last two years. For Escherichia coli e.g. the highest antibiotic resistance rates can be seen with fluorochiniolones (19%) and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (27%). Conclusion Comprehensive and up-to-date antibiotic resistance data of different pathogens isolated from the community level in Austria are presented. They could be found mainly in the grey literature, only few are

Antibiotic resistance in primary care in Austria - a systematic review of scientific and grey literature.

Science.gov (United States)

Hoffmann, Kathryn; Wagner, Gernot; Apfalter, Petra; Maier, Manfred

2011-11-28

Antibiotic resistance is an increasing challenge for health care services worldwide. While up to 90% of antibiotics are being prescribed in the outpatient sector recommendations for the treatment of community-acquired infections are usually based on resistance findings from hospitalized patients. In context of the EU-project called "APRES - the appropriateness of prescribing antibiotic in primary health care in Europe with respect to antibiotic resistance" it was our aim to gain detailed information about the resistance data from Austria in both the scientific and the grey literature. A systematic review was performed including scientific and grey literature published between 2000 and 2010. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were defined and the review process followed published recommendations. Seventeen scientific articles and 23 grey literature documents could be found. In contrast to the grey literature, the scientific publications describe only a small part of the resistance situation in the primary health care sector in Austria. Merely half of these publications contain data from the ambulatory sector exclusively but these data are older than ten years, are very heterogeneous concerning the observed time period, the number and origin of the isolates and the kind of bacteria analysed. The grey literature yields more comprehensive and up-to-date information of the content of interest. These sources are available in German only and are not easily accessible. The resistance situation described in the grey literature can be summarized as rather stable over the last two years. For Escherichia coli e.g. the highest antibiotic resistance rates can be seen with fluorochiniolones (19%) and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (27%). Comprehensive and up-to-date antibiotic resistance data of different pathogens isolated from the community level in Austria are presented. They could be found mainly in the grey literature, only few are published in peer-reviewed journals. The grey

Race Across Borders: Transnationalism and Racial Identity in African-American Fiction, 1929-1945

OpenAIRE

Agbodike, Kanayo Jason

2012-01-01

Race Across Borders: Transnationalism and Racial Identity in African-American Fiction, 1929-1945, examines four African-American literary texts that employ transnational themes and aesthetics as a means of resisting a logic of racial essentialism that governed the production and reception of black literature in the United States during the early 20th century. I examine the ways in which Dark Princess by W. E. B. Du Bois, Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, Banjo: A Story Witho...

Review: Jennifer Browdy de Hernandez, Pauline Dongala, Omotayo Jolaosho and Anne Serafin (eds., African Women Writing Resistance: An Anthology of Contemporary Voices (2010 Buchbesprechung: Jennifer Browdy de Hernandez, Pauline Dongala, Omotayo Jolaosho und Anne Serafin (Hrsg., African Women Writing Resistance: An Anthology of Contemporary Voices (2010

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Anja Oed

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Review of the edited volume: Jennifer Browdy de Hernandez, Pauline Dongala, Omotayo Jolaosho and Anne Serafin (eds., African Women Writing Resistance: An Anthology of Contemporary Voices, Oxford: Pambazuka Press, 2010, ISBN 978-0-299-23664-9, 376 pp.Besprechung des Sammelbandes: Jennifer Browdy de Hernandez, Pauline Dongala, Omotayo Jolaosho und Anne Serafin (Hrsg., African Women Writing Resistance: An Anthology of Contemporary Voices, Oxford: Pambazuka Press, 2010, ISBN 978-0-299-23664-9, 376 Seiten

Understanding the Rise of African Business

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jorem, Kaja Tvedten; Hansen, Michael Wendelboe; Jeppesen, Søren

2014-01-01

Purpose: In light of recent enthusiasm over African private sector development, the purpose of this paper is to review the business literature on African enterprise development with a view of identifying lacunas in the literature and of developing an analytical framework that may guide future...... research on this issue. Design/methodology/approach: The paper provides a review of the extant literature on African enterprise development by juxtaposing the traditional pessimistic view of African business performance with more recent, optimistic accounts. Based on the literature review, lacunas...... enterprises, observing that while much research is focusing on the role of the African business environments for enterprise development, much less attention has been devoted to the role of firm-specific capabilities, strategies and management. The paper concludes by advocating a contingency approach...

Financial development and economic growth: literature survey and empirical evidence from sub-Saharan African countries

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Songul Kakilli Acaravci

2011-08-01

Full Text Available In this paper we review the literature on the finance-growth nexus and investigate the causality between financial development and economic growth in Sub-Saharan Africa for the period 1975-2005. Using panel co-integration and panel GMM estimation for causality, the results of the panel co-integration analysis provide evidence of no long-run relationship between financial development and economic growth. The empirical findings in the paper show a bi-directional causal relationship between the growth of real GDP per capita and the domestic credit provided by the banking sector for the panels of 24 Sub-Saharan African countries. The findings imply that African countries can accelerate their economic growth by improving their financial systems and vice versa.

The Transnational Turn in African Literature of French Expression: Imagining Other Utopic Spaces in the Globalized Age

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Valérie K. Orlando

2016-05-01

Full Text Available This article focuses on African literature published since 2000 by authors of French expression. While contemporary authors’ subjects are varied—ranging from climate change, human rights, to ethnic cleansing—they also imagine new “what ifs” and other utopic spaces and places that extend beyond postcolonial, Africa-as-victim paradigms. Literarily, authors such as Abdelaziz Belkhodja (Tunisia and Abdourahman A. Waberi (Djibouti have effectuated a transnational turn. In this literary transnational turn, Africa is open to new interpretations by the African author that are very different from the more essentialist-based, literary-philosophical movements such as Negritude and pan-Africanism; cornerstones of the postcolonial literary frameworks of the past. Belkhodja and Waberi offer original narratives for Africa that, while describing their countries as utopias, also traverse the very dystopic realities of our time.

African Studies Monographs

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The African Studies Monographs is a serial that promotes research and scholarship on the African perspective worldwide. This includes matters of philosophy, history, literature, arts and culture, environment, gender, politics, administration crisis management, etc.

Classroom Management Training for Teachers in Urban Environments Serving Predominately African American Students: A Review of the Literature

Science.gov (United States)

Larson, Kristine E.

2016-01-01

The purpose of this paper was to review the literature in terms of professional development activities that researchers have enlisted to reduce student problem behaviors and improve classroom management competencies among teachers who work in urban environments serving predominately African American students. First, the author conducted a…

The Conduciveness of the South African Economic Environment and Small, Medium and Micro Enterprise Sustainability: A Literature Review

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Juan-Pierré BRUWER

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Since the early 1980s Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs have been regarded as the driving forces of both developing and developed economies around the world. In a South African dispensation, SMMEs are responsible for adding imperative socio-economic value to the country, particularly in terms of eradicating poverty and diminishing unemployment levels. By doing so, these business entities are believed to contribute at least 50% to the national Gross Domestic Product. Albeit the aforementioned, previous research studies report that up to 75% of South African SMMEs fail after being in existence for only 42 months. Though the latter dispensation has been blamed on many economic factors, over the years the sustainability of South African SMMEs has not improved to a great extent. In order to provide insight on the latter dispensation, this literature review paper was conducted to ultimately formulate two hypotheses for further empirical testing.

Neoliberal Imperialism and Pan-African Resistance

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Niels S.C. Hahn

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Neoliberalism has in the past three decades had a tremendous impact on both thought and practice throughout most of the world, and has dominated international development since the early 1980s. Although neoliberalism presents itself as modern and progressive, it is argued that the underlying ideologies and power agendas have their origins in the political debates of the eighteenth century and earlier. Through an analysis of neoliberalism from a world-historical and global perspective, indications are seen that the international development agenda has more to do with political and economic interests than with benevolent pro-poor development. This leads to the debate about redistribution of resources and State-led Development versus Free-market Development, which is inextricable from the discussion of Liberal Democratic Peace Theory versus Realism. From this perspective it is argued that the notion of democratic peace is used as a popular seductive rhetoric, to legitimize western military interventions and the imposition of economic policies in the name of democracy, human rights and free market economy. In this context, it is argued that neoliberalism cannot be analysed without also considering inherent links to imperialism and neo-colonialism, which is being resisted by pan-African movements.

Community-Based Participatory Research to Promote Healthy Diet and Nutrition and Prevent and Control Obesity Among African-Americans: a Literature Review.

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Coughlin, Steven S; Smith, Selina A

2017-04-01

The literature on community-based participatory research (CBPR) approaches for promoting healthy diet and nutrition and preventing and controlling obesity in African-American communities was systematically reviewed as part of the planning process for new research. CBPR studies of diet, nutrition, and weight management among African-Americans were identified from 1989 through October 31, 2015, using PubMed and the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) databases and MeSH term and keyword searches. A total of 16 CBPR studies on healthy diet, nutrition, and weight management among African-Americans were identified; outcome evaluation results were available for all but two. Of the remaining 14 studies, 11 focused on adults, 1 on children, and 2 on both children and adults. Eight studies employed CBPR methods to address diet, nutrition, and weight management in church settings. Four had a cluster-randomized controlled design. Others had a pre-post test, quasi-experimental, or uncontrolled design. Only one study addressed four levels of the socioecological model; none addressed all five levels of the model. The studies identified in this review indicate that CBPR approaches can be effective for promoting healthy diet, nutrition, and weight management among African-American adults, but there is a need for additional studies with rigorous study designs that overcome methodologic limitations of many existing studies. There is only limited evidence for the effectiveness of CBPR approaches for promoting healthy eating and weight control among African-American children and adolescents. To address health disparities, additional CBPR studies are needed to promote healthy diet, nutrition, and weight management in African-American communities. Of particular interest are multilevel CBPR studies that include interventions aimed at multiple levels of the socioecological model.

Literature Review Lifestyles and routine activities of South African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Journal of Child and Adolescent Mental Health ... Lifestyles and routine activities of South African teenagers at risk of being trafficked for involuntary prostitution. Thozama ... Actual lifestyle and routine activities of South African teenagers and risky behaviours (substance abuse, intergenerational sex and child prostitution) are ...

Using Cognitive Behavior Therapy in Clinical Work with African American Children and Adolescents: A Review of the Literature

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Wilson, Courtney J.; Cottone, R. Rocco

2013-01-01

A comprehensive review of the literature on clinical work with African American youth with cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) is presented. The strengths and limitations of CBT in relation to this population are outlined. Although CBT shows promise in helping, research on the efficacy and effectiveness of CBT in this group is lacking. (Contains 3…

Drought resistant fodder crops | GC | African Journal of Range and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The deficiency of fodder in the arid and semi-arid regions of the Republic of South Africa can he supplemented with drought resistant fodder crops, which are adapted to make better use of limited moisture, in these areas. The literature in this connection is reviewed and a complete discussion follows of the planting, ...

Prostate cancer disparities in Black men of African descent: a comparative literature review of prostate cancer burden among Black men in the United States, Caribbean, United Kingdom, and West Africa

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Reams R Renee

2009-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background African American men have the highest prostate cancer morbidity and mortality rates than any other racial or ethnic group in the US. Although the overall incidence of and mortality from prostate cancer has been declining in White men since 1991, the decline in African American men lags behind White men. Of particular concern is the growing literature on the disproportionate burden of prostate cancer among other Black men of West African ancestry in the Caribbean Islands, United Kingdom and West Africa. This higher incidence of prostate cancer observed in populations of African descent may be attributed to the fact that these populations share ancestral genetic factors. To better understand the burden of prostate cancer among men of West African Ancestry, we conducted a review of the literature on prostate cancer incidence, prevalence, and mortality in the countries connected by the Transatlantic Slave Trade. Results Several published studies indicate high prostate cancer burden in Nigeria and Ghana. There was no published literature for the countries Benin, Gambia and Senegal that met our review criteria. Prostate cancer morbidity and/or mortality data from the Caribbean Islands and the United Kingdom also provided comparable or worse prostate cancer burden to that of US Blacks. Conclusion The growing literature on the disproportionate burden of prostate cancer among other Black men of West African ancestry follows the path of the Transatlantic Slave Trade. To better understand and address the global prostate cancer disparities seen in Black men of West African ancestry, future studies should explore the genetic and environmental risk factors for prostate cancer among this group.

Insecticide resistance in the West African malaria vector Anopheles gambiae and investigation of alternative tools for its delay

NARCIS (Netherlands)

N'Guessan, R.

2009-01-01

There is a current policy to eliminate malaria in the African continent. Pyrethroid-incorporated Long Lasting Insecticidal Nets (LLINs) and/or Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS) are the chemical weapons being deployed to achieve that goal. Rather worryingly, resistance to pyrethroids is well documented

Racial and Ethnic Diversity in Academic Library Collections: Ownership and Access of African American and U.S. Latino Periodical Literature.

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Vega Garcia, Susan A.

2000-01-01

Measures ownership of and access to African American and Latino periodical literature, illustrating the successes and failures in promoting racial and ethnic diversity in research libraries belonging to the ARL (Association of Research Libraries). Discusses desirability of multicultural collections; bibliographic control and access issues; and…

Minority drug-resistant HIV-1 variants in treatment naïve East-African and Caucasian patients detected by allele-specific real-time PCR.

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Halime Ekici

Full Text Available To assess the presence of two major non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTI drug resistance mutations (DRMs, Y181C and K103N, in minor viral quasispecies of treatment naïve HIV-1 infected East-African and Swedish patients by allele-specific polymerase chain reaction (AS-PCR.Treatment naïve adults (n=191 with three epidemiological backgrounds were included: 92 Ethiopians living in Ethiopia; 55 East-Africans who had migrated to Sweden; and 44 Caucasians living in Sweden. The pol gene was analysed by standard population sequencing and by AS-PCR for the detection of Y181C and K103N.The Y181C was detected in the minority quasispecies of six Ethiopians (6.5%, in two Caucasians (4.5%, and in one East-African (1.8%. The K103N was detected in one East- African (1.8%, by both methods. The proportion of mutants ranged from 0.25% to 17.5%. Additional DRMs were found in all three treatment naïve patient groups by population sequencing.Major NNRTI mutations can be found by AS-PCR in minor quasispecies of treatment naïve HIV-1 infected Ethiopians living in Ethiopia, in East-African and Caucasian patients living in Sweden in whom population sequencing reveal wild-type virus only. Surveys with standard sequencing are likely to underestimate transmitted drug resistance and the presence of resistant minor quasispecies in treatment naïve patients should be topic for future large scale studies.

Genetic mapping and legume synteny of aphid resistance in African cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L. Walp.) grown in California.

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Huynh, Bao-Lam; Ehlers, Jeffrey D; Ndeve, Arsenio; Wanamaker, Steve; Lucas, Mitchell R; Close, Timothy J; Roberts, Philip A

The cowpea aphid Aphis craccivora Koch (CPA) is a destructive insect pest of cowpea, a staple legume crop in Sub-Saharan Africa and other semiarid warm tropics and subtropics. In California, CPA causes damage on all local cultivars from early vegetative to pod development growth stages. Sources of CPA resistance are available in African cowpea germplasm. However, their utilization in breeding is limited by the lack of information on inheritance, genomic location and marker linkage associations of the resistance determinants. In the research reported here, a recombinant inbred line (RIL) population derived from a cross between a susceptible California blackeye cultivar (CB27) and a resistant African breeding line (IT97K-556-6) was genotyped with 1,536 SNP markers. The RILs and parents were phenotyped for CPA resistance using field-based screenings during two main crop seasons in a 'hotspot' location for this pest within the primary growing region of the Central Valley of California. One minor and one major quantitative trait locus (QTL) were consistently mapped on linkage groups 1 and 7, respectively, both with favorable alleles contributed from IT97K-556-6. The major QTL appeared dominant based on a validation test in a related F2 population. SNP markers flanking each QTL were positioned in physical contigs carrying genes involved in plant defense based on synteny with related legumes. These markers could be used to introgress resistance alleles from IT97K-556-6 into susceptible local blackeye varieties by backcrossing.

The Transnational Turn in African Literature of French Expression: Imagining Other Utopic Spaces in the Globalized Age

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Valérie K. Orlando

2016-01-01

This article focuses on African literature published since 2000 by authors of French expression. While contemporary authors’ subjects are varied—ranging from climate change, human rights, to ethnic cleansing—they also imagine new “what ifs” and other utopic spaces and places that extend beyond postcolonial, Africa-as-victim paradigms. Literarily, authors such as Abdelaziz Belkhodja (Tunisia) and Abdourahman A. Waberi (Djibouti) have effectuated a transnational turn. In this literary transnati...

Cardiovascular disease, diabetes and established risk factors among populations of sub-Saharan African descent in Europe: a literature review

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de Graft Aikins Ama

2009-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Most European countries are ethnically and culturally diverse. Globally, cardiovascular disease (CVD is the leading cause of death. The major risk factors for CVD have been well established. This picture holds true for all regions of the world and in different ethnic groups. However, the prevalence of CVD and related risk factors vary among ethnic groups. Methods This article provides a review of current understanding of the epidemiology of vascular disease, principally coronary heart disease (CHD, stroke and related risk factors among populations of Sub-Sahara African descent (henceforth, African descent in comparison with the European populations in Europe. Results Compared with European populations, populations of African descent have an increased risk of stroke, whereas CHD is less common. They also have higher rates of hypertension and diabetes than European populations. Obesity is highly prevalent, but smoking rate is lower among African descent women. Older people of African descent have more favourable lipid profile and dietary habits than their European counterparts. Alcohol consumption is less common among populations of African descent. The rate of physical activity differs between European countries. Dutch African-Suriname men and women are less physically active than the White-Dutch whereas British African women are more physically active than women in the general population. Literature on psychosocial stress shows inconsistent results. Conclusion Hypertension and diabetes are highly prevalent among African populations, which may explain their high rate of stroke in Europe. The relatively low rate of CHD may be explained by the low rates of other risk factors including a more favourable lipid profile and the low prevalence of smoking. The risk factors are changing, and on the whole, getting worse especially among African women. Cohort studies and clinical trials are therefore needed among these groups to

Brief report: Contextual predictors of African American adolescents' ethnic-racial identity affirmation-belonging and resistance to peer pressure.

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Derlan, Chelsea L; Umaña-Taylor, Adriana J

2015-06-01

The current study examined whether contextual factors (i.e., familial cultural socialization, percentage of same-ethnicity friends in high school, and neighborhood ethnic-racial composition) predicted ethnic-racial identity affirmation-belonging and, in turn, resistance to peer pressure to engage in problem behavior. Participants were 250 African American adolescents (M age = 15.57 years; SD = 1.22). Consistent with ecological theory, findings indicated that familial cultural socialization and percentage of same-ethnicity friends predicted greater ethnic-racial identity affirmation-belonging. Furthermore, consistent with notions from social identity theory, youth who reported higher ethnic-racial identity affirmation-belonging also reported greater resistance to peer pressure. Findings highlight the significance of the family and school context, as well as the importance of ethnic-racial identity affirmation-belonging, for African American youths' positive development. Copyright © 2015 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Parsing the Gulf between Africans and African Americans

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Ashly Nsangou

2018-02-01

Full Text Available The rise in African immigrants to the US provides an opportunity to assess relations between Africans and African Americans in college. An online survey of 322 current and recently-graduated college students (including 45 Africans, 160 African Americans, and 117 whites assessed respondents’ experiences of racism in US high schools and colleges. Semi-structured interviews of 30 students (10 African, 10 African American and 10 white students supplemented these data. Even within a sociopolitical context of more visible racial intolerance, Black intra-racial cohesion was absent. Although more first- and second-generation Africans (73% felt that they had been judged while living in the US compared to African Americans (34% or whites (20%, for 70–80% of respondents, this had occurred only in high school. Despite experiencing these judgments, Africans’ identity related more to their focus on education than their race, reflected in a higher proportion who felt intense family pressure to attend college (65% compared to African Americans (37% and whites (39%. Interview data confirmed previous reports in the literature that African Americans lack a sense of connection to Africans, attributed to Africans’ purported sense of superiority and disregard for African Americans’ ongoing struggle to end oppression. These mixed-methods data suggest that intermingling in the college environment has not resulted in first- and second-generation Africans and African Americans sharing a common in-group, race-based identity. We discuss the implications of overlooking ethnic distinctions due to presumptions of racial homogeneity that deprive Black individuals of their uniqueness.

The Lord’s Resistance Army: an African Terrorist Group?

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Emma Leonard

2011-01-01

Full Text Available The years since 9/11 have been characterised by the increasing threat of terrorist action in the  Middle East and South Asia. Yet Sub-Saharan Africa was has also become a region of concern. In 1998, it had been the scene of two Al-Qaeda attacks against US embassies; besides Africa is home to large Muslim populations. Since 9/11 African violent non-state groups unrelated to Al- Qaeda or to the wider Islamist movement have been recast as terrorist organisations. These groups primarily operate in conflict zones, an area of research that traditionally has not been the main focus of Terrorism Studies. Protagonists have at various times been called freedom fighters, rebels, warlords, insurgents or simply violent gangs. This article looks at the most notorious of African groups – the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA. It argues that some groups like the LRA have been recast as terrorist organisations not because of a change in their activities but due to a change in the geo-strategic environment they found themselves in the post-9/11 period. The LRA’s ideology and tactics will be judged against a broad definition of terrorism in order to test whether the group can, in an objective way, be called a terrorist organisation. It is concluded that the LRA is too ambiguous an organisation to be simply labelled in such a way. It is also suggested that the terrorism label has in fact been an obstacle to attempts to end successfully a confrontation that is now going into its 24th year. 

Resistance Stories of African-Brazilian Women

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Stela Nazareth Meneghel

2005-01-01

Full Text Available This study consists of an intervention using narrative workshops as a device to stimulate the empowerment of women. Ten women, victims of gender violence, took part in a workshop developed by non-governmental organization for African-Brazilian women Maria Mulher, which gives assistance to women living in Vila Cruzeiro do Sul, in the city of Porto Alegre. The main objective of the research was to debate questions related to gender and violence, making use of stories and histories related to the feminine, specifically African-Brazilian stories. Five meetings were held, where the women told and were told stories, took part in group discussions, experiences and rituals. The workshops gave those women a space where they could tell and hear stories, take part in the rituals of the orixás [African-Brazilian deities] of the black culture and tell their personal histories using those experiences. This intervention was an attempt at invoking different subjective experiences, and made it possible to empower the women who took part in the research, contributing for the rescue of the individual and collective memory of this group.

African Studies Monographs: Editorial Policies

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Focus and Scope. The African Studies Monographs is a serial that promotes research and scholarship on the African perspective worldwide. This includes matters of philosophy, history, literature, arts and culture, environment, gender, politics, administration crisis management, etc.

Antibiotic resistance in Escherichia coli in husbandry animals: the African perspective.

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Alonso, C A; Zarazaga, M; Ben Sallem, R; Jouini, A; Ben Slama, K; Torres, C

2017-05-01

In the last few years, different surveillances have been published in Africa, especially in northern countries, regarding antimicrobial resistance among husbandry animals. Information is still scarce, but the available data show a worrying picture. Although the highest resistance rates have been described against tetracycline, penicillins and sulphonamides, prevalence of plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance genes and extended spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL) are being increasingly reported. Among ESBLs, the CTX-M-1 group was dominant in most African surveys. Within this group, CTX-M-15 was the main variant both in animals and humans, except in Tunisia where CTX-M-1 was more frequently detected among Escherichia coli from poultry. Certain bla CTX -M-15 -harbouring clones (ST131/B2 or ST405/D) are mainly identified in humans, but they have also been reported in livestock species from Tanzania, Nigeria or Tunisia. Moreover, several reports suggest an inter-host circulation of specific plasmids (e.g. bla CTX -M-1 -carrying IncI1/ST3 in Tunisia, IncY- and Inc-untypeable replicons co-harbouring qnrS1 and bla CTX -M-15 in Tanzania and the worldwide distributed bla CTX -M-15 -carrying IncF-type plasmids). International trade of poultry meat seems to have contributed to the spread of other ESBL variants, such as CTX-M-14, and clones. Furthermore, first descriptions of OXA-48- and OXA-181-producing E. coli have been recently documented in cattle from Egypt, and the emergent plasmid-mediated colistin resistance mcr-1 gene has been also identified in chickens from Algeria, Tunisia and South Africa. These data reflect the urgent need of a larger regulation in the use of veterinary drugs and the implementation of surveillance programmes in order to decelerate the advance of antimicrobial resistance in this continent. © 2017 The Society for Applied Microbiology.

Human trafficking: Commercial sexual exploitation and forced domestic labour in African literature

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Urama Evelyn Nwachukwu

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Just like social occurrences such as human sacrifice and slavery enhanced retardation of progress in Africa in the past, trafficking is another social occurrence addressed in contemporary African literature that impedes progress and tarnishes the image of the victims. Human trafficking is rampant in Africans and some part of the world in this 21st century. This paper examines how Akachi Adimora-Ezeigbo’s Trafficked (2008 and Chika Unigwe’s On Black Sisters′ Street (2009 highlight social occurrences and how they contribute to the spread of girl trafficking in Africa. It also explores how both men and women are partners in trafficking, forming trafficking networks that lure girls from Nigeria to Europe and make huge profits from their misery. These pimps use ‘juju magic’ and rituals as a threat to exert complete control over the girls and also to ensure their compliance. The trafficked girls share their life experiences by telling their tales of woes exposing the shame that accompanies the sex trade and the stigmatization they suffer in the society. Their experiences are presented by the authors to highlight the trafficked girls′ pains, misery and struggle for freedom in order to appeal to everybody in the society to fight against human trafficking. The paper also examines how these exploited and depressed trafficked girls that have lost their self-esteem can still live fulfilled lives if government agencies and nongovernmental organizations come to their rescue.

Triglyceride-based screening tests fail to recognize cardiometabolic disease in African immigrant and African-American men.

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Yu, Sophia S K; Ramsey, Natalie L M; Castillo, Darleen C; Ricks, Madia; Sumner, Anne E

2013-02-01

The prevalence of cardiometabolic disease in Africa now rivals that of Western nations. Therefore, screening programs that lead to effective prevention of cardiometabolic disease in Africans is imperative. Most screening tests for cardiometabolic disease use triglyceride (TG) levels as a criterion. However, the failure rate of TG-based screening tests in African Americans is high. In Africans, the efficacy of TG-based screening tests is unknown. Our goal was to determine the association between hypertriglyceridemia (TG ≥150 mg/dL) and cardiometabolic disease in African and African-American men. This was a cross-sectional study of 155 men (80 African immigrants, 75 African Americans) [age, 35±9 years, mean±standard deviation (SD), body mass index (BMI) 28.5±5.2 kg/m(2)] who self-identified as healthy. Lipid profiles were performed. Glucose tolerance and insulin resistance was determined by oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTT) and the insulin sensitivity index (S(I)), respectively. Cardiometabolic disease was defined by four possible subtypes--prediabetes, diabetes, insulin resistance, or metabolic triad [hyperinsulinemia, hyperapolipoprotein B, small low-density lipoprotein (LDL) particles]. TG levels were higher in men with cardiometabolic disease than without (88±43 versus 61±26 mg/dL, Pfail to identify both African immigrants and African-American men with cardiometabolic disease. As a consequence, the opportunity for early intervention and prevention is lost.

Emergence of quinolone resistance among extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae in the Central African Republic: genetic characterization

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Frank Thierry

2011-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Cross-resistance to quinolones and beta-lactams is frequent in Enterobacteriaceae, due to the wide use of these antibiotics clinically and in the food industry. Prescription of one of these categories of antibiotic may consequently select for bacteria resistant to both categories. Genetic mechanisms of resistance may be secondary to a chromosomal mutation located in quinolone resistance determining region of DNA gyrase or topoisomerase IV or to a plasmid acquisition. The insertion sequence ISCR1 is often associated with qnr and may favour its dissemination in Gram-negative bacteria. The aim of this study was to determine the genetic mechanism of quinolone resistance among extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae strains in the Central African Republic. Findings Among seventeen ESBL-producing Enterobacteriaceae isolated from urine, pus or stool between January 2003 and October 2005 in the Central African Republic, nine were resistant to ciprofloxacin (seven from community patients and two from hospitalized patients. The ESBL were previously characterized as CTX-M-15 and SHV-12. Susceptibility to nalidixic acid, norfloxacin and ciprofloxacin, and the minimal inhibitory concentrations of these drugs were determined by disc diffusion and agar dilution methods, respectively. The presence of plasmid-borne ISCR1-qnrA region was determined by PCR and amplicons, if any, were sent for sequencing. Quinolone resistance determining region of DNA gyrase gyrA gene was amplified by PCR and then sequenced for mutation characterization. We found that all CTX-M-producing strains were resistant to the tested quinolones. All the isolates had the same nucleotide mutation at codon 83 of gyrA. Two Escherichia coli strains with the highest MICs were shown to harbour an ISCR1-qnrA1 sequence. This genetic association might favour dissemination of resistance to quinolone and perhaps other antibiotics among Enterobacteriaceae

Parental acceptance and uptake of the HPV vaccine among African-Americans and Latinos in the United States: A literature review.

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Galbraith, Kayoll V; Lechuga, Julia; Jenerette, Coretta M; Moore, Ltc Angelo D; Palmer, Mary H; Hamilton, Jill B

2016-06-01

African-Americans and Latinos suffer the highest cervical cancer burden compared to other populations and have sub-optimal HPV vaccination rates. To condense research findings of studies conducted with African-Americans and Latinos on factors associated with HPV vaccine acceptability and uptake. Standards for conducting an integrative review were used. PubMed, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, and PsycINFO databases were searched. Awareness about HPV and the HPV vaccine varied by demographics of parents. For Latino parents, acculturation and awareness were associated. However, findings were mixed regarding the association between acculturation and knowledge. Among African-Americans, higher socioeconomic status (SES) and awareness were associated. Sexuality-related concerns, concerns about safety and low perceived risk of daughter's acquiring HPV emerged as barriers to vaccination among Latinos and African-Americans. Among Latinos, vaccine acceptability was associated with the vaccine's cancer prevention benefits and a provider's recommendation. Among African-Americans, acceptability was associated with awareness, perceived risk of acquiring HPV, religion, and a provider's recommendation. Few interventions have been developed to increase HPV vaccine acceptance. Importantly, few studies assessed the influence of culture on vaccine acceptance and uptake. Future research should be informed by culture-centered theories as this is the first step to inform the development of culturally-grounded interventions. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Patterns of HIV-1 Drug Resistance After First-Line Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) Failure in 6 Sub-Saharan African Countries: Implications for Second-Line ART Strategies

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Hamers, Raph L.; Sigaloff, Kim C. E.; Wensing, Annemarie M.; Wallis, Carole L.; Kityo, Cissy; Siwale, Margaret; Mandaliya, Kishor; Ive, Prudence; Botes, Mariette E.; Wellington, Maureen; Osibogun, Akin; Stevens, Wendy S.; Rinke de Wit, Tobias F.; Schuurman, Rob; Siwale, M.; Njovu, C.; Labib, M.; Menke, J.; Botes, M. E.; Conradie, F.; Ive, P.; Sanne, I.; Wallis, C. L.; Letsoalo, E.; Stevens, W. S.; Hardman, M.; Wellington, M.; Luthy, R.; Mandaliya, K.; Abdallah, S.; Jao, I.; Dolan, M.; Namayanja, G.; Nakatudde, L.; Nankya, I.; Kiconco, M.; Abwola, M.; Mugyenyi, P.; Osibogun, A.; Akanmu, S.; Schuurman, R.; Wensing, A. M.; Straatsma, E.; Wit, F. W.; Dekker, J.; van Vugt, M.; Lange, J. M.

2012-01-01

Background. Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) drug resistance may limit the benefits of antiretroviral therapy (ART). This cohort study examined patterns of drug-resistance mutations (DRMs) in individuals with virological failure on first-line ART at 13 clinical sites in 6 African

Understanding the Rise of African Business

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jorem, Kaja Tvedten; Jeppesen, Søren; Hansen, Michael W.

of African firm strategy and performance that takes into account the specificities of the African business environment and African firm capabilities. The paper starts by juxtaposing the widespread pessimistic view of African business with more recent, optimistic studies on African firms’ performance....... The latter suggests that profound improvements in African business performance are indeed under way: with the private sector playing a more important role as an engine of growth, with the rise of a capable African entrepreneurial class, and with the emergence of dynamic and competitive African enterprises...... in the literature, the authors suggest an analytical framework for understanding African business performance, underlining the interplay between contextual specificities, firm capabilities, and firm strategy....

Evolving African attitudes to European education: Resistance, pervert effects of the single system paradox, and the ubuntu framework for renewal

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Assié-Lumumba, N'Dri Thérèse

2016-02-01

This paper is a reflection that critically examines the dynamics of education and the struggle by African people for freedom, control of the mind, self-definition and the right to determine their own destiny from the start of colonial rule to the present. The primary methodological approach is historical structuralism, which stipulates that social reality and facts are determined and created by social agents within structural and historical contingencies. It addresses some of the most powerful challenges and contradictions that explain the ineffectiveness of numerous post-independence reforms, and presents the arguments for relevance and use of African languages, for instance, that have been made since the 1960s. The first section of the paper deals with the colonial imperatives for setting new education systems in the colonised societies of Africa and the initial attitudes of the Africans towards colonial education. The second section critically examines the evolving meanings of Western education in Europeanising African societies, the articulation of their rationale and the mechanism for resistance. It analyses the turning point when Africans began to embrace European education and demand it in the colonial and post-independence era. The third section addresses the roots of the inadequacies of received post-colonial education and the imperative of deconstruction and re-appropriation of African education using an ubuntu framework for an African renewal.

Blood donation barriers and facilitators of Sub-Saharan African migrants and minorities in Western high-income countries: a systematic review of the literature

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Klinkenberg, E. F.; Huis In 't Veld, E. M. J.; de Wit, P. D.; van Dongen, A.; Daams, J. G.; de Kort, W. L. A. M.; Fransen, M. P.

2018-01-01

The present study aimed to gain more insight into, and summarise, blood donation determinants among migrants or minorities of Sub-Saharan heritage by systematically reviewing the current literature. Sub-Saharan Africans are under-represented in the blood donor population in Western high-income

A study of identity in post-apartheid South African English literature: The Pickup by Nadine Gordimer

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M.J. Cloete

2005-07-01

Full Text Available In examining aspects of identity in “The Pickup” (2001, Nadine Gordimer’s latest novel, this article indicates new trends in postapartheid South African English literature as well. In the article it is indicated that identity has always been an important theme in Gordimer’s novels. Her earlier novels tend to focus on her characters’ struggle to attain political or racial rather than personal freedom, while her later novels increasingly tend to examine the construction of individual identities. “The Pickup” has continued this search for identity, but against a new and interesting perspective, a perspective that is in line with the political transformation of post-apartheid South Africa after 1994. Moreover, this theme is extremely relevant in the twenty-first century with its increased emphasis on place and globalisation. This article thus examines the theme of identity in “The Pickup”, first against a South African background and then against the backdrop of an unknown town somewhere in the desert – most probably in Northern Africa.

Cytotoxicity of South-African medicinal plants towards sensitive and multidrug-resistant cancer cells.

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Saeed, Mohamed E M; Meyer, Marion; Hussein, Ahmed; Efferth, Thomas

2016-06-20

Traditional medicine plays a major role for primary health care worldwide. Cancer belongs to the leading disease burden in industrialized and developing countries. Successful cancer therapy is hampered by the development of resistance towards established anticancer drugs. In the present study, we investigated the cytotoxicity of 29 extracts from 26 medicinal plants of South-Africa against leukemia cell lines, most of which are used traditionally to treat cancer and related symptoms. We have investigated the plant extracts for their cytotoxic activity towards drug-sensitive parental CCRF-CEM leukemia cells and their multidrug-resistant P-glycoprotein-overexpressing subline, CEM/ADR5000 by means of the resazurin assay. A panel of 60 NCI tumor cell lines have been investigated for correlations between selected phytochemicals from medicinal plants and the expression of resistance-conferring genes (ABC-transporters, oncogenes, tumor suppressor genes). Seven extracts inhibited both cell lines (Acokanthera oppositifolia, Hypoestes aristata, Laurus nobilis, Leonotis leonurus, Plectranthus barbatus, Plectranthus ciliates, Salvia apiana). CEM/ADR5000 cells exhibited a low degree of cross-resistance (3.35-fold) towards the L. leonurus extract, while no cross-resistance was observed to other plant extracts, although CEM/ADR5000 cells were highly resistant to clinically established drugs. The log10IC50 values for two out of 14 selected phytochemicals from these plants (acovenoside A and ouabain) of 60 tumor cell lines were correlated to the expression of ABC-transporters (ABCB1, ABCB5, ABCC1, ABCG2), oncogenes (EGFR, RAS) and tumor suppressors (TP53). Sensitivity or resistance of the cell lines were not statistically associated with the expression of these genes, indicating that multidrug-resistant, refractory tumors expressing these genes may still respond to acovenoside A and ouabain. The bioactivity of South African medicinal plants may represent a basis for the development

The unique resistance and resilience of the Nigerian West African Dwarf goat to gastrointestinal nematode infections

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2011-01-01

Background West African Dwarf (WAD) goats serve an important role in the rural village economy of West Africa, especially among small-holder livestock owners. They have been shown to be trypanotolerant and to resist infections with Haemonchus contortus more effectively than any other known breed of goat. Methods In this paper we review what is known about the origins of this goat breed, explain its economic importance in rural West Africa and review the current status of our knowledge about its ability to resist parasitic infections. Conclusions We suggest that its unique capacity to show both trypanotolerance and resistance to gastrointestinal (GI) nematode infections is immunologically based and genetically endowed, and that knowledge of the underlying genes could be exploited to improve the capacity of more productive wool and milk producing, but GI nematode susceptible, breeds of goats to resist infection, without recourse to anthelmintics. Either conventional breeding allowing introgression of resistance alleles into susceptible breeds, or transgenesis could be exploited for this purpose. Appropriate legal protection of the resistance alleles of WAD goats might provide a much needed source of revenue for the countries in West Africa where the WAD goats exist and where currently living standards among rural populations are among the lowest in the world. PMID:21291550

Faith and feminism: how African American women from a storefront church resist oppression in healthcare.

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Abrums, Mary

2004-01-01

It is well documented that racism in the US healthcare system, including the objectification and disparagement of women of color, contributes to disparities in health status. However, it is a mistaken notion to characterize women of color as unknowing victims. In this study, black feminist standpoint epistemology is used in methodological approach and analysis to understand how a small group of African American church-going women use religious beliefs to help them cope with and resist the racism and discriminatory objectification they encounter in healthcare encounters.

Differences in Quit Attempts and Cigarette Smoking Abstinence Between Whites and African Americans in the United States: Literature Review and Results From the International Tobacco Control US Survey.

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Kulak, Jessica A; Cornelius, Monica E; Fong, Geoffrey T; Giovino, Gary A

2016-04-01

While cigarette smoking prevalence is declining among US adults, quit rates may differ between white and African American smokers. Here, we summarize the literature on smoking cessation behaviors in whites and African Americans across four study designs and report the findings of new analyses of International Tobacco Control (ITC) US Survey cohort data. We reviewed 32 publications containing 39 relevant analyses that compared quit attempts and abstinence between US whites and African Americans. Two additional longitudinal analyses were conducted on 821 white and 76 African American cigarette smokers from Waves 7 and 8 of the ITC US Survey (mean follow-up = 19 months). Of 17 total analyses of quit attempts, nine (including the ITC US Survey) observed that African American smokers were more likely than whites to attempt to quit during a given year; seven found no differences. Whites were more likely than African Americans to be abstinent in five of six retrospective cohort analyses and in two of five considered community- and population-based cohort studies. Four of these 11 analyses, including one from the ITC US Survey, found no differences. Of 11 population- or community-based analyses, all seven that found significant differences indicated that whites were more likely to quit than African Americans. These findings, combined with the similar results from population-based birth cohort analyses, support the conclusion that white smokers are more likely to quit than African American smokers. Efforts to encourage and support quitting among all tobacco users remain a priority. This article provides a review of the literature on smoking cessation among African American and white smokers, and adds new analyses that compare quit attempts and abstinence between US African Americans and whites. Results demonstrate a clear distinction between the findings of cross-sectional and retrospective cohort studies with those of cohort studies. Reasons for these differences merit

African American Educational Leadership in the School Superintendency

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Smith, Eva C.

2013-01-01

African American educational leadership has long been part of American education and African American activism to resist oppression. However, the field of educational leadership has rarely included the contributions of African American leaders, particularly women leaders, into mainstream leadership theory and practices. This omission is difficult…

O último voo do flamingo: um caminho de resistência

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Michelle Aranda Facchin

2016-12-01

Full Text Available This essay points out some resistance elements that are in the novel O último voo do flamingo (2005, based on the studies that Bosi developed in Literatura e resistência (2002 and in O ser e o tempo da poesia (1977. Besides those already mentioned writings, this study is also based on the theory of postcolonial criticism. The narratives written by Mia Couto are, as he confirms, “uma resposta pouca perante os fazedores de guerra e construtores da miséria” (COUTO, 2005, p. 225. According to him, O último voo do flamingo instaures the magic re-beginning of everything when it shows characters making a bird from paper, launching it towards the abysm, as a way of hope to restart Mozambique. It is concluded that Mia Couto’s literature creates new possibilities to think of the nowadays África, which makes his literature a piece of resistance writing because it suggests ways to elaborate and rethink some issues: the colonization, the African culture before and post colonialism.

Undermining Patriarchal Ideology in African Literature: A Study of Ngozi Chuma-Udeh’s Echoes of a New Dawn

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Ujowundu Cornel O.

2013-11-01

Full Text Available In a patriarchal society, women are faced with all sorts of dehumanisation ranging from deprivation, negligence, maltreatment, marginalisation, oppression, subjugation, exploitation, humiliation and even isolation, all of which emanate from aspects of the people’s culture. As a result, women now cry out for such aspects of the culture that undermine their wellbeing and emancipation to be eradicated. They, therefore, struggle for equality and emancipation in the male dominated society, especially the African society under study here. In this direction, literature becomes a tool for them to create awareness that the modern African woman through educational attainments is not just fighting for rights and privileges but also for something that must let the society understand that the women demand equal opportunities as human beings. Literature has, therefore, become a tool used to reflect the harsh realities of human lives, especially by the female writers like Ngozi Chuma-Udeh and some others concerning the socio-political, economic and religious realities of the womenfolk. Since literature has been found a veritable source of inspiration for national consciousness, it has become part of human life and existence, offering light, giving meaning and interpretation to man and his society as he struggles and aspires for a desired and cherished future. In the African society, for instance, women are seen not heard. They live under the shadows of men form their maiden homes to their matrimonial homes hence, they are regarded as second class citizens. They are usually neglected as their opinions are never sought before decisions are taken even in matters that directly affect them. In marriage, proposals are made to their fathers, or other male members of the family in the event of the father’s death. In fact, in the African society, which is under study here, women are seen as mere tools of necessity-housewives, child bearers, gratifiers of men�

African Health Sciences

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Health Sciences is an open access, free online, internationally ... Ebola virus disease: assessment of knowledge, attitude and practice of nursing ... and immune system modulation by aerobic versus resisted exercise training for elderly ...

The African Novel and the Western Reader. A Case Study

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Julien Vermeulen

1986-02-01

Full Text Available African literature, like any other literature remote in space or time, can be approached in two different ways. We can read it from our own point of view and try to appreciate it with our own literary standards. We can also try to read it as it was experienced and appreciated by its immediate audience, which means by the African public at the time of publication. Reactions given by a group of Dutch-speaking readers on a novel by E. Dongala clearly illustrate that the second approach is hardly achievable, however attractive it may seem. So we have to accept that every reading of an African literary work implies a serious degree of creative treason. KEYWORDS : Literary reception, literary criticism, African literature in French, E. Dongala

THE “CHALLENGING” MULTIDRUG-RESISTANT PATHOGENS OF NOSOCOMIAL INFECTIONS IN CRITICALLY ILL PATIENTS (A LITERATURE REVIEW

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T. V. Chernenkaya

2015-01-01

Full Text Available ABSTRACT. Changes in the structure of the main causative agents of nosocomial infections and significant spread of multidrug­resistant strains of bacteria are a natural biological response for antibiotics that selectively inhibit pathogens and contribute to selection, survival and growth of drug resistant strains of bacteria. In this literature review we present the change of structure of the major causative microorganisms of nosocomial septic infections and theirs resistance to antibiotics for the last 70 years. 

Effect of Antimicrobial Use in Agricultural Animals on Drug-resistant Foodborne Campylobacteriosis in Humans: A Systematic Literature Review.

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McCrackin, M A; Helke, Kristi L; Galloway, Ashley M; Poole, Ann Z; Salgado, Cassandra D; Marriott, Bernadette P

2016-10-02

Controversy continues concerning antimicrobial use in food animals and its relationship to drug-resistant infections in humans. We systematically reviewed published literature for evidence of a relationship between antimicrobial use in agricultural animals and drug-resistant foodborne campylobacteriosis in humans. Based on publications from the United States (U.S.), Canada and Denmark from 2010 to July 2014, 195 articles were retained for abstract review, 50 met study criteria for full article review with 36 retained for which data are presented. Two publications reported increase in macrolide resistance of Campylobacter coli isolated from feces of swine receiving macrolides in feed, and one of these described similar findings for tetracyclines and fluoroquinolones. A study in growing turkeys demonstrated increased macrolide resistance associated with therapeutic dosing with Tylan® in drinking water. One publication linked tetracycline-resistant C. jejuni clone SA in raw cow's milk to a foodborne outbreak in humans. No studies that identified farm antimicrobial use also traced antimicrobial-resistant Campylobacter from farm to fork. Recent literature confirms that on farm antibiotic selection pressure can increase colonization of animals with drug-resistant Campylobacter spp. but is inadequately detailed to establish a causal relationship between use of antimicrobials in agricultural animals and prevalence of drug-resistant foodborne campylobacteriosis in humans.

"Women ... Mourn and Men Carry on": African Women Storying Mourning Practices--A South African Example

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Kotze, Elmarie; Els, Lishje; Rajuili-Masilo, Ntsiki

2012-01-01

African mourning of loss of lives in South Africa has been shaped by discursive practices of both traditional African cultures and the sociopolitical developments under apartheid and in post-apartheid South Africa. This article reports on changes in mourning practices on the basis of a literature review and uses a collection of examples to…

Weight changes in African American college students: a review of literature.

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Darden, Shavon

2014-01-01

Over one-third of all adults in the United States are obese and African Americans represent over 49.5% of these cases. Young adults with some college education show the most rapid increase in the prevalence of overweight and obesity, with African Americans leading among all groups. The purpose of this paper is to consider why students gain weight in college and if racial and ethnic differences exist in the context of weight gain. Both physical environment and psychological factors affect the college students' weight-related behaviors. College students experience significant increases in their weight and African Americans are disproportionately affected. However, the role of race and ethnicity is under-examined. Future research should explore racial and ethnic differences in weight gain in college students.

What do bodily symptoms in African psychiatric patients mean ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Objective: To review the various bodily symptoms presented by African psychiatric patients and attempt to understand them. Method: The literature on bodily (somatic) symptoms is surveyed with special reference to Africans and examples are drawn from a focused group discussion in one African rural community.

The topology of African exports: Emerging patterns on spanning trees

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Araújo, Tanya; Ferreira, Manuel Ennes

2016-11-01

This paper is a contribution to interweaving two lines of research that have progressed in separate ways: network analysis of international trade and the literature on African trade and development. Gathering empirical data on African countries has important limitations and so does the space occupied by African countries in the analysis of trade networks. Here, these limitations are dealt with by the definition of two independent bipartite networks: a destination share network and a commodity share network. These networks-together with their corresponding minimal spanning trees-allow to uncover some ordering emerging from African exports in the broader context of international trade. The emerging patterns help to understand important characteristics of African exports and its binding relations to other economic, geographic and organizational concerns as the recent literature on African trade, development and growth has shown.

Decolonizing Scoping Review Methodologies for Literature With, for, and by Indigenous Peoples and the African Diaspora: Dialoguing With the Tensions.

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Chambers, Lori A; Jackson, Randy; Worthington, Catherine; Wilson, Ciann L; Tharao, Wangari; Greenspan, Nicole R; Masching, Renee; Pierre-Pierre, Valérie; Mbulaheni, Tola; Amirault, Marni; Brownlee, Patrick

2018-01-01

This article summarizes our deepened understanding of decolonizing research with, for, and by Indigenous peoples and peoples of African descent that emerged from conducting a scoping review of the methodological literature and reflecting on our review process. Although our review identified decolonizing methodologies as a promising approach, we questioned if our scoping review process engaged in decolonizing knowing. To unpack the epistemological tensions between decolonizing knowing and Western ways of doing scoping reviews, we engaged in individual and collective reflective processes- dialoguing with the tensions-moving from individual immersion in the literature to transformative dialogues among the team. In reflecting upon our tensions with the scoping review process, themes that emerged included (a) ontological/epistemological disjunctures, (b) tensions with concepts and language, and (c) relationships with the literature and beyond. This reflexive process provides valuable insight into ways in which review methods might be made a decolonizing research experience.

Molecular markers of anti-malarial drug resistance in Central, West and East African children with severe malaria

OpenAIRE

Nguetse, Christian N.; Adegnika, Ayola Akim; Agbenyega, Tsiri; Ogutu, Bernhards R.; Krishna, Sanjeev; Kremsner, Peter G.; Velavan, Thirumalaisamy P.

2017-01-01

BACKGROUND: The Plasmodium falciparum multidrug resistance 1 (PfMDR1), P. falciparum Ca(2+)-ATPase (PfATP6) and Kelch-13 propeller domain (PfK13) loci are molecular markers of parasite susceptibility to anti-malarial drugs. Their frequency distributions were determined in the isolates collected from children with severe malaria originating from three African countries. METHODS: Samples from 287 children with severe malaria [(Gabon: n = 114); (Ghana: n = 89); (Kenya: n = 84)] were genotyped fo...

Relationship between estimated cardiovascular disease risk and insulin resistance in a black African population living with HIV: a cross-sectional study from Cameroon.

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Noumegni, Steve Raoul; Bigna, Jean Joel; Ama Moor Epse Nkegoum, Vicky Jocelyne; Nansseu, Jobert Richie; Assah, Felix K; Jingi, Ahmadou Musa; Guewo-Fokeng, Magellan; Leumi, Steve; Katte, Jean-Claude; Dehayem, Mesmin Y; Mfeukeu Kuate, Liliane; Kengne, Andre Pascal; Sobngwi, Eugene

2017-08-11

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) and metabolic diseases are growing concerns among patients with HIV infection as a consequence of the improving survival of this population. We aimed to assess the relationship between CVD risk and insulin resistance in a group of black African individuals with HIV infection. This cross-sectional study involved patients with HIV infection aged 30-74 years and followed up at the Yaoundé Central Hospital, Cameroon. Absolute CVD risk was calculated using the Framingham and the DAD CVD risk equations while the HOMA-IR index was used to assess insulin resistance (index ≥2.1). A total of 452 patients (361 women; 80%) were screened. The mean age was 44.4 years and most of the respondents were on antiretroviral therapy (88.5%). The median 5-year cardiovascular risk was 0.7% (25th-75th percentiles: 0.2-2.0) and 0.6% (0.3-1.3) according to the Framingham and DAD equations respectively. Of all participants, 47.3% were insulin resistant. The Framingham equation derived absolute CVD risk was significantly associated with insulin resistance; while no linear association was found using the DAD equation. The relationship between cardiovascular risk and insulin resistance in black African patients with HIV infection seems to depend on the cardiovascular risk equation used. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Silence, Voice, and "Other Languages": Digital Storytelling as a Site for Resistance and Restoration in a South African Higher Education Classroom

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Stewart, Kristian D.; Ivala, Eunice

2017-01-01

In order to investigate the composing practices of digital storytellers in a South African context, a qualitative case study, set within a university of technology in South Africa and framed by literature stemming from the disciplines of digital storytelling and composition and rhetoric, was implemented as part of a larger dissertation project…

Public Information and African Traditional Communication Delivery ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This paper is an analysis of how African traditional communication and the literature produced about it portray African traditional communication. The analysis premises an interest to ascertain whether the portrayal is in a perspective showing traditional media as capable of playing expected public information role. Drawing ...

Away with Good Bantus: De-Linking African Language Literature from Culture, "Tribe" and Propriety

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Mkhize, Nomalanga

2016-01-01

This paper argues that the "institutionalisation" model used by universities to spearhead the intellectualisation of African languages is a non-starter for taking African languages in new creative directions. The major constraint for African language literary culture is that written output has historically been heavily bent towards…

Golden Discoveries: Literature of the Americas.

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Petersen, Judith E.

1992-01-01

Describes a U.S. literature course and a comparative literature course that focuses on Asian, African, Canadian, Caribbean, and Latin American literature. Asserts that students need to be aware of the European impact on the U.S. identity, even where it is unpleasant. Discusses the magical realism in the distinct artistic vision of Latin America.…

Local Villages and Global Networks: The Language and Migration Experiences of African Skilled Migrant Academics

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Hurst, Ellen

2017-01-01

African skilled migrants and their circular and return migration strategies have received relatively little attention in the literature, with the previous focus of much African migration literature being on the net loss of skills to countries with developed economies in the global north. This article considers 13 interviews with African skilled…

Home to Hargeisa: Migritude, Pan-Africanism, and the Politics of Movement from Banjo to Black Mamba Boy

OpenAIRE

Foster, Christopher Ian

2015-01-01

French literary theorist Jacques Chevrier argues that immigration is at the heart of contemporary African literature. He calls this new corpus of African literature migritude. Migritude literature provides both a new and sophisticated way of understanding immigration in the era of global capitalism and a critical engagement with it; it lends new perspective to the study of African literature itself by bringing to the fore conditions of diaspora, movement, and migration. Further, these younger...

Dietary carbohydrate intake, insulin resistance and gastro-oesophageal reflux disease: a pilot study in European- and African-American obese women.

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Pointer, S D; Rickstrew, J; Slaughter, J C; Vaezi, M F; Silver, H J

2016-11-01

Although obesity rates are higher in African-American than European-American women, gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and its comorbidities are more prevalent in European-American women. A common denominator for increased adiposity, and consequent insulin resistance, is excess dietary macronutrient intake - which may promote greater prevalence and severity of GERD in women. To investigate whether GERD is more robustly associated with dietary carbohydrate intake, particularly dietary simple carbohydrate intake, and insulin resistance in European-American women. About 144 obese women were assessed at baseline and 16 weeks after consuming a high-fat/low-carbohydrate diet. GERD diagnosis and medication usage was confirmed in medical records with symptoms and medications assessed weekly. About 33.3% (N = 33) of European-American and 20.0% (N = 9) of African-American women had GERD at baseline. Total carbohydrate (r = 0.34, P < 0.001), sugars (r = 0.30, P = 0.005), glycaemic load (r = 0.34, P = 0.001) and HOMA IR (r = 0.30, P = 0.004) were associated with GERD, but only in European-American women. In response to high-fat/low-carbohydrate diet, reduced intake of sugars was associated with reduced insulin resistance. By the end of diet week 10, all GERD symptoms and medication usage had resolved in all women. GERD symptoms and medication usage was more prevalent in European-American women, for whom the relationships between dietary carbohydrate intake, insulin resistance and GERD were most significant. Nevertheless, high-fat/low-carbohydrate diet benefited all women with regard to reducing GERD symptoms and frequency of medication use. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Phonetics of intonation in South African Bantu languages

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Zerbian, S

2008-01-01

Full Text Available Much is already known about the prosodic systems of the indigenous South African languages from descriptions and analyses in the existing literature. All of the existing work has been carried out in the field of African studies or formal linguistics...

CEO pay-performance sensitivity in the South African context

OpenAIRE

Mark Bussin

2015-01-01

The topic of executive pay-performance sensitivity has resulted in mixed research findings. Literature related to executive remuneration constructs, company performance measures and the underlying theories is critically reviewed in this article. The literature is compared to research findings within the South African context pre, during and post the Global Financial Crisis of 2008. The researcher found similar results in the South African context compared to research in other countries and in...

Filosofia Theoretica: Journal of African Philosophy, Culture and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Filosofia Theoretica Journal of African Philosophy, Culture and Religions, a publication of the Calabar School of Philosophy (CSP) is dedicated to the publication of astute academic research in African Philosophy, Culture, History, Art, Literature, Science, Education and Religions, etc. The articles submitted to Filosofia ...

Land, Livelihoods, and the Decline of Work: South African Lessons for Current Debates

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Ben Scully

2015-08-01

Full Text Available This article presents a comparison of central debates in South African labor sociology in the1970s and the contemporary era. I argue that scholars can break through impasses in currentlabor sociology debates by reviving attention to the land-labor-livelihood (LLL connections thatinspired theoretical advancements in the South African literature of the 1970s. After anintroduction and definition of LLL connections, the paper analyzes an exemplary work of thelabor literature of the 1970s, giving special attention to the way in which the LLL focus shapedthe questions asked by the authors. The article proceeds to a review of central debates from thecurrent labor literature, which focuses primarily on issues of the labor movement. It is arguedthat this focus on movements has limited the scope of labor scholarship, resulting in an impassein South African labor debates. An emerging literature that renews attention to the LLLconnections is proposed as a model for moving beyond this impasse. I close the article bydiscussing the implications for this review of South African literature for global laborscholarship.

Parenting and child outcomes of HIV-infected African American mothers: a literature review.

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Muze, Ruth H

2013-01-01

Parenting young children while living with HIV is an important public health concern. This article reviews maternal HIV and the impact it has on the parenting experience of African American mothers. Because living with HIV has been considered a family illness, the Family Systems Model provided a framework for this article. The model demonstrated an important link between maternal HIV and its impact on the health and wellbeing of not only the mother and her children, but her parenting and family roles as well. Research has documented an association between maternal HIV and negative parent-child outcomes among African American mothers. I examined studies on parenting and child outcomes among African American mothers living with HIV. The review assists in conceptualizing parenting with HIV as an area of increasing importance in health services delivery to HIV-infected African American mothers who are caring for young children.

Addressing Cancer Control Needs of African-born Immigrants in the US: A Systematic Literature Review

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Hurtado-de-Mendoza, Alejandra; Song, Minna; Kigen, Ocla; Jennings, Yvonne; Nwabukwu, Ify; Sheppard, Vanessa B.

2014-01-01

Compared to non-Hispanic Whites, African immigrants have worse cancer outcomes. However, there is little research about cancer behaviors and/or interventions in this growing population as they are generally grouped with populations from America or the Caribbean. This systematic review examines cancer-related studies that included African-born participants. We searched PsychINFO, Ovid Medline, Pubmed, CINHAL, and Web of Science for articles focusing on any type of cancer that included African-born immigrant participants. Twenty articles met study inclusion criteria; only two were interventions. Most articles focused on one type of cancer (n=11) (e.g., breast cancer) and were conducted in disease-free populations (n=15). Studies included African participants mostly from Nigeria (n=8) and Somalia (n=6). However, many papers (n=7) did not specify nationality or had small percentages (African immigrants (n=5). Studies found lower screening rates in African immigrants compared to other subpopulations (e.g. US born). Awareness of screening practices was limited. Higher acculturation levels were associated with higher screening rates. Barriers to screening included access (e.g. insurance), pragmatic (e.g. transportation), and psychosocial barriers (e.g. shame). Interventions to improve cancer outcomes in African immigrants are needed. Research that includes larger samples with diverse African subgroups including cancer survivors are necessary to inform future directions. PMID:25034729

Management of treatment resistant schizophrenia | Jones | African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journal of Psychiatry. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 9, No 1 (2006) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register · Download this PDF file. The PDF file you selected should load ...

The cardiometabolic syndrome in persons of the African diaspora: challenges and opportunities.

Science.gov (United States)

Schuster, Dara P; Gaillard, Trudy; Osei, Kwame

2007-01-01

Unique genetic traits appear to play a role in the increased rates of hypertension (HTN), glucose dysregulation/diabetes (T2DM), and obesity in persons of African descent. Indeed, with increasing rates of westernization/urbanization and concomitant increases in obesity and T2DM, a similar predisposition to the cardiometabolic syndrome and cardiovascular disease (CVD) can be seen in Africans compared with persons of African descent, with CVD reaching epidemic proportions in many areas of Africa. In addition, the complex relationships of metabolic abnormalities that are unique to individuals of African descent have also been demonstrated in Africans. These include: (1) a dissociation of HTN to insulin resistance; (2) relative favorable lipid profile in the setting of increasing rates of CVD; (3) low levels of visceral adiposity in the setting of obesity and insulin resistance; and (4) a dissociation of insulin sensitivity and adiponectin when compared with Caucasians. Although not well understood, these unique relationships suggest that conventional parameters for CVD do not apply to Africans of persons of African descent.

'We are doing our best': African and African-Caribbean fatherhood, health and preventive primary care services, in England.

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, Robert; Hewison, Alistair; Stewart, Mel; Liles, Clive; Wildman, Stuart

2012-03-01

Recent policy pronouncements emphasise the importance of engaging fathers with preventive primary care services. However, in England, there is a paucity of literature which examines African and African-Caribbean fathers' experiences of service provision. This paper reports a study that investigated African and African-Caribbean fathers' beliefs about fatherhood, health and preventive primary care services, with the aim of addressing the deficit in the literature. Nine focus groups involving 46 African and African-Caribbean fathers, recruited using purposive sampling, were undertaken between October 2008-January 2009. Fatherhood was seen as a core aspect of the participants' identities. The fathers enacted these identities in a number of ways, such as caring for and protecting children, which were influenced by spirituality, relationships with women, paid work and racism. The fathers had concerns about their bodies, medical conditions, physical activity and forms of consumption. However, their primary focus was on maintaining and improving the well-being of their children. This resulted in them neglecting their own health needs as they had to meet the obligations of family life and paid work. The fathers reported limited contact with preventive primary care services and were unaware of their purpose, function and availability. They identified ethnicity as a positive asset, and felt their families and communities had particular strengths. However they acknowledged that structural constraints, including racism, influenced their perceptions of and access to local health services. The engagement of African and African-Caribbean fathers needs to be addressed more specifically in policy as part of a broader programme of action to tackle health inequalities. In addition, child health services could build on fathers' commitment to children's well-being through practice that addresses fathers' as well as mothers' needs in families. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

The impact of pyrethroid resistance on the efficacy of insecticide-treated bed nets against African anopheline mosquitoes: systematic review and meta-analysis.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Clare Strode

2014-03-01

Full Text Available Pyrethroid insecticide-treated bed nets (ITNs help contribute to reducing malaria deaths in Africa, but their efficacy is threatened by insecticide resistance in some malaria mosquito vectors. We therefore assessed the evidence that resistance is attenuating the effect of ITNs on entomological outcomes.We included laboratory and field studies of African malaria vectors that measured resistance at the time of the study and used World Health Organization-recommended impregnation regimens. We reported mosquito mortality, blood feeding, induced exophily (premature exit of mosquitoes from the hut, deterrence, time to 50% or 95% knock-down, and percentage knock-down at 60 min. Publications were searched from 1 January 1980 to 31 December 2013 using MEDLINE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Science Citation Index Expanded, Social Sciences Citation Index, African Index Medicus, and CAB Abstracts. We stratified studies into three levels of insecticide resistance, and ITNs were compared with untreated bed nets (UTNs using the risk difference (RD. Heterogeneity was explored visually and statistically. Included were 36 laboratory and 24 field studies, reported in 25 records. Studies tested and reported resistance inconsistently. Based on the meta-analytic results, the difference in mosquito mortality risk for ITNs compared to UTNs was lower in higher resistance categories. However, mortality risk was significantly higher for ITNs compared to UTNs regardless of resistance. For cone tests: low resistance, risk difference (RD 0.86 (95% CI 0.72 to 1.01; moderate resistance, RD 0.71 (95% CI 0.53 to 0.88; high resistance, RD 0.56 (95% CI 0.17 to 0.95. For tunnel tests: low resistance, RD 0.74 (95% CI 0.61 to 0.87; moderate resistance, RD 0.50 (95% CI 0.40 to 0.60; high resistance, RD 0.39 (95% CI 0.24 to 0.54. For hut studies: low resistance, RD 0.56 (95% CI 0.43 to 0.68; moderate resistance, RD 0.39 (95% CI 0.16 to 0.61; high resistance, RD 0

Oral Literature and Femininity: The Igbo Example | Okeke | UJAH ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Several works have been done on one type of African literature or another. This paper is another attempt to look into literature, with emphasis on the place of women in literature, especially Igbo literature. It will look at the oral-traditional aspect. 'Oral' and 'traditional' here, mean vocal nature of its performance and its ...

21st Century South African Science Fiction

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CARAIVAN LUIZA

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The paper analyses some aspects of South African science fiction, starting with its beginnings in the 1920s and focusing on some 21st century writings. Thus Lauren Beukes’ novels Moxyland (2008 and Zoo City (2010 are taken into consideration in order to present new trends in South African literature and the way science fiction has been marked by Apartheid. The second South African science fiction writer whose writings are examined is Henrietta Rose-Innes (with her novel Nineveh, published in 2011 as this consolidates women's presence in the SF world.

The representation of patriach perception in selected African literary ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This paperinterrogates the institutions of polygamy and polygyny as cultural artefacts that inform patrilineal and patriarchal beliefs; as well as nostalgic practices that impact negatively on African women's identities. The paper advocates the portrayal of women characters positively in African literature, instead of the prevalent ...

Best Not Forget Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Themed Children's Literature: A Teacher's Reflections of a More Inclusive Multicultural Education and Literature Program

Science.gov (United States)

Flores, Gabriel

2016-01-01

For many years, educational practitioners have been implementing multicultural literature about African-American, Asian, and Latino families. Teachers have also presented literature about great leaders, such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Helen Keller. However, the same cannot be said about literature depicting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and…

Influence of source and quantity of protein on the development of immunity and resistance to African trypanosomiasis.

Science.gov (United States)

Norton, J D; Yang, S P; Diffley, P

1986-01-01

Although it is well documented that severe protein deprivation inhibits the development of the immune response and exacerbates certain infections, little has been done to study the effects of native diets on endemic diseases or immunity. Therefore, protein-restricted diets were formulated for mice to mimic the sources and amounts measured in human diets of the Batouri region of Cameroon, endemic for African trypanosomiasis. Weanling C57BL/6 female mice were fed a diet that contained 73% of the recommended daily allowance (RDA) of protein. The sources of protein were all plant (cornmeal), all animal (casein), or a ratio that reflected the native diet (2.2 parts plant to 1 part animal protein). Diets were isocaloric on a weight basis, equal in lipids, and adequate in vitamins and minerals. Control mice were fed laboratory chow or two times the RDA of animal protein (casein). Mice fed only cornmeal or the native diets consumed as much food but did not gain as much weight as mice fed only animal protein, indicating the poorer quality of protein in their diets. Upon infection with Trypanosoma brucei gambiense, however, significantly higher numbers of these mice controlled the first peak of parasitemia and survived the infection as compared with mice fed the other three diets. Since all mice developed patent infections and the parasite growth rate was unaffected by diet, innate immune factors were ruled out as the cause for the higher level of resistance to the parasite. To determine whether diet affected the development of the immune system, weanling mice were maintained on diets for 30 days before immunization with sheep erythrocytes or trinitrophenylated Ficoll. Mice fed only plant protein or native diets elicited higher direct plaque-forming-cell responses to both the T-cell-dependent and T-cell-independent antigens. Since variant-specific immunity which controls levels of African trypanosomes in the blood is a T-cell-independent humoral immunoglobulin M response

Patterns of chloroquine use and resistance in sub-Saharan Africa: a systematic review of household survey and molecular data

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-01

Background As a result of widespread chloroquine and sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine (SP) resistance, 90% of sub-Saharan African countries had adopted policies of artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) for treatment of uncomplicated malaria by 2007. In Malawi, cessation of chloroquine use was followed by the re-emergence of chloroquine-susceptible malaria. It was expected that introduction of ACT would lead to a return in chloroquine susceptibility throughout Africa, but this has not yet widely occurred. This observation suggests that there is continuing use of ineffective anti-malarials in Africa and that persistent chloroquine-resistant malaria is due to ongoing drug pressure despite national policy changes. Methods To estimate drug use on a national level, 2006-2007 Demographic Health Survey and Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey data from 21 African countries were analysed. Resistance data were compiled by systematic review of the published literature on the prevalence of the Plasmodium falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter polymorphism at codon 76, which causes chloroquine resistance. Results Chloroquine was the most common anti-malarial used according to surveys from 14 of 21 countries analysed, predominantly in West Africa. SP was most commonly reported in two of 21 countries. Among eight countries with longitudinal molecular resistance data, the four countries where the highest proportion of children treated for fever received chloroquine (Uganda, Burkina Faso, Guinea Bissau, and Mali) also showed no significant declines in the prevalence of chloroquine-resistant infections. The three countries with low or decreasing chloroquine use among children who reported fever treatment (Malawi, Kenya, and Tanzania) had statistically significant declines in the prevalence of chloroquine resistance. Conclusions This study demonstrates that in 2006-2007, chloroquine and SP continued to be used at high rates in many African countries. In countries reporting

Missing Voices: African American School Psychologists' Perspectives on Increasing Professional Diversity

Science.gov (United States)

Proctor, Sherrie L.; Truscott, Stephen D.

2013-01-01

Since the mid 1960s, there has been a noticeable decrease in the percentage of African American educators. Although a sizeable literature is dedicated to understanding how to recruit African American teachers, fewer studies focus on recruiting and retaining African American school psychologists. Therefore, this exploratory qualitative study…

Tribe and Village in African Organizations and Business

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kragh, Simon Ulrik

The paper argues that African organization sand business relations reflect pre-industrial social norms found by anthropologists in kinship based, rural communities. African society is a hybrid mixture of an emerging industrial economy and a set of norms and behaviours which have been carried over......-industrial cultural traits and offers a theory showing their inner, social logic. Drawing on examples from the existing literature on African management it is shown how the pre-industrial norms are manifested in organizational practice and business....

Methods for estimating the burden of antimicrobial resistance: a systematic literature review protocol

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Nichola R. Naylor

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Estimates of the burden of antimicrobial resistance (AMR are needed to ascertain AMR impact, to evaluate interventions, and to allocate resources efficiently. Recent studies have estimated health, cost, and economic burden relating to AMR, with outcomes of interest ranging from drug-bug resistance impact on mortality in a hospital setting to total economic impact of AMR on the global economy. However, recent collation of this information has been largely informal, with no formal quality assessment of the current evidence base (e.g. with predefined checklists. This review therefore aims to establish what perspectives and resulting methodologies have been used in establishing the burden of AMR, whilst also ascertaining the quality of these studies. Methods The literature review will identify relevant literature using a systematic review methodology. MEDLINE, EMBASE, Scopus and EconLit will be searched utilising a predefined search string. Grey literature will be identified by searching within a predefined list of organisational websites. Independent screening of retrievals will be performed in a two-stage process (abstracts and full texts, utilising a pre-defined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Data will be extracted into a data extraction table and descriptive examination will be performed. Study quality will be assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa scales and the Philips checklists where appropriate. A narrative synthesis of the results will be presented. Discussion This review will provide an overview of previous health, cost and economic definitions of burden and the resultant impact of these different definitions on the burden of AMR estimated. The review will also explore the methods that have been used to calculate this burden and discuss resulting study quality. This review can therefore act as a guide to methods for future research in this area. Systematic review registration PROSPERO CRD42016037510

The uses of literature: what does Mozambican women write?

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Anselmo Peres Alós

2015-08-01

Full Text Available http://dx.doi.org/10.5007/2175-7917.2015v20n2p165 Lilia Momplé and Paulina Chiziane rescue the dilemmas of national constitution in their narratives, through the experiences of characters relegated to the sidelines. Despite its importance, the name of these women writers is rarely mentioned in Brazilian studies on African literatures written in Portuguese. Why this absence? Understanding this absence is to understand much of what is cluttered in the middle of the long road that separates the Brazilian readers of African literatures written in Portuguese (particularly the Mozambican literature: the circulation of books and the logic of the publishing market in times marked by residual colonialist cultural politics.

Overview of prostate cancer in indigenous black Africans and blacks of African ancestry in diaspora 1935-2007.

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Magoha, G A O

2007-09-01

To carry out an overview of prostate cancer in indigenous back Africans in sub-Saharan Africa and blacks of African ancestry in diaspora. Review of all published literature on prostate cancer on indigenous black Africans and Africans in diaspora was carried out through medline and index medicus searches. Published data of prostate cancer in indigenous black Africans and black men in diaspora from 1935-2007 were included in the review. Abstracts of articles identified were assessed, read and analysed to determine their possible suitability and relevance to the title under review. After establishing relevance from the abstract, the entire paper was read, and the significant points included in the review. Prostate cancer incidence and magnitude in black Africans was grossly misunderstood and underestimated in the past. Prostate cancer incidence is on the increase and currently is perhaps the most common urological malignancy affecting black Africans. Its incidence and clinical characteristics is similar to that of the Africans in diaspora but different from all other races. There currently exists significant evidence which suggests a common enhancing genetic predisposition in black men to prostate cancer. There is very urgent need for further investigation of this phenomenon through randomised controlled multicentre studies involving indigenous black Africans and black men in diaspora.

Teaching strategies to facilitate breast cancer screening by African-American women.

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Gibson, Lynette M

2008-12-01

The objective of this paper is to report on the recent literature concerning coverage of breast cancer epidemiology, the barriers to breast cancer screening, and the strategies to facilitate screening by African-American women. Based on these findings, the author suggests culturally appropriate techniques to be used to promote breast cancer screening in African-American women. Barriers to breast cancer screening in African-American women include emotional reasons, spiritual/religious reasons, fatalism, logistic concerns, lack of knowledge, and lack of follow-up by health-care professionals. Numerous strategies that have been targeted toward African-American women are reported. These include storytelling, witnessing, and testimonies; providing social support and having social support networks; and conducting multifaceted programs that include culturally specific breast health information. Based on the literature reviewed, the author suggests some examples of creative and culturally appropriate techniques that have been implemented with African-American women and that have resulted in positive feedback. These examples include the use of testimonies, photographs, prose, narratives, poetry, and quotations.

Men of the Cloth: African-American Clergy's Knowledge and Experience in Providing Pastoral Care to African-American Elders with Late-Life Depression

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Stansbury, Kim L.

2011-01-01

African-American clergy's ability to recognize late-life depression and their capacity to provide support with this illness have been neglected in the literature. Using a mental health literacy framework, the purpose of this research was to explore African-American clergy's knowledge of and treatments for late-life depression. In-depth interviews…

The African Political Business Cycle: varieties of Experience

OpenAIRE

Mosley, P.; Chiripanhura, B.

2012-01-01

We seek to understand both the incidence and the impact of the African political business cycle in the light of a literature which has argued that, with major extensions of democracy since the 1990s, the cycle has both become more intense and has made African political systems more fragile. With the help of country-case studies, we argue, first, that the African political business cycle is not homogeneous, and is rarely encountered in so-called ‘dominant-party systems’ where a pre-election st...

The quest for Pax Africana : The case of the African Union's peace ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Despite the fact that the political ideal of 'African solutions to African problems' underlying the APSA is routinely used in the literature and policy circles, questions still remain on what it actually entails and how it informs and shapes African policy making on peace and security issues affecting the continent. Most importantly ...

African American therapists working with African American families: an exploration of the strengths perspective in treatment.

Science.gov (United States)

Bell-Tolliver, LaVerne; Burgess, Ruby; Brock, Linda J

2009-07-01

With the exception of Hill's (1971, 1999) work, historically much of the literature on African American families has focused more on pathology than strengths. This study used interviews with 30 African American psychotherapists, self-identified as employing a strengths perspective with African American families, to investigate which strengths they identified in the families and how they use those strengths in therapy. Themes emerging from data analysis confirmed the continued importance of the five strengths Hill noted. In addition, two new strengths were identified by the participants: a willingness of a greater number of families to seek therapy, and the importance of family structure. Strategies used in engaging the families in therapy and practice implications for family therapists are discussed.

Can a communitarian concept of African personhood be both ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

First, we point out that the supposed gender-neutrality of the African communitarian idea of personhood is a more general feature of African philosophy that, for instance, evinces a general lack of attention to issues of gender violence and discrimination. Second, we briefly survey the literature on the communitarian idea of ...

The development of critical and cultural literacies in a study of Mariama Ba's So Long a Letter in the South African literature classroom

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R.H. Latha

2002-08-01

Full Text Available The Languages, Literacy and Communication learning area of Curriculum 2005 endorses “intercultural understanding, access to different world views and a critical understanding of the concept of culture” (National Department of Education, 2001:44. Although this curriculum is learner-centred and tries to create a better balance in the previously asymmetrical relationship between teacher and student, it does place great demands on the educator to avoid reinforcing cultural and multipolitical ideals which are not concomitant with the principles of a multicultural democracy. Since learners are expected to respond to the aesthetic, affective, cultural and social values in texts, the educator has to act responsibly in choosing texts which promote the values inherent in Curriculum 2005. Implicit in the curriculum statement is a commitment to critical pedagogy in the literature classroom with the general aim of promoting societal transformation. As the cultural assumptions underlying particular texts are often not known or shared by all learners, it is important for the educator to facilitate an examination of these assumptions in order to promote cultural understanding and values such as religious tolerance. This article will therefore investigate the development of cultural and critical literacies in the South African literature classroom with particular focus on So Long a Letter by the postcolonial African Muslim woman writer, Mariama Ba.

'Walk with your head high': African and African-Caribbean fatherhood, children's mental well-being and social capital.

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, Robert; Hewison, Alistair; Wagstaff, Chris; Randall, Duncan

2012-01-01

The findings presented in this article were unanticipated and came to light during a study which investigated African and African-Caribbean fathers' views about preventive primary care services. This article reports findings which indicate that African and African-Caribbean fathers strive to enable and protect children's mental well-being and create social, cultural and symbolic forms of capital. It also seeks to identify implications for health and social care policy and practice in England. There is limited literature examining African and African-Caribbean fathers' health experiences in England. Consequently an exploratory research approach was required. This involved nine, in-depth, semi-structured qualitative group interviews undertaken with 46 African and African-Caribbean fathers. The data were analysed thematically using abductive reasoning, informed by Bourdieu's theoretical work. Fathers were striving to enable and protect children's mental well-being through providing authoritative, loving, affectionate fatherhood involving reasoning, good communication and promoting self-esteem. These practices were seen to be necessary if children were to prosper in a harsh social world characterised by structural hazards including racism, negative stereotypes and limited opportunities. The fathers reported their efforts to develop what Bourdieu has termed symbolic, cultural and social capital as means of promoting the mental well-being of their children and the children of others. The implications for theory, future research, public health policy and practice, in relation to the needs of African and African-Caribbean fathers and families, are also discussed, with specific focus on how to realise the potential of African and African-Caribbean fathers' positive contributions to family and community health.

Black American Literature and the Problem of Racism, Slavery and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The problem created by racism could be traced to be the major factor behind most Black literature through the ages. In America, this gave rise to a new form of literary expression known as the Black American Literature or African American Literature. The main concern of this sub-genre of literature is to redeem the face of ...

Peripheral insulin resistance rather than beta cell dysfunction accounts for geographical differences in impaired fasting blood glucose among sub-Saharan African individuals : findings from the RODAM study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Meeks, Karlijn A C; Stronks, Karien; Adeyemo, Adebowale; Addo, Juliet; Bahendeka, Silver; Beune, Erik; Owusu-Dabo, Ellis; Danquah, Ina; Galbete, Cecilia; Henneman, Peter; Klipstein-Grobusch, Kerstin; Mockenhaupt, Frank P; Osei, Kwame; Schulze, Matthias B; Spranger, Joachim; Smeeth, Liam; Agyemang, Charles

2017-01-01

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: The aim of this study was to assess the extent to which insulin resistance and beta cell dysfunction account for differences in impaired fasting blood glucose (IFBG) levels in sub-Saharan African individuals living in different locations in Europe and Africa. We also aimed to

Peripheral insulin resistance rather than beta cell dysfunction accounts for geographical differences in impaired fasting blood glucose among sub-Saharan African individuals: findings from the RODAM study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Meeks, Karlijn A. C.; Stronks, Karien; Adeyemo, Adebowale; Addo, Juliet; Bahendeka, Silver; Beune, Erik; Owusu-Dabo, Ellis; Danquah, Ina; Galbete, Cecilia; Henneman, Peter; Klipstein-Grobusch, Kerstin; Mockenhaupt, Frank P.; Osei, Kwame; Schulze, Matthias B.; Spranger, Joachim; Smeeth, Liam; Agyemang, Charles

2017-01-01

The aim of this study was to assess the extent to which insulin resistance and beta cell dysfunction account for differences in impaired fasting blood glucose (IFBG) levels in sub-Saharan African individuals living in different locations in Europe and Africa. We also aimed to identify determinants

The Topology of African Exports: emerging patterns on spanning trees

OpenAIRE

Araújo, Tanya; Ferreira, M. Ennes

2016-01-01

This paper is a contribution to interweaving two lines of research that have progressed in separate ways: network analyses of international trade and the literature on African trade and development. Gathering empirical data on African countries has important limitations and so does the space occupied by African countries in the analyses of trade networks. Here, these limitations are dealt with by the definition of two independent bipartite networks: a destination share network and a commodit...

Measuring Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Knowledge and Perceptions of Risk in Middle-Class African Americans

Science.gov (United States)

Spears, Erica C.; Guidry, Jeffrey J.; Harvey, Idethia S.

2018-01-01

There is a paucity in the literature examining the African American middle-class. Most studies of African Americans and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) have concentrated on lower-SES individuals, or make no distinction between African Americans of varying socio-economic positions. Middle-class African Americans are vulnerable in ways often…

Non specific immune response in the African catfish ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Non specific immune response in the African catfish, Heterobranchus longifilis fed diets fortified with ethanolic extracts of selected traditional medicinal plants and disease resistance against Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

West African spatial patterns of economic activities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Walther, Olivier; Howard, Allen; Retaillé, Denis

2015-01-01

Over the last 30 years, two different bodies of literature developed by both US historians and francophone geographers have moved toward similar conclusions regarding West African economic spatial patterns. Despite their different backgrounds, both the ‘spatial factor’ approach promoted by histor......Over the last 30 years, two different bodies of literature developed by both US historians and francophone geographers have moved toward similar conclusions regarding West African economic spatial patterns. Despite their different backgrounds, both the ‘spatial factor’ approach promoted...... by historians and the ‘mobile space’ approach developed by geographers view exchange centres as nodes of transnational trade networks and places in production territories, and perceive spatial dynamics as highly dependent on shifts of trade flows and production activities. The objective of this article...

Genotypic characterization and safety assessment of lactic acid bacteria from indigenous African fermented food products

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Adimpong David B

2012-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Indigenous fermented food products play an essential role in the diet of millions of Africans. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB are among the predominant microbial species in African indigenous fermented food products and are used for different applications in the food and biotechnology industries. Numerous studies have described antimicrobial susceptibility profiles of LAB from different parts of the world. However, there is limited information on antimicrobial resistance profiles of LAB from Africa. The aim of this study was to characterize 33 LAB previously isolated from three different African indigenous fermented food products using (GTG5-based rep-PCR, sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene and species-specific PCR techniques for differentiation of closely related species and further evaluate their antibiotic resistance profiles by the broth microdilution method and their haemolytic activity on sheep blood agar plates as indicators of safety traits among these bacteria. Results Using molecular biology based methods and selected phenotypic tests such as catalase reaction, CO2 production from glucose, colonies and cells morphology, the isolates were identified as Lactobacillus delbrueckii, Lactobacillus fermentum, Lactobacillus ghanensis, Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus salivarius, Leuconostoc pseudomesenteroides, Pediococcus acidilactici, Pediococcus pentosaceus and Weissella confusa. The bacteria were susceptible to ampicillin, chloramphenicol, clindamycin and erythromycin but resistant to vancomycin, kanamycin and streptomycin. Variable sensitivity profiles to tetracycline and gentamicin was observed among the isolates with Lb. plantarum, Lb. salivarius, W. confusa (except strain SK9-5 and Lb. fermentum strains being susceptible to tetracycline whereas Pediococcus strains and Lb. ghanensis strains were resistant. For gentamicin, Leuc. pseudomesenteroides, Lb. ghanensis and Ped. acidilactici strains were resistant to 64�

Two favourite themes in Nigérien literature | Daouda | Tydskrif vir ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Critics tend to generalise in their analysis of African literature by presenting it from two main angles: anti-colonial literature and the literature of disenchantment focused on a criticism of the political regimes that came out of independence. However, not only did Nigérien literature emerge after independence, but writers from ...

(Early Modern Literature: Crossing the Color-Line

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David Sterling Brown

2016-07-01

Full Text Available This article examines the pedagogical implications of teaching about the past in a way that establishes continuity in relation to present and future moments. I describe and analyze how my Trinity College students navigated my course, “Crossing the Color-Line,” which aimed to eradicate boundaries and entangle the professional and personal, social and political, past and present, and black and white in an engaged manner. I argue that a radical course such as “Crossing the Color-Line” can showcase, through literature and other media, how fusing difference of all kinds—cultural, religious, literary, historical, gender—promotes rigorous student directed learning experiences that are inclusive. Because Shakespeare was not the sole authorial voice in the room, or the only early modern author in our syllabus, “Crossing the Color-Line” actively resisted the literary, racial, social, and cultural homogeneity that one can often find in an early modern classroom. By not being Shakespeare-centric, the course placed value on the female perspective and refrained from being androcentric in its authorial focus. Moreover, by positioning “the problem of the color-line” as relevant in the early modern period, the combined study of African-American and early modern English texts challenged critical race studies to include pre-nineteenth-century literature.

A systematic literature review of diabetes self-management education features to improve diabetes education in women of Black African/Caribbean and Hispanic/Latin American ethnicity.

Science.gov (United States)

Gucciardi, Enza; Chan, Vivian Wing-Sheung; Manuel, Lisa; Sidani, Souraya

2013-08-01

This systematic literature review aims to identify diabetes self-management education (DSME) features to improve diabetes education for Black African/Caribbean and Hispanic/Latin American women with Type 2 diabetes mellitus. We conducted a literature search in six health databases for randomized controlled trials and comparative studies. Success rates of intervention features were calculated based on effectiveness in improving glycosolated hemoglobin (HbA1c), anthropometrics, physical activity, or diet outcomes. Calculations of rate differences assessed whether an intervention feature positively or negatively affected an outcome. From 13 studies included in our analysis, we identified 38 intervention features in relation to their success with an outcome. Five intervention features had positive rate differences across at least three outcomes: hospital-based interventions, group interventions, the use of situational problem-solving, frequent sessions, and incorporating dietitians as interventionists. Six intervention features had high positive rate differences (i.e. ≥50%) on specific outcomes. Different DSME intervention features may influence broad and specific self-management outcomes for women of African/Caribbean and Hispanic/Latin ethnicity. With the emphasis on patient-centered care, patients and care providers can consider options based on DSME intervention features for its broad and specific impact on outcomes to potentially make programming more effective. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Molecular mechanisms of insulin resistance | Pillay | South African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

South African Medical Journal. Journal Home · ABOUT · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 79, No 5 (1991) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register · Download this PDF file. The PDF file you selected should load here if your ...

The South African guidelines on Enuresis—2017

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Ahmed Adam

2018-02-28

Feb 28, 2018 ... of antidiuretic hormone (ADH)/arginine-vasopressin release during sleep, .... in therapy resistant older children with attention deficit hyperactiv- ity who are .... The South African Smartphone market growth is amongst the high-.

Evidence of multiple insecticide resistance mechanisms in Anopheles gambiae populations in Bangui, Central African Republic.

Science.gov (United States)

Olé Sangba, Marina Lidwine; Sidick, Aboubakar; Govoetchan, Renaud; Dide-Agossou, Christian; Ossè, Razaki A; Akogbeto, Martin; Ndiath, Mamadou Ousmane

2017-01-13

Knowledge of insecticide resistance status in the main malaria vectors is an essential component of effective malaria vector control. This study presents the first evaluation of the status of insecticide resistance in Anopheles gambiae populations from Bangui, the Central African Republic. Anopheles mosquitoes were reared from larvae collected in seven districts of Bangui between September to November 2014. The World Health Organisation's bioassay susceptibility tests to lambda-cyhalothrin (0.05%), deltamethrin (0.05%), DDT (4%), malathion (5%), fenitrothion (1%) and bendiocarb (0.1%) were performed on adult females. Species and molecular forms as well as the presence of L1014F kdr and Ace-1 R mutations were assessed by PCR. Additional tests were conducted to assess metabolic resistance status. After 1 h exposure, a significant difference of knockdown effect was observed between districts in all insecticides tested except deltamethrin and malathion. The mortality rate (MR) of pyrethroids group ranging from 27% (CI: 19-37.5) in Petevo to 86% (CI: 77.6-92.1) in Gbanikola; while for DDT, MR ranged from 5% (CI: 1.6-11.3) in Centre-ville to 39% (CI: 29.4-49.3) in Ouango. For the organophosphate group a MR of 100% was observed in all districts except Gbanikola where a MR of 96% (CI: 90-98.9) was recorded. The mortality induced by bendiocarb was very heterogeneous, ranging from 75% (CI: 62.8-82.8) in Yapele to 99% (CI: 84.5-100) in Centre-ville. A high level of kdr-w (L1014F) frequency was observed in all districts ranging from 93 to 100%; however, no kdr-e (L1014S) and Ace-1 R mutation were found in all tested mosquitoes. Data of biochemical analysis showed significant overexpression activities of cytochrome P450, GST and esterases in Gbanikola and Yapele (χ 2  = 31.85, df = 2, P resistance to DDT and pyrethroids as well as precocious emergence of resistance to carbamates were detected among A. gambiae mosquitoes from Bangui, including target-site mutations

African Arts and the Social Studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Crane, Louise

1982-01-01

Suggests ways in which the rich resources of African arts--literature, sculpture, music, dance, theater--can be made more accessible to elementary and secondary social studies classrooms. A bibliography of print and nonprint materials is also provided. (RM)

African Journal of Biomedical Research

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The African Journal of biomedical Research was founded in 1998 as a joint project ... of the journal led to the formation of a group (Biomedical Communications Group, ... analysis of multidrug resistant aerobic gram-negative clinical isolates from a ... Dental formula and dental abnormalities observed in the Eidolon helvum ...

Mechanical resistance of zirconium implant abutments: A review of the literature

Science.gov (United States)

Vaquero-Aguilar, Cristina; Torres-Lagares, Daniel; Jiménez-Melendo, Manuel; Gutiérrez-Pérez, José L.

2012-01-01

The increase of aesthetic demands, together with the successful outcome of current implants, has renewed interest in the search for new materials with enough mechanical properties and better aesthetic qualities than the materials customarily used in implanto-prosthetic rehabilitation. Among these materials, zirconium has been used in different types of implants, including prosthetic abutments. The aim of the present review is to analyse current scientific evidence supporting the use of this material for the above mentioned purposes. We carried out the review of the literature published in the last ten years (2000 through 2010) of in vitro trials of dynamic and static loading of zirconium abutments found in the databases of Medline and Cochrane using the key words zirconium abutment, fracture resistance, fracture strength, cyclic loading. Although we have found a wide variability of values among the different studies, abutments show favourable clinical behaviour for the rehabilitation of single implants in the anterior area. Such variability may be explained by the difficulty to simulate daily mastication under in vitro conditions. The clinical evidence, as found in our study, does not recommend the use of implanto-prosthetic zirconium abutments in the molar area. Key words: Zirconium abutment, zirconium implant abutment, zirconia abutment, fracture resistance, fracture strength, cyclic loading. PMID:22143702

Insecticide resistance status of the Anopheles funestus population in Central African Republic: a challenge in the war.

Science.gov (United States)

Sangba, Marina Lidwine Olé; Deketramete, Tanguy; Wango, Solange Patricia; Kazanji, Mirdad; Akogbeto, Martin; Ndiath, Mamadou Ousmane

2016-04-25

In the Central African Republic, malaria is a major public health problem and the leading cause of death among children. This disease appears to be hyperendemic but no substantial entomological data, including data on Anopheles spp. susceptibility to insecticides, is available. This study evaluates, for the first time in the CAR, the status of insecticide resistance in the Anopheles funestus population, the second major vector of malaria in Africa. WHO standard bioassay susceptibility tests were performed on the An. funestus population using F1 generation from gravid females mosquitoes (F0) collected by manual aspirator sampling of households in Gbanikola, Bangui in October 2014 to assess: (i) An. funestus susceptibility to bendiocarb, malathion, permethrin, lamda-cyhalothrin, deltamethrin and DDT, and (ii) the effect of pre-exposure to the piperonyl butoxide (PBO) synergist on insecticide susceptibility. Additional tests were conducted to investigate metabolic resistance status (cytochrome P450 monooxygenases, glutathione S-transferases, and esterases). A high phenotypic resistance of An. funestus population to malathion, DDT and pyrethroids was observed with a mortality rate ranging from 23 to 74%. For the pyrethroid groups, the mortality rate was 35, 31 and 23% for lambda-cyhalothrin, deltamethrin, and permethrin, respectively. In contrast a 100% mortality rate to bendiocarb was recorded. Knockdown time (KDT) was long for all pyrethroids, DDT and malathion with KDT50 higher than 50 min. Pre-exposure of An. funestus to PBO synergist significantly restored susceptibility to all pyrethroids (Fisher's exact test P P450 monooxygenases, esterases and glutatione S-transferases in the resistance of An. funestus population from Gbanikola (Wilcoxon test P resistance to insecticide was detected in An. funestus population from the district of Gbanikola, Bangui. This study suggests that detoxifying enzymes are involved in insecticide resistance of An. funestus. However

African Literature and the Discourse of Limits | Bello-Kano | Journal ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

No Abstract Available Journal of Cultural Studies Vol.5(1) 2003: 113-147. Full Text: EMAIL FULL TEXT EMAIL FULL TEXT · DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT · http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/jcs.v5i1.6262 · AJOL African Journals Online. HOW TO USE AJOL... for Researchers · for Librarians · for Authors · FAQ's ...

Patterns of HIV-1 drug resistance after first-line antiretroviral therapy (ART) failure in 6 sub-Saharan African countries: implications for second-line ART strategies.

Science.gov (United States)

Hamers, Raph L; Sigaloff, Kim C E; Wensing, Annemarie M; Wallis, Carole L; Kityo, Cissy; Siwale, Margaret; Mandaliya, Kishor; Ive, Prudence; Botes, Mariette E; Wellington, Maureen; Osibogun, Akin; Stevens, Wendy S; Rinke de Wit, Tobias F; Schuurman, Rob

2012-06-01

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) drug resistance may limit the benefits of antiretroviral therapy (ART). This cohort study examined patterns of drug-resistance mutations (DRMs) in individuals with virological failure on first-line ART at 13 clinical sites in 6 African countries and predicted their impact on second-line drug susceptibility. A total of 2588 antiretroviral-naive individuals initiated ART consisting of different nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NRTI) backbones (zidovudine, stavudine, tenofovir, or abacavir, plus lamivudine or emtricitabine) with either efavirenz or nevirapine. Population sequencing after 12 months of ART was retrospectively performed if HIV RNA was >1000 copies/mL. The 2010 International Antiviral Society-USA list was used to score major DRMs. The Stanford algorithm was used to predict drug susceptibility. HIV-1 sequences were generated for 142 participants who virologically failed ART, of whom 70% carried ≥1 DRM and 49% had dual-class resistance, with an average of 2.4 DRMs per sequence (range, 1-8). The most common DRMs were M184V (53.5%), K103N (28.9%), Y181C (15.5%), and G190A (14.1%). Thymidine analogue mutations were present in 8.5%. K65R was frequently selected by stavudine (15.0%) or tenofovir (27.7%). Among participants with ≥1 DRM, HIV-1 susceptibility was reduced in 93% for efavirenz/nevirapine, in 81% for lamivudine/emtricitabine, in 59% for etravirine/rilpivirine, in 27% for tenofovir, in 18% for stavudine, and in 10% for zidovudine. Early failure detection limited the accumulation of resistance. After stavudine failure in African populations, zidovudine rather than tenofovir may be preferred in second-line ART. Strategies to prevent HIV-1 resistance are a global priority.

The use of pathological grief outcomes in bereavement studies on African Americans.

Science.gov (United States)

Granek, Leeat; Peleg-Sagy, Tal

2017-06-01

Pathological bereavement outcomes (i.e., complicated grief, traumatic grief, prolonged grief disorder) are a robust and growing research area in the psychological and medical sciences. Although grief is considered to be a universal phenomenon, it is well documented that grieving processes and outcomes are culturally and contextually bound. The objectives of this study were: (a) to examine representations of African Americans in the grief and mourning literature and to assess the extent to which this research utilizes pathological grief outcomes; and (b) to examine the characteristics of pathological grief constructs in the literature to assess their relevance for African American populations. We conducted comprehensive searches of three scientific databases including PsycNET, Medline, and CINAHL, which contain the majority of grief and mourning literature published between January 1998 and February 2014. We found 59 studies addressing grief and mourning in African Americans. Thirteen of these studies used pathological grief outcomes. Pathological grief outcomes that were constructed and validated on White populations were frequently used as outcome variables with African American participants. We discuss the implications for the grief and mourning field and argue that the failure to use culturally sensitive outcome measures in research studies is a form of epistemological violence that may have negative research and clinical implications for African Americans and other ethnic minorities.

Strengthening African Union for African Integration: An African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. ... in the international state system and seek for African initiative in solving African problems. ... of the African Union by examining the efforts of African Leaders towards African integration, ...

How to overcome some of the challenges that African scholars are facing in conducting informetrics research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Isola Ajiferuke

2011-01-01

Full Text Available This article provides evidence to show that the contributions of African researchers to the informetrics literature are minimal. The three main challenges identified as limiting the contributions of African scholars to the informetrics literature are lack of appropriate skills, inadequate data collection sources, and unaffordable analytical tools. To overcome these challenges, it is suggested that regular pre-conference workshops on informetrics should be organized, an African Citation Index should be developed, and the use of free analytical tools should be encouraged.

Resistance to Barley Leaf Stripe

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nørgaard Knudsen, J. C.

1986-01-01

in well adapted Northwest European spring cultivars. Virulence matching two hitherto not overcome resistances was demonstrated. Differences in apparent race nonspecific or partial resistance were also present, changing the percentage of infected plants of susceptible genotypes from about 20 to 44 per cent.......Ten barley [Hordeum vulgare] genotypes were inoculated with twelve isolates of Pyrenophora graminea of diverse European and North African origin. Race specific resistance occurred. Four, possibly five, genetically different sources of race-specific resistance were found, three of them occurring...

Resistance to European Penetration into Africa:The case of the ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

After centuries of varied forms of European commercial activities on the African coast, the second half of the 18th century saw a change for more profit when they decided to penetrate into the hinterlands of the continent for better exploitation by establishing imperialist administration over the Africans. Many Africans resisted ...

A critical review of the literature: engendering the discourse of masculinities matter for parenting African refugee men.

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, Nombasa

2011-03-01

According to the literature on culturally and linguistically diverse parenting, refugee parenting practices and styles that are normative in countries of origin may not be sanctioned in Australia. In the case of refugee parenting, beliefs, practices, and values may be decentered in pre-resettlement contexts where survival becomes the primary concern. Engendering the discourse of masculinities to reflect a relationship between child protection and the experience of refugee parenting for African men in both pre- and post-resettlement contexts will inform culturally competent practice, intervention, and community development that is inclusive of their gender-specific needs. This article brings an expanded masculinities perspective to the ecology of refugee parenting for resettled African men resulting from larger research findings with focus group participants. Incorporating notions of masculinity into the child protection discourse is an attempt not only to reduce existing gender under- and misrepresentation among South Australian refugees but also to ensure greater visibility and increase the role of refugee men in the process of developing culturally relevant and appropriate policies, practices, and services to assist successful resettlement transitions while strengthening family well-being. The concept of masculinities, this article argues, must be treated as integral to any approach to working with refugees, particularly in areas that penetrate and may define the quality of their life experiences, expectations, and aspirations. Masculinities matter. Exploring refugee male perceptions, interpretations, and enactment of masculinity may unmask the differential experiences of refugee women from men and ensure the integration and operationalization of these differences into child protection services and practice. © The Author(s) 2011

Clinical nursing and midwifery research in African countries: a scoping review.

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Carolyn; Larson, Elaine

2015-05-01

Globally, the nursing shortage has been deemed a crisis, but African countries have been hit hardest. Therefore, it is of utmost importance nurses use the best available evidence and that nursing research is targeted to address gaps in the evidence. To achieve this, an understanding of what is currently available and identification of gaps in clinical nursing research is critical. We performed a scoping review of existing literature to assess clinical nursing research conducted in all African countries over the past decade, identify gaps in clinical nursing and midwifery research, determine whether they match with health priorities for countries, and define priorities for regional clinical nursing research agendas to improve health outcomes. This is a scoping review of published clinical nursing research conducted in African countries. Systematic searches of literature published between January 01, 2004 and September 15, 2014 were performed in PubMed, Medline, CINHAL, and Embase. Research was included if it was conducted by nurses, included data obtained in African countries or regions within the African continent, published in a peer-reviewed journal with an abstract, and included patient outcomes. Abstracts were independently reviewed for inclusion by two authors. The following data were extracted: countries of publication and study, study type and design, journal, language, and topics of research. Gaps in the literature were identified. Initially, 1091 papers were identified with a final sample of 73 articles meeting inclusion criteria. Studies used 12 designs, were published in 35 journals published in five countries (including two African countries); 29% of the research was published in a single journal (Curatonis). Research was mostly qualitative (57%) and included twenty countries in Africa (38%). There were 12 major topics of study, most often midwifery/maternal/child health (43%), patient experiences (38%), and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV

Cash flow forecast for South African firms

OpenAIRE

Li, Yun; Moutinho, Luiz; Opong, Kwaku K.; Pang, Yang

2015-01-01

This paper applies models in the extant literature that have been used to forecast operating cash flows to predict the cash flows of South African firms listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. Out-of-sample performance is examined for each model and compared between them. The reported results show that some accrual terms, i.e. depreciation and changes in inventory do not enhance cash flow prediction for the average South African firm in contrast to the reported results of studies in USA an...

The African Languages Research Institute: A Milestone in the ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Ruthven

African Languages Research Institute (ALRI) gedoen het in die ontwikkeling van die ... church literature and educational books to create literature for their new con- verts. .... tive impact on the process of raising the status of Shona and Ndebele. .... from naturally occurring language in use by mother-tongue speakers of the.

Effect of Adolescent Obesity on Cardiometabolic Risk in African-Americans and Caucasians

OpenAIRE

Hoffman, Robert P.

2012-01-01

African-Americans have more hypertension, stroke, and type 2 diabetes than do Caucasians. Endothelial dysfunction and insulin resistance are precursors for each. Since these diseases have origins in pediatrics and are associated with obesity, this study was designed to determine if obesity has different effects on endothelial function, insulin sensitivity, and secretion in African-American and Caucasian adolescents. Thirty-three Caucasian and 25 African-Americans (10–18 years old) were subdiv...

Questionnaire survey of the pan-African trade in lion body parts

OpenAIRE

Williams, Vivienne L.; Loveridge, Andrew J.; Newton, David J.; Macdonald, David W.

2017-01-01

The African lion is in decline across its range, and consumptive utilisation and trade of their body parts and skins has been postulated as a cause for concern. We undertook a pan-African questionnaire and literature survey to document informed opinion and evidence for the occurrence of domestic and international trade and consumption in African lion body parts across current and former range states. Sixty-five people from 18 countries participated in the online questionnaire survey (run from...

Fighting through Resistance: Challenges Faced by African American Women Principals in Predominately White School Settings

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Jackson, Alicia D.

2013-01-01

African American women represented a growing proportion within the field of education in attaining leadership roles as school principals. As the numbers continued to rise slowly, African American women principals found themselves leading in diverse or even predominately White school settings. Leading in such settings encouraged African American…

Représentations de la transgression dans les littératures d'Afrique subsaharienne Images of Transgression in Subsaharian African Literatures

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Bernard Mouralis

2009-09-01

Full Text Available La transgression est sans doute constitutive de toute littérature, mais, dans le cas des littératures de l’Afrique subsaharienne, sa représentation apparaît selon deux modalités principales. D’un côté, la transgression de lois, d’usages et d’interdits à l’intérieur de la société pré-coloniale, qui sera illustrée par une analyse du conte de Birago Diop, Petit-mari et du roman de Chinua Achebe, Things Fall Apart ; de l’autre, la transgression, dans le cadre de la situation coloniale, de lois ou d’interdits édictés par le colonisateur, comme on le verra à partir de quelques exemples empruntés aux romans de Mongo Beti et de F. Oyono. On constatera par ailleurs que la transgression qui s’opère dans le contexte colonial est parfois plus difficile à repérer qu’on ne peut le penser de prime abord, dans la mesure où elle ne s’opère pas nécessairement de manière frontale, puisqu’elle utilise les failles, les interstices ou les contradictions du système de domination mis en place. C’est dans cette perspective qu’il faut situer les nombreuses œuvres retraçant le parcours effectué par un sujet africain pour s ‘approprier le savoir que lui refuse le colonisateur : L’enfant noir de Camara Laye, Tell Freedom de Peter Abrahams, Down Second Avenue de Mphahlele, Amkoullel l’enfant peul de Hampâté Bâ. - Au terme de l’exposé, on tentera de préciser si les littératures africaines constituent un cas spécifique dans cette représentation de la transgression ou si, au contraire, elles s’inscrivent dans un processus général que l’on retrouve dans n’importe quelle littérature.Transgression is the central phenomenon in any literature. But, in African literature, writers actually describe two kinds of transgression. On the one hand, transgression of taboos, uses and laws inside the pre-colonial societies, as we can observe, for instance, in Birago Diop’s tale Petit-mari or in Chinua Achebe�

African Americans and Network Disadvantage: Enhancing Social Capital through Participation on Social Networking Sites

OpenAIRE

Danielle Taana Smith

2013-01-01

This study examines the participation of African Americans on social networking sites (SNS), and evaluates the degree to which African Americans engage in activities in the online environment to mitigate social capital deficits. Prior literature suggests that compared with whites, African Americans have less social capital that can enhance their socio-economic mobility. As such, my research question is: do African Americans enhance their social capital through their participation on SNS? I us...

Weight Loss Maintenance in African American Women: A Systematic Review of the Behavioral Lifestyle Intervention Literature

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Lisa M. Tussing-Humphreys

2013-01-01

Full Text Available We performed a systematic review of the behavioral lifestyle intervention trials conducted in the United States published between 1990 and 2011 that included a maintenance phase of at least six months, to identify intervention features that promote weight loss maintenance in African American women. Seventeen studies met the inclusion criteria. Generally, African American women lost less weight during the intensive weight loss phase and maintained a lower % of their weight loss compared to Caucasian women. The majority of studies failed to describe the specific strategies used in the delivery of the maintenance intervention, adherence to those strategies, and did not incorporate a maintenance phase process evaluation making it difficult to identify intervention characteristics associated with better weight loss maintenance. However, the inclusion of cultural adaptations, particularly in studies with a mixed ethnicity/race sample, resulted in less % weight regain for African American women. Studies with a formal maintenance intervention and weight management as the primary intervention focus reported more positive weight maintenance outcomes for African American women. Nonetheless, our results present both the difficulty in weight loss and maintenance experienced by African American women in behavioral lifestyle interventions.

Rabies in Nigeria: A review of literature | Ojo | African Journal of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journal of Clinical and Experimental Microbiology. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 17, No 2 (2016) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register · Download this PDF file ...

Barriers to Physical Activity Among African American Women: An Integrative Review of the Literature.

Science.gov (United States)

Joseph, Rodney P; Ainsworth, Barbara E; Keller, Colleen; Dodgson, Joan E

2015-01-01

A key aspect for researchers to consider when developing culturally appropriate physical activity (PA) interventions for African American (AA) women are the specific barriers AA women face that limit their participation in PA. Identification and critical examination of these barriers is the first step in developing comprehensive culturally relevant approaches to promote PA and help resolve PA-related health disparities in this underserved population. We conducted a systematic integrative literature review to identify barriers to PA among AA women. Five electronic databases were searched, and forty-two studies (twenty-seven qualitative, fourteen quantitative, one mixed method) published since 1990 (range 1998-2013) in English language journals met inclusion criteria for review. Barriers were classified as intrapersonal, interpersonal, or environment/community according to their respective level of influence within our social ecological framework. Intrapersonal barriers included lack of time, knowledge, and motivation; physical appearance concerns; health concerns; monetary cost of exercise facilities; and tiredness/fatigue. Interpersonal barriers included family/caregiving responsibilities; lack of social support; and lack of a PA partner. Environmental barriers included safety concerns; lack of facilities; weather concerns; lack of sidewalks; and lack of physically active AA role models. Results provide key leverage points for researchers to consider when developing culturally relevant PA interventions for AA women.

Editorial: Shadows of the past, visions of the future in African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Editorial: Shadows of the past, visions of the future in African literatures and cultures. R West-Pavlov. Abstract. No abstract. Full Text: EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT · DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT · http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/tvl.v51i2.1 · AJOL African Journals Online. HOW TO USE ...

Kinship Ties: Attachment Relationships that Promote Resilience in African American Adult Children of Alcoholics

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J. Camille Hall

2007-05-01

Full Text Available For many African Americans, the extended family has been the source of strength, resilience, and survival. Although changes in African American families, like changes in all families in the United States that have diluted the importance of kinship ties, many African Americans continue to place a high value on extended family members. Children of Africans and communities of African descent traditionally interact with multiple caregivers, consisting of kin, and fictive kin.Utilizing both attachment theory and risk and resilience literature, this paper discusses ways to better understand the resilient nature of African American families and how multiple attachment relationships assist at-risk African American children, specifically adult children of alcoholics (ACOAs.

Genomic Footprints of Selective Sweeps from Metabolic Resistance to Pyrethroids in African Malaria Vectors Are Driven by Scale up of Insecticide-Based Vector Control.

Science.gov (United States)

Barnes, Kayla G; Weedall, Gareth D; Ndula, Miranda; Irving, Helen; Mzihalowa, Themba; Hemingway, Janet; Wondji, Charles S

2017-02-01

Insecticide resistance in mosquito populations threatens recent successes in malaria prevention. Elucidating patterns of genetic structure in malaria vectors to predict the speed and direction of the spread of resistance is essential to get ahead of the 'resistance curve' and to avert a public health catastrophe. Here, applying a combination of microsatellite analysis, whole genome sequencing and targeted sequencing of a resistance locus, we elucidated the continent-wide population structure of a major African malaria vector, Anopheles funestus. We identified a major selective sweep in a genomic region controlling cytochrome P450-based metabolic resistance conferring high resistance to pyrethroids. This selective sweep occurred since 2002, likely as a direct consequence of scaled up vector control as revealed by whole genome and fine-scale sequencing of pre- and post-intervention populations. Fine-scaled analysis of the pyrethroid resistance locus revealed that a resistance-associated allele of the cytochrome P450 monooxygenase CYP6P9a has swept through southern Africa to near fixation, in contrast to high polymorphism levels before interventions, conferring high levels of pyrethroid resistance linked to control failure. Population structure analysis revealed a barrier to gene flow between southern Africa and other areas, which may prevent or slow the spread of the southern mechanism of pyrethroid resistance to other regions. By identifying a genetic signature of pyrethroid-based interventions, we have demonstrated the intense selective pressure that control interventions exert on mosquito populations. If this level of selection and spread of resistance continues unabated, our ability to control malaria with current interventions will be compromised.

Genomic Footprints of Selective Sweeps from Metabolic Resistance to Pyrethroids in African Malaria Vectors Are Driven by Scale up of Insecticide-Based Vector Control.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kayla G Barnes

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Insecticide resistance in mosquito populations threatens recent successes in malaria prevention. Elucidating patterns of genetic structure in malaria vectors to predict the speed and direction of the spread of resistance is essential to get ahead of the 'resistance curve' and to avert a public health catastrophe. Here, applying a combination of microsatellite analysis, whole genome sequencing and targeted sequencing of a resistance locus, we elucidated the continent-wide population structure of a major African malaria vector, Anopheles funestus. We identified a major selective sweep in a genomic region controlling cytochrome P450-based metabolic resistance conferring high resistance to pyrethroids. This selective sweep occurred since 2002, likely as a direct consequence of scaled up vector control as revealed by whole genome and fine-scale sequencing of pre- and post-intervention populations. Fine-scaled analysis of the pyrethroid resistance locus revealed that a resistance-associated allele of the cytochrome P450 monooxygenase CYP6P9a has swept through southern Africa to near fixation, in contrast to high polymorphism levels before interventions, conferring high levels of pyrethroid resistance linked to control failure. Population structure analysis revealed a barrier to gene flow between southern Africa and other areas, which may prevent or slow the spread of the southern mechanism of pyrethroid resistance to other regions. By identifying a genetic signature of pyrethroid-based interventions, we have demonstrated the intense selective pressure that control interventions exert on mosquito populations. If this level of selection and spread of resistance continues unabated, our ability to control malaria with current interventions will be compromised.

Historicising and Globalising the African Environmental Condition ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The literature dealing with African environmental issues has grown exponentially in recent years. Nevertheless, much of these scholarly debates configure environmentalism in colonial and neocolonial terms, thereby interpreting the historical roots and environmental impact of globalisation. This article, however, argues that ...

African Bioethics vs. Healthcare Ethics in Africa: A Critique of Godfrey Tangwa.

Science.gov (United States)

Fayemi, Ademola K

2016-08-01

It is nearly two decades now since the publication of Godfrey Tangwa's article, 'Bioethics: African Perspective', without a critical review. His article is important because sequel to its publication in Bioethics, the idea of 'African bioethics' started gaining some attention in the international bioethics literature. This paper breaks this relative silence by critically examining Tangwa's claim on the existence of African bioethics. Employing conceptual and critical methods, this paper argues that Tangwa's account of African bioethics has some conceptual, methodic and substantive difficulties, which altogether do not justify the idea of African bioethics, at least for now. Contra Tangwa, this article establishes that while African bioethics remains a future possibility, it is more cogent that current efforts in the name of 'African bioethics' be primarily re-intensified towards 'Healthcare ethics in Africa'. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Interferon Gamma in African Trypanosome Infections: Friends or Foes?

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Hui; Liu, Gongguan; Shi, Meiqing

2017-01-01

African trypanosomes cause fatal infections in both humans and livestock. Interferon gamma (IFN-γ) plays an essential role in resistance to African trypanosomes. However, increasing evidence suggests that IFN-γ, when excessively synthesized, also induces immunopathology, enhancing susceptibility to the infection. Thus, production of IFN-γ must be tightly regulated during infections with African trypanosomes to ensure that a robust immune response is elicited without tissue destruction. Early studies have shown that secretion of IFN-γ is downregulated by interleukin 10 (IL-10). More recently, IL-27 has been identified as a negative regulator of IFN-γ production during African trypanosome infections. In this review, we discuss the current state of our understanding of the role of IFN-γ in African trypanosome infections. We have focused on the cellular source of IFN-γ, its beneficial and detrimental effects, and mechanisms involved in regulation of its production, highlighting some recent advances and offering some perspectives on future directions.

Doing justice to social justice in South African higher education ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This paper attempts to develop a conceptualisation of social justice in higher education based on a close reading of the current literature in the field. An important assumption we make is that higher education is a valuable mechanism for social justice. We set the literature against policy documents that detail South African ...

For a new syllabus on literature teaching: principles, legislation and propositions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Erica Cristina Bispo

2016-12-01

Full Text Available This article consists of a proposition of methodogical reformulation for Literature teaching under analysis, profiting from the emphasis on the inclusion of Portuguese-Africans, African-Brazilians and Indigenous writers in OCNs (National Curricula Guidance in Brazil. Being so, we discuss the possibility of regarding Literature teaching materials beyond the traditional school-book standard and the attachment to literary schools chronology in an inflexible manner. Wherefore, we propose a thematic and comparative approach which does not exclude multi-centenary knowledge on Literature exactly but which also rethinks the degree of priority given to particular contents and competences. In this context, we intend to reflect upon the High-School student’s profile differently from the Language undergraduate’s profile, highlighting the High-School student’s lived expe­rience/literary text dichotomy, so as to promote Literacy, critical thinking and empowerment at schools by means of Literature teaching.---DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.21881/abriluff.2016n17a374

RECOUNTING STORIES IN SOUTH AFRICAN CHILD WELFARE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Schmid, Jeanette

2013-05-01

Full Text Available In order to proactively bring about change, it is critical in a post-apartheid context for South African social workers to appreciate how colonial and apartheid forces have shaped the inherited welfare priorities, structures, legislation, policies and practices. It is as necessary also to identify stories of resistance as these offer hope and alternative possibilities. Authors such as McKendrick (2001, Patel (2005 and Loffell (2000 have tracked many aspects of South African welfare history. In its submission to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission – a body set up to formally acknowledge past injustices with the goal of bringing about political reconciliation – the welfare sector set out how it had contributed to historical discrimination and wrongs (Truth and Reconciliation Commission, 1999. While these narratives provide the framework for the development of child welfare in South Africa, relatively little is known about its particular history, especially its earliest roots. Beukes and Gannon (1999 and Allsopp (2005 have attempted to explore the origins of that profession in the child and youth work field. Badroodien (2001 examined the extensive impact of one institution, the Ottery School of Industry, on “coloured” youths and their families. Scordillis and Becker (2005 recount briefly the history of adoption practice in South Africa. Some of the child welfare societies have been able to provide sketches of their agency history. In this article the author attempts to add to the child welfare record, gathering the existing strands of literature and inserting the stories that emerged in her doctoral research (Schmid, 2008b

Identification of New Resistance Loci to African Stem Rust Race TTKSK in Tetraploid Wheats Based on Linkage and Genome-Wide Association Mapping.

Science.gov (United States)

Laidò, Giovanni; Panio, Giosuè; Marone, Daniela; Russo, Maria A; Ficco, Donatella B M; Giovanniello, Valentina; Cattivelli, Luigi; Steffenson, Brian; de Vita, Pasquale; Mastrangelo, Anna M

2015-01-01

Stem rust, caused by Puccinia graminis Pers. f. sp. tritici Eriks. and E. Henn. (Pgt), is one of the most destructive diseases of wheat. Races of the pathogen in the "Ug99 lineage" are of international concern due to their virulence for widely used stem rust resistance genes and their spread throughout Africa. Disease resistant cultivars provide one of the best means for controlling stem rust. To identify quantitative trait loci (QTL) conferring resistance to African stem rust race TTKSK at the seedling stage, we evaluated an association mapping (AM) panel consisting of 230 tetraploid wheat accessions under greenhouse conditions. A high level of phenotypic variation was observed in response to race TTKSK in the AM panel, allowing for genome-wide association mapping of resistance QTL in wild, landrace, and cultivated tetraploid wheats. Thirty-five resistance QTL were identified on all chromosomes, and seventeen are of particular interest as identified by multiple associations. Many of the identified resistance loci were coincident with previously identified rust resistance genes; however, nine on chromosomes 1AL, 2AL, 4AL, 5BL, and 7BS may be novel. To validate AM results, a biparental population of 146 recombinant inbred lines was also considered, which derived from a cross between the resistant cultivar "Cirillo" and susceptible "Neodur." The stem rust resistance of Cirillo was conferred by a single gene on the distal region of chromosome arm 6AL in an interval map coincident with the resistance gene Sr13, and confirmed one of the resistance loci identified by AM. A search for candidate resistance genes was carried out in the regions where QTL were identified, and many of them corresponded to NBS-LRR genes and protein kinases with LRR domains. The results obtained in the present study are of great interest as a high level of genetic variability for resistance to race TTKSK was described in a germplasm panel comprising most of the tetraploid wheat sub-species.

Aggressive Angiomyxoma in African Women: A report of Two Cases ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

BACKGROUND: Aggressive angiomyxoma (AAM) is a rare soft tissue tumour usually of the perineum. There is no report in the surgical literature of a description of AAM in black Africans. OBJECTIVE: To report the first description of AAM in black Africa women in the surgical literature and to highlight the value of special ...

Examining African self-consciousness and Black racial identity as predictors of Black men's psychological well-being.

Science.gov (United States)

Pierre, Martin R; Mahalik, James R

2005-02-01

This study investigated African self-consciousness and Black racial identity as predictors of psychological distress and self-esteem for Black men. One hundred thirty Black men from a college and community sample completed the African Self-Consciousness Scale, the Racial Identity Attitude Scale-B, the Symptom Checklist 90-Revised, and the Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory. Canonical correlation analysis found 2 significant roots with the 1st root indicating that Black men whose attitudes reflected Preencounter and Immersion racial identity attitudes and who do not resist against anti-African/Black forces reported greater psychological distress and less esteem. Results from the 2nd root suggested that Black men whose attitudes reflect greater Internalization racial identity attitudes, greater resistance to anti-African/Black forces, and less identification with Blacks reported greater self-esteem. ((c) 2005 APA, all rights reserved).

Pyle metaphyseal dysplasia in an African child: Case report and review of the literature.

Science.gov (United States)

Wonkam, A; Makubalo, N; Roberts, T; Chetty, M

2016-05-25

Pyle disease (OMIM 265900), also known as metaphyseal dysplasia, is a rare autosomal recessive disorder with no known gene mutation. We report a case of Pyle disease in a 7-year-old African boy of mixed ancestry who presented with finger and wrist fractures following minor trauma. The radiological findings revealed abnormally broad metaphyses of the tubular bones, known as Erlenmeyer-flask bone deformity, and mild cranial sclerosis, both hallmarks of the condition. We report the first case in a patient with African ancestry, which could help in the gene discovery of this rare autosomal recessive skeletal dysplasia with unknown mutations.

Didacticism and the Third Generation of African Writers: Chukwuma ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Remember me ... In Goddess in the Cathedral we are presented with another educating story of the activities of evil spirits and their agents. Through ... Keywords: African literature, Generations, Chukwuma Ibezute, didacticism, oral storytelling.

African American kidney transplantation survival: the ability of immunosuppression to balance the inherent pre- and post-transplant risk factors.

Science.gov (United States)

Malat, Gregory E; Culkin, Christine; Palya, Aniruddha; Ranganna, Karthik; Kumar, Mysore S Anil

2009-10-22

Among organ transplant recipients, the African American population historically has received special attention. This is because secondary to their disposition to certain disease states, for example hypertension, an African American patient has a propensity to reach end-stage renal disease and require renal replacement earlier than a Caucasian patient. Regardless of the initiative to replace dialysis therapy with organ transplantation, the African American patient has many barriers to kidney transplantation, thus extending their time on dialysis and waiting time on the organ transplant list. These factors are among the many negative causes of decreased kidney graft survival, realized before kidney transplantation. Unfortunately, once the African American recipient receives a kidney graft, the literature documents that many post-transplant barriers exist which limit successful outcomes. The primary post-transplant barrier relates to designing proper immunosuppression protocols. The difficulty in designing protocols revolves around (i) altered genetic metabolism/lower absorption, (ii) increased immuno-active cytokines and (iii) detrimental effects of noncompliance. Based on the literature, dosing of immunosuppression must be aggressive and requires a diligent practitioner. Research has indicated that, despite some success with proven levels of immunosuppression, the African American recipient usually requires a higher 'dose per weight' regimen. However, even with aggressive immunosuppressant dosing, African Americans still have worse outcomes than Caucasian recipients. Additionally, many of the targeted sites of action that immunosuppression exerts its effects on have been found to be amplified in the African American population. Finally, noncompliance is the most discouraging inhibitor of long-term success in organ transplantation. The consequences of noncompliance are biased by ethnicity and affect the African American population more severely. All of these factors

Staphylococcus aureus in Animals and Food: Methicillin Resistance, Prevalence and Population Structure. A Review in the African Continent

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carmen Lozano

2016-02-01

Full Text Available The interest about Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus and methicillin resistant S. aureus (MRSA in livestock, and domestic and wild animals has significantly increased. The spread of different clonal complexes related to livestock animals, mainly CC398, and the recent description of the new mecC gene, make it necessary to know more about the epidemiology and population structure of this microorganism all over the world. Nowadays, there are several descriptions about the presence of S. aureus and/or MRSA in different animal species (dogs, sheep, donkeys, bats, pigs, and monkeys, and in food of animal origin in African countries. In this continent, there is a high diversity of ethnicities, cultures or religions, as well as a high number of wild animal species and close contact between humans and animals, which can have a relevant impact in the epidemiology of this microorganism. This review shows that some clonal lineages associated with humans (CC1, CC15, CC72, CC80, CC101, and CC152 and animals (CC398, CC130 and CC133 are present in this continent in animal isolates, although the mecC gene has not been detected yet. However, available studies are limited to a few countries, very often with incomplete information, and many more studies are necessary to cover a larger number of African countries.

Impact of Mathematics and Physics on the Success of South African Engineering Technology Students

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Wyk, Ben; Hofman, W.A.H.; Louw, I.

2015-01-01

The general conclusion arrived at in the literature is that the South African National Senior Certificate (NSC) is not a reliable predictor of academic success at traditional universities. By sharing research undertaken at a South African University of Technology (UoT) on the impact of individual

Southern Coup: Recruiting African American Faculty Members at an Elite Private Southern Research University

Science.gov (United States)

Barrett, Thomas Gregory; Smith, Theophus

2008-01-01

Competition for highly qualified African American faculty members among elite universities in the United States remains keen. Two of the most successful research universities at recruiting African American faculty members are located in the Southeast. Employing a conceptual framework grounded in organizational culture and climate literature, in…

Democracy, Resistance, and the Practice of Literature: Introduction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Arka Chattopadhyay

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Recent world politics has witnessed the rise of a certain style of authoritarianism. It can be roughly characterized with a cult of masculine leadership, a popular rhetoric of foreign investment and development, and a phobia of the illegal immigrant made into an ethical obligation. These contradictory forms of politics – the paean to multinational corporations, free trade, and the ‘bloc’-ing of power and the simultaneous mobilization of hyper-nationalism in the form of censoring books and throttling subversive aesthetic practices – characterize the conception and practice of what may be called “authoritarian democracy.” Considering the democratically elected basis of this authoritarianism, it becomes all the more important to ask if democracy paves the way for it. In that case, where do we locate democracy today? Is it right to say that the real democratic space unfolds itself in people’s movements and not in the electoral process? If this is the case, a radical conception of democracy would have to account for a shift of emphasis from the locus of governance to that of resistance and co-option. Historically speaking, democracy may not always be the means but it has been one of the ends for the various acts of resistance such as the working class, anti-colonial, nationalist, feminist, LGBT, or constitutional multiculturalism. In our sour and hungry times, when state aggression is overpowering the geographical marking (Russia’s in Ukraine or Israel’s in Palestine, or strangling the voice of internal resistance (North Eastern regions in India, not to mention religious fundamentalism, we need to rethink the old questions of democracy and resistance. With the ISIS, Boko Haram or the Taliban practice, we have seen how resistance itself can produce a dangerous authoritarianism which further complicates the relations between democracy, authoritarianism, and resistance. How do we historicize and ethically theorize resistance in

African Americans' Perceptions of Pain and Pain Management: A Systematic Review.

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Booker, Staja Q

2016-01-01

The purpose of this systematic review is to explore the perceptions of acute, persistent, and disease-specific pain and treatment options held by adult African Americans. Underassessment and undermanagement of pain in African Americans has been well documented; however, the cultural continuum of pain perceptions and their influence on pain assessment and management has not been synthesized. Electronic database searches of the Cumulative Index for Nursing and Allied Health Literature and PubMed, Web-based searches of the pain-specific journals plus a manual search of reference lists identified 41 relevant articles addressing perceptions of pain and/or pain management. Analysis of the literature revealed six themes: (a) meaning of pain, (b) description of pain, (c) coping with pain, (d) impact of pain, (e) patient-provider relationship, and (f) treatment approaches. These findings warrant further research and indicate the need for more precise evaluation of pain in African Americans, highlighting an imperative to incorporate cultural patterns into pain management practice and education. © The Author(s) 2014.

Health expenditure and economic growth - a review of the literature and an analysis between the economic community for central African states (CEMAC) and selected African countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Piabuo, Serge Mandiefe; Tieguhong, Julius Chupezi

2017-12-01

African leaders accepted in the year 2001 through the Abuja Declaration to allocate 15% of their government expenditure on health but by 2013 only five (5) African countries achieved this target. In this paper, a comparative analysis on the impact of health expenditure between countries in the CEMAC sub-region and five other African countries that achieved the Abuja declaration is provided. Data for this study was extracted from the World Development Indicators (2016) database, panel ordinary least square (OLS), fully modified ordinary least square (FMOLS) and dynamic ordinary least square (DOLS) were used as econometric technic of analysis. Results showed that health expenditure has a positive and significant effect on economic growth in both samples. A unit change in health expenditure can potentially increase GDP per capita by 0.38 and 0.3 units for the five other African countries that achieve the Abuja target and for CEMAC countries respectively, a significant difference of 0.08 units among the two samples. In addition, a long-run relationship also exist between health expenditure and economic growth for both groups of countries. Thus African Economies are strongly advised to achieve the Abuja target especially when other socio-economic and political factors are efficient.

Rainbow Nation's "Ubuntu": Discovering Distinctness as a Spectrum through South African Literature

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Colin Bridges

2007-01-01

Apartheid created more than physical distances between color groups; South Africa is made up of people with often separated minds. Leaders of the democratic government draw from and modify the ancient African tribal value called "ubuntu" as the philosophic basis for their cultural strategy of unification. Sandra Chait has pointed out…

The use of traditional medicine in maternity care among African women in Africa and the diaspora: a systematic review.

Science.gov (United States)

Shewamene, Zewdneh; Dune, Tinashe; Smith, Caroline A

2017-08-02

There is a paucity of literature describing traditional health practices and beliefs of African women. The purpose of this study was to undertake a systematic review of the use of traditional medicine (TM) to address maternal and reproductive health complaints and wellbeing by African women in Africa and the diaspora. A literature search of published articles, grey literature and unpublished studies was conducted using eight medical and social science databases (CINAHL, EMBASE, Infomit, Ovid Medline, ProQuest, PsychINFO, PubMed and SCOPUS) from the inception of each database until 31 December 2016. Critical appraisal was conducted using a quality assessment tool (QAT). A total of 20 studies conducted in 12 African countries representing 11,858 women were included. No literature was found on African women in the diaspora related to maternal use of TM or complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). The prevalence of TM use among the African women was as high as 80%. The most common TM used was herbal medicine for reasons related to treatment of pregnancy related symptoms. Frequent TM users were pregnant women with no formal education, low income, and living far from public health facilities. Lack of access to the mainstream maternity care was the major determining factor for use of TM. TM is widely used by African women for maternal and reproductive health issues due to lack of access to the mainstream maternity care. Further research is required to examine the various types of traditional and cultural health practices (other than herbal medicine), the beliefs towards TM, and the health seeking behaviors of African women in Africa and the diaspora.

Microbial resistance to antibiotics | Chinedum | African Journal of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Organisms that are normally sensitive to the action of an antibiotic may sometimes develop resistance or insensitivity to it. This, they may do through destroying the antibiotic or by retaining their growth even in the presence of the drug. Microbial resistance to antibiotics is now widespread and poses a serious clinical threat.

Obesity-Associated Hypertension: the Upcoming Phenotype in African-American Women.

Science.gov (United States)

Samson, Rohan; Qi, Andrea; Jaiswal, Abhishek; Le Jemtel, Thierry H; Oparil, Suzanne

2017-05-01

The present obesity epidemic particularly affects African-American women. Whether the obesity epidemic will alter the hypertension phenotype in African-American women is entertained. The prevalence of morbid obesity is steadily increasing in African-American women, who are prone to developing hypertension (HTN) even in the absence of obesity. The obesity-associated hypertension phenotype is characterized by marked sympathetic nervous system activation and resistance/refractoriness to antihypertensive therapy. Weight loss achieved through lifestyle interventions and pharmacotherapy has a modest and rarely sustained antihypertensive effect. In contrast, bariatric surgery has a sustained antihypertensive effect, as evidenced by normalization of hypertension or lessening of antihypertensive therapy. The prevalence of HTN and its obesity-associated phenotype is likely to increase in African-American women over the next decades. Obese African-American women may be increasingly referred for bariatric surgery when hypertension remains uncontrolled despite lifestyle interventions and pharmacological therapy for weight loss and blood pressure (BP) control.

Teaching Aids: Struggling with/through Student Resistances in Psychology Curricula in South African Universities

Science.gov (United States)

Wilbraham, Lindy

2016-01-01

African universities have been called to respond to the social issues of trauma, adversity, injustice and inequality that trouble their embedding communities, their staff and their students. The need for South African universities to respond to HIV/Aids (in particular) includes the opening up of new knowledge about and ways of managing the impacts…

African Crop Science Journal - Vol 14, No 3 (2006)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Gene complementarity of resistance to the cassava mosaic disease among African cassava accessions · EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT. Y Lokko, AGO Dixon, SK Offei, EY Danquah, 207-220 ...

Alienation and Revolutionary Vision in East African Post-Colonial Dramatic Literature

OpenAIRE

Fashina, Nelson O.

2009-01-01

This paper is a trans-disciplinary inquiry into the principles of alienation and revolutionary ethos in two East African plays of postcolonial society. It engages literary-textual exegesis and sociological theories to unravel the multi-dimensional forms of alienation as an interrogation of contemporary postcolonial history. The writers, though somewhat in throes and dilemma of exilic consciousness, ‘commodify’ and appropriate the literary enterprise as weapon of active physical revolt and tex...

Low Cardiorespiratory Fitness in African Americans: A Health Disparity Risk Factor?

Science.gov (United States)

Swift, Damon L.; Staiano, Amanda E.; Johannsen, Neil M.; Lavie, Carl J.; Earnest, Conrad P.; Katzmarzyk, Peter T.; Blair, Steven N.; Newton, Robert L.; Church, Timothy S.

2013-01-01

Low cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) is a well-established risk factor for all-cause and cardiovascular disease mortality. African Americans have higher rates of cardiovascular disease compared to their Caucasian counterparts. However, the extent to which lower CRF levels contribute to the excess risk in African Americans has not been fully explored. The purpose of this review is to: 1) explore the literature evaluating the relationship between CRF and mortality specifically in African American populations; and 2) critically evaluate the studies which have compared CRF between African American and Caucasians in epidemiological studies and clinical trials. We have further discussed several potential mechanisms that may contribute to the observation of lower CRF levels in African American compared to Caucasian adults including potential racial differences in physical activity levels, muscle fiber type distribution, and hemoglobin levels. If lower CRF is generally present in African Americans compared to Caucasians, and is of a clinically meaningful difference, this may represent an important public health concern. PMID:23982718

Managing chronic conditions in a South African primary care context ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Managing chronic conditions in a South African primary care context: ... is an approach to motivating behaviour change in general health care settings. ... They had mixed experiences with skills for agenda setting and reducing resistance.

Genetic analyses for conformation traits in South African Jersey and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

JACO

Genetic trends for conformation traits of the South African Holstein show that ... conformation traits can be used to improve stayability, fertility and disease resistance (Rogers et al., 1999; .... Genetic correlations among protein yield, productive.

African Journal of Biotechnology - Vol 12, No 21 (2013)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journal of Biotechnology - Vol 12, No 21 (2013) ... Studies of the genetics of inheritance of stem rust resistance in bread wheat · EMAIL FREE .... Evaluation of the effect of ginger modified cassava starch as thickener in the formulation of ...

Toxic shock syndrome due to community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infection: Two case reports and a literature review in Japan.

Science.gov (United States)

Sada, Ryuichi; Fukuda, Saori; Ishimaru, Hiroyasu

2017-01-01

Community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus has been spreading worldwide, including in Japan. However, few cases of toxic shock syndrome caused by Community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus have been reported in Japan. We report 2 cases, in middle-aged women, of toxic shock syndrome due to Community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus via a vaginal portal of entry. The first patient had used a tampon and the second patient had vaginitis due to a cleft narrowing associated with vulvar lichen sclerosus. Both patients were admitted to our hospital with septic shock and severe acute kidney injury and subsequently recovered with appropriate antibiotic treatment. In our review of the literature, 8 cases of toxic shock syndrome caused by Community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus were reported in Japan. In these 8 cases, the main portals of entry were the skin and respiratory tract; however, the portal of entry of Community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus from a vaginal lesion has not been reported in Japan previously.

Tribe and Village in African Organizations and Business

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kragh, Simon Ulrik

2016-01-01

literature play a central role in African management and business. Practical implications – The paper concludes that manager should recognize the negative effects that may follow from a rejection of these socio-cultural patterns of behaviour. Originality/value – It introduces Marshall Sahlins’ theory......Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to show that organizational behaviour and business relations in African countries reflect preindustrial social norms typical of kinship based, rural communities such as in-group/out-group differentiation, reliance on kinship and the use of gift......-exchange to create and strengthen social bonds. Design/methodology/approach – Two books on African management are interpreted using anthropological and sociological theory as the analytical perspective. Findings – The analysis of the two works suggests that the preindustrial patterns described in the anthropological...

I too, am America: a review of research on systemic lupus erythematosus in African-Americans

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, Edith M; Bruner, Larisa; Adkins, Alyssa; Vrana, Caroline; Logan, Ayaba; Kamen, Diane; Oates, James C

2016-01-01

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a multi-organ autoimmune disorder that can cause significant morbidity and mortality. A large body of evidence has shown that African-Americans experience the disease more severely than other racial-ethnic groups. Relevant literature for the years 2000 to August 2015 were obtained from systematic searches of PubMed, Scopus, and the EBSCOHost platform that includes MEDLINE, CINAHL, etc. to evaluate research focused on SLE in African-Americans. Thirty-six of the 1502 articles were classified according to their level of evidence. The systematic review of the literature reported a wide range of adverse outcomes in African-American SLE patients and risk factors observed in other mono and multi-ethnic investigations. Studies limited to African-Americans with SLE identified novel methods for more precise ascertainment of risk and observed novel findings that hadn't been previously reported in African-Americans with SLE. Both environmental and genetic studies included in this review have highlighted unique African-American populations in an attempt to isolate risk attributable to African ancestry and observed increased genetic influence on overall disease in this cohort. The review also revealed emerging research in areas of quality of life, race-tailored interventions, and self-management. This review reemphasizes the importance of additional studies to better elucidate the natural history of SLE in African-Americans and optimize therapeutic strategies for those who are identified as being at high risk. PMID:27651918

In vitro permeation of platinum through African and Caucasian skin.

Science.gov (United States)

Franken, A; Eloff, F C; du Plessis, J; Badenhorst, C J; Du Plessis, J L

2015-02-03

The majority of the South African workforce are Africans, therefore potential racial differences should be considered in risk and exposure assessments in the workplace. Literature suggests African skin to be a superior barrier against permeation and irritants. Previous in vitro studies on metals only included skin from Caucasian donors, whereas this study compared the permeation of platinum through African and Caucasian skin. A donor solution of 0.3 mg/ml of potassium tetrachloroplatinate (K₂PtCl₄) dissolved in synthetic sweat was applied to the vertical Franz diffusion cells with full thickness abdominal skin. Skin from three female African and three female Caucasian donors were included (n=21). The receptor solution was removed at various intervals during the 24 h experiment, and analysed with high resolution inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Skin was digested and analysed by inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). Significantly higher permeation of platinum through intact African skin (p=0.044), as well as a significantly higher mass of platinum retention in African skin in comparison with Caucasian skin (p=0.002) occurred. Significant inter-donor variation was found in both racial groups (pskin and further investigation is necessary to explain the higher permeation through African skin. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

CEO pay-performance sensitivity in the South African context

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mark Bussin

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The topic of executive pay-performance sensitivity has resulted in mixed research findings. Literature related to executive remuneration constructs, company performance measures and the underlying theories is critically reviewed in this article. The literature is compared to research findings within the South African context pre, during and post the Global Financial Crisis of 2008. The researcher found similar results in the South African context compared to research in other countries and industries. The research challenges the notion that there is one dominant theory driving CEO compensation. The principal-agent theory, supported by the optimal contract theory, are foremost during periods of strong economic performance, while the influence of managerial power and other behavioural theories appear to prevail during periods of weak economic performance. This article proposes some critical considerations in order to manage this tension.

Clinical determinants of early parasitological response to ACTs in African patients with uncomplicated falciparum malaria

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Abdulla, S.; Adam, I.; Adjei, G. O.

2015-01-01

values for clearance in patients from Sub-Saharan African countries with uncomplicated malaria treated with artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs). Methods: A literature review in PubMed was conducted in March 2013 to identify all prospective clinical trials (uncontrolled trials, controlled...... trials and randomized controlled trials), including ACTs conducted in Sub-Saharan Africa, between 1960 and 2012. Individual patient data from these studies were shared with the WorldWide Antimalarial Resistance Network (WWARN) and pooled using an a priori statistical analytical plan. Factors affecting...... early parasitological response were investigated using logistic regression with study sites fitted as a random effect. The risk of bias in included studies was evaluated based on study design, methodology and missing data. Results: In total, 29,493 patients from 84 clinical trials were included...

College and Career Readiness for Gifted African American Girls: A Call to School Counselors

Science.gov (United States)

Mayes, Renae D.; Hines, Erik M.

2014-01-01

Current literature on college and career readiness highlights the role of educators in promoting the success of all students. However, few studies have focused on the specific needs of gifted African American girls. This article discusses the school experiences and career development of gifted African American girls and it provides a culturally…

Multidrug-Resistant Bacterial Outbreaks in Burn Units: A Synthesis of the Literature According to the ORION Statement.

Science.gov (United States)

Girerd-Genessay, Isabelle; Bénet, Thomas; Vanhems, Philippe

2016-01-01

The objective of this study is to review the literature on multidrug-resistant bacteria (MDRB) outbreaks in burn units according to the outbreak reports and intervention studies of nosocomial infection statement. A PubMed search engine was enlisted to identify reports, in English and French, on MDRB outbreaks in burn units, with no date restrictions, using the following key words: ("burn" OR "burns" OR "severe burn") AND ("unit" OR "critical care" OR "acute care" OR "intensive care" OR "center" OR "centre" OR "department") AND ("outbreak" OR "epidemic") AND ("resistant" OR "multidrug-resistant" OR "resistance" OR "MDR" OR "MDRO"). Twenty-nine articles on such outbreaks in burn units were analyzed. A wide variety of these outbreaks were studied in terms of the microbial agents involved, length of outbreak, and attack rate (1.9-66.7%). The most frequent bacteria were methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Acinetobacter baumannii. Screening of staff revealed carrier rates of 0 to 20% in 16 studies. Environmental samples were taken in 21 studies and were positive in 14 of them. The mortality rate among infected patients varied from 0 to 33%. Implementation of isolation precautions did not always suffice, with unit closure being necessary in five outbreaks. The lack of consensus on how to manage such outbreak was highlighted. MDRB infections or colonizations are responsible for increased morbidity and mortality in vulnerable burn patients. Their management is problematic because of multifactorial transmission and limited therapeutic possibilities.

African Americans and Network Disadvantage: Enhancing Social Capital through Participation on Social Networking Sites

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Danielle Taana Smith

2013-03-01

Full Text Available This study examines the participation of African Americans on social networking sites (SNS, and evaluates the degree to which African Americans engage in activities in the online environment to mitigate social capital deficits. Prior literature suggests that compared with whites, African Americans have less social capital that can enhance their socio-economic mobility. As such, my research question is: do African Americans enhance their social capital through their participation on SNS? I use nationally representative data collected from the Pew Internet and American Life Project to explore the research question. The results suggest that the online environment is potentially a space in which African Americans can lessen social capital deficits.

Intrinsic rewards and work engagement in the South African retail industry

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sara Jacobs

2014-11-01

Research purpose: The purpose of this research was to determine whether there is a relationship between intrinsic rewards and work engagement in the South African retail industry. Furthermore, it sought to validate an instrument to measure intrinsic rewards within the South African context. Motivation for the study: There is currently a paucity of research exploring intrinsic rewards, specifically their importance for work engagement. Furthermore, there is a lack of instruments validated in South Africa that can be used to measure intrinsic rewards. Research approach, design and method: This quantitative study was conducted using a cross-sectional design and non-probability sampling of 181 employees from a South African retail organisation. The questionnaire included a demographic section, the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale and the Work Engagement Profile. Main findings: Statistically significant, positive relationships were found between all subscales of the two instruments. There were significant differences in the means for intrinsic rewards and work engagement for gender and age. Notably, the exploratory factor analysis for both instruments did not support the factor structure indicated in the literature. Practical/managerial implications: South African retail organisations should create work environments that provide intrinsic rewards as part of their reward package, to encourage work engagement. Contribution/value-add: These findings add to the current body of literature regarding intrinsic rewards and work engagement and provide insight into variables that promote work engagement within the South African retail context.

Organizational change and resistance: An identity perspective

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ybema, S.B.; Thomas, R; Hardy, C.; Courpasson, D.; Vallas, S.

2016-01-01

A classic term in popular and scholarly literature on change management is ‘resistance to change’. It understands resistance in terms of opposition to managerial strategies for organizational change. Since change is generally viewed as reasonable and desirable within this literature, resistance to

'If we must Die…': Dominant Sentiments in African-American Literature

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Black literature in America is essentially protest inclined. The prevalence of this attitude in the literary culture has a lot to do with the very nature of the black experience of slavery and the slave trade. In this paper, we provide a critical treatment of protest in black American literature by examining the protest of black writers ...

Resistant and Refractory Hypertension: Antihypertensive Treatment Resistance vs Treatment Failure

Science.gov (United States)

Siddiqui, Mohammed; Dudenbostel, Tanja; Calhoun, David A.

2017-01-01

Resistant or difficult to treat hypertension is defined as high blood pressure that remains uncontrolled with 3 or more different antihypertensive medications, including a diuretic. Recent definitions also include controlled blood pressure with use of 4 or more medications as also being resistant to treatment. Recently, refractory hypertension, an extreme phenotype of antihypertensive treatment failure has been defined as hypertension uncontrolled with use of 5 or more antihypertensive agents, including a long-acting thiazide diuretic and a mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist. Patients with resistant vs refractory hypertension share similar characteristics and comorbidities, including obesity, African American race, female sex, diabetes, coronary heart disease, chronic kidney disease, and obstructive sleep apnea. Patients with refractory vs resistant hypertension tend to be younger and are more likely to have been diagnosed with congestive heart failure. Refractory hypertension might also differ from resistant hypertension in terms of underlying cause. Preliminary evidence suggests that refractory hypertension is more likely to be neurogenic in etiology (ie, heightened sympathetic tone), vs a volume-dependent hypertension that is more characteristic of resistant hypertension in general. PMID:26514749

Colonial Taxation, Corruption and Resistance in Igbominaland ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Colonial Taxation, Corruption and Resistance in Igbominaland. ... AFRICAN JOURNALS ONLINE (AJOL) · Journals · Advanced Search · USING AJOL · RESOURCES ... While taxation definitely stimulated economic activities in Igbominaland at ...

Selective breeding: the future of TB management in African buffalo?

Science.gov (United States)

le Roex, N; Berrington, C M; Hoal, E G; van Helden, P D

2015-09-01

The high prevalence of bovine tuberculosis (BTB) in African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) in regions of southern African has a negative economic impact on the trade of animals and animal products, represents an ecological threat to biodiversity, and poses a health risk to local communities through the wildlife-cattle-human interface. Test and cull methods may not be logistically feasible in many free-range wildlife systems, and with the presence of co-existing BTB hosts and the limited effectiveness of the BCG vaccine in buffalo, there is a need for alternative methods of BTB management. Selective breeding for increased resistance to BTB in buffalo may be a viable method of BTB management in the future, particularly if genetic information can be incorporated into these schemes. To explore this possibility, we discuss the different strategies that can be employed in selective breeding programmes, and consider the implementation of genetic improvement schemes. We reflect on the suitability of applying this strategy for enhanced BTB resistance in African buffalo, and address the challenges of this approach that must be taken into account. Conclusions and the implications for management are presented. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Impacts of Rural Electrification Revisited: The African Context

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Peters, Jorg; Sievert, Maximiliane; Vincent, Nicolas

2015-12-01

The investment requirements to achieve the United Nations' universal electricity access goal by 2030 are estimated at 640 billion US Dollars. The assumption underlying this goal is that electrification contributes to poverty alleviation in many regards. In recent years, a body of literature has emerged that widely confirms this positive poverty impact assumption. Most of these studies, however, are based on data from Asia and Latin America. This paper challenges the transferability of impact findings in the literature to the African context. Using a unique data set that we collected in various African countries we suggest that impact expectations on income, education, and health should be discounted considerably for Africa. In many cases, the low levels of electricity consumption can also be served by low-cost solar alternatives. To ensure cost-effective usage of public investments into rural electrification, we call for careful cost-benefit comparisons of on-grid and off-grid solutions. (authors)

CURRENT STATE OF RESISTANCE TO ANTIBIOTICS OF LAST-RESORT IN SOUTH AFRICA: A REVIEW FROM A PUBLIC HEALTH PERSPECTIVE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

JOHN OSEI SEKYERE

2016-09-01

Full Text Available A review of the literature was undertaken to delineate the current level and mechanisms of resistance to carbapenems, colistin and tigecycline in South Africa. Thirty-two English publications and 32 National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD communiqués identified between early January 2000 and 20th May, 2016 showed substantial reports of NDM (n=860, OXA-48 (n=584, VIM (n=131 and IMP (n=45 carbapenemases within this period, mainly in Klebsiella pneumoniae (n=1138, Acinetobacter baumannii (n=332, Enterobacter cloacae (n=201 and Serratia marcescens (n=108. Colistin and tigecycline resistance was prevalent among K. pneumoniae, A. baumannii, S. marcescens and E. cloacae. The first mcr-1 colistin resistance gene to be detected in South Africa was reported in E. coli from livestock as well as from hospitalized and out patients. There are increasing reports of NDM and OXA-48 carbapenemases among Enterobacteriaceae and A. baumannii in South Africa. Mcr-1 is now present in South African patients and livestock. Resistance to carbapenems, colistin and tigecycline restricts infection management options for clinicians.

342 Between New Challenges in African Literature and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

User

2011-07-21

Jul 21, 2011 ... eloquently represented in our literature, actually fertilized the grounds and ... others, led to the establishment of “political and socio-economic structures on .... needed to achieve the much dreamed-of global outlook if we must have a ... should be written exploring themes such as entrapped white tourists; or.

Antibiotic Resistance in Food Animals in Africa: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Founou, Luria Leslie; Amoako, Daniel Gyamfi; Founou, Raspail Carrel; Essack, Sabiha Yusuf

2018-04-23

This study critically reviewed the published literature and performed a meta-analysis to determine the overall burden of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in food animals in Africa. English and French published articles indexed in EBSCOhost, PubMed, Web of Science, and African Journals Online were retrieved, with searches being conducted up to August, 2015. Data were pooled and meta-analysis performed using a random-effects model, and the results are described as event rates. According to the predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria, 17 articles out of the 852 retrieved were eligible for the qualitative and quantitative analysis. The studies included were mainly conducted in Nigeria, with Escherichia coli, Salmonella spp., and Campylobacter spp. being the main bacteria. The pooled estimates showed high level of antibiotic resistance (ABR) (86%; p < 0.001) and multidrug resistance (73%; p = 0.003). Our results suggest that ABR is substantively prevalent and poses a serious threat for food safety and security in Africa. These findings shed light on areas for future research concerning antibiotic-resistant and multidrug-resistant bacteria in food animals as etiological agents of infectious diseases in humans. They further yielded some interesting findings on the burden of ABR that could be useful in developing measures to contain this threat in the farm-to-plate continuum in Africa.

African Journal of AIDS Research - Vol 9, No 2 (2010)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Assessing cognitive-linguistic abilities in South African adults living with HIV: the Cognitive Linguistic Quick Test · EMAIL FULL TEXT ... Deafness and HIV/AIDS: a systematic review of the literature · EMAIL FULL TEXT EMAIL FULL TEXT

Estimating the burden of antimicrobial resistance: a systematic literature review.

Science.gov (United States)

Naylor, Nichola R; Atun, Rifat; Zhu, Nina; Kulasabanathan, Kavian; Silva, Sachin; Chatterjee, Anuja; Knight, Gwenan M; Robotham, Julie V

2018-01-01

Accurate estimates of the burden of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are needed to establish the magnitude of this global threat in terms of both health and cost, and to paramaterise cost-effectiveness evaluations of interventions aiming to tackle the problem. This review aimed to establish the alternative methodologies used in estimating AMR burden in order to appraise the current evidence base. MEDLINE, EMBASE, Scopus, EconLit, PubMed and grey literature were searched. English language studies evaluating the impact of AMR (from any microbe) on patient, payer/provider and economic burden published between January 2013 and December 2015 were included. Independent screening of title/abstracts followed by full texts was performed using pre-specified criteria. A study quality score (from zero to one) was derived using Newcastle-Ottawa and Philips checklists. Extracted study data were used to compare study method and resulting burden estimate, according to perspective. Monetary costs were converted into 2013 USD. Out of 5187 unique retrievals, 214 studies were included. One hundred eighty-seven studies estimated patient health, 75 studies estimated payer/provider and 11 studies estimated economic burden. 64% of included studies were single centre. The majority of studies estimating patient or provider/payer burden used regression techniques. 48% of studies estimating mortality burden found a significant impact from resistance, excess healthcare system costs ranged from non-significance to $1 billion per year, whilst economic burden ranged from $21,832 per case to over $3 trillion in GDP loss. Median quality scores (interquartile range) for patient, payer/provider and economic burden studies were 0.67 (0.56-0.67), 0.56 (0.46-0.67) and 0.53 (0.44-0.60) respectively. This study highlights what methodological assumptions and biases can occur dependent on chosen outcome and perspective. Currently, there is considerable variability in burden estimates, which can lead in

Social Science Studies on European and African Agriculture Compared: Bringing Together Different Strands of Academic Debate on GM Crops

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Klara Fischer

2016-08-01

Full Text Available This study explored the social science-orientated literature on genetically modified (GM crops in Europe and compared it with the corresponding literature on GM crops in African contexts, in order to determine the nature and extent of north-south cross-fertilisation in the literature. A total of 1625 papers on GM crops and agriculture falling within the ‘social science and humanities’ subject area in the Scopus abstract and citation database of peer-reviewed literature were analysed for major trends relating to geographical areas. More detailed analysis was performed on papers discussing African (56 papers and European (127 papers contexts. The analysis revealed that studies on policy and politics were common in both strands of the literature, frequently focusing on effects of the relatively restrictive European Union regulations on GM crops. There were also clear differences, however. For example, papers focusing on Africa frequently examined farm-level impacts and production, while this theme was almost non-existent in the Europe literature. It focused instead on policy impacts on trade and consumer attitudes to GM products. The lack of farm-level studies and of empirical studies in general in the European literature indicates a need for empirical research on GM crops in European farming. Social science research on GM crop production in Europe could draw lessons from the African literature.

Struggling in Silence: A Qualitative Study of Six African American Male Stutterers in Educational Settings

Science.gov (United States)

Ellis, Antonio L.; Hartlep, Nicholas D.

2017-01-01

Stuttering places students at-risk for being stereotyped and experiencing identity difficulties in school. This study hoped to fill a lacuna in the literature on the educational experiences of African American male stutterers. Six African American adult males who stuttered and lived in Washington, DC; Maryland; and/or Virginia participated in this…

Problems in Translating Musical Elements in African American Poetry after 1950

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Kristina Kočan

2009-06-01

Full Text Available In most cases, African American poetry eschews traditional literary norms. Contemporary African American poets tend to ignore grammatical rules, use unusual typography on many occasions, include much of their cultural heritage in their poetry, and interweave musical elements into literary genres. The influence of such musical genres as jazz, blues, soul, and gospel, together with the dilemmas that occur for the translator, will be shown to great extent, since music, like black speech, is a major part of African American culture and literature. The translator will have to maintain the specific African American rhythm, blues adaptations and the improvisational language under the jazz impact. The paper presents the problems in translating post-1950 African American poetry into Slovene, and asks to what extent can one successfully transfer the musical elements within this poetry for the target culture? Inevitably, it will identify a share of elements that are lost in translation.

Antimicrobial Resistance of Enteric Salmonella in Bangui, Central African Republic

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Christian Diamant Mossoro-Kpinde

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction. The number of Salmonella isolated from clinical samples that are resistant to multiple antibiotics has increased worldwide. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of resistant Salmonella enterica isolated in Bangui. Methods. All enteric Salmonella strains isolated from patients in 2008 were identified and serotyped, and the phenotypes of resistance were determined by using the disk diffusion method. Nine resistance-associated genes, blaTEM, blaOXA, blaSHV, tetA, aadA1, catA1, dhfrA1, sul I, and sul II, were sought by genic amplification in seven S.e. Typhimurium strains. Results. The 94 strains isolated consisted of 47 S.e. Typhimurium (50%, 21 S.e. Stanleyville (22%, 18 S.e. Enteritidis (19%, 4 S.e. Dublin (4%, 4 S.e. Hadar (4%, and 1 S.e. Papuana (1%. Twenty-five (28% were multiresistant, including 20 of the Typhimurium serovar (80%. Two main phenotypes of resistance were found: four antibiotics (56% and to five antibiotics (40%. One S.e. Typhimurium isolate produced an extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL. Only seven strains of S.e. Typhimurium could be amplified genically. Only phenotypic resistance to tetracycline and aminosides was found. Conclusion. S. Typhimurium is the predominant serovar of enteric S. enterica and is the most widely resistant. The search for resistance genes showed heterogeneity of the circulating strains.

African Journals Online: Central African Republic

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journals Online: Central African Republic. Home > African Journals Online: Central African Republic. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register · Browse By Category · Browse Alphabetically · Browse By Country · List All Titles · Free to read Titles This ...

STRUGGLING WITH THE PAST: REDEFINING AFRICAN-AMERICAN PHYSICAL APPEARANCES THROUGH ALICE RANDALL‟S THE WIND DONE GONE

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Rasiah Rasiah

2017-04-01

Full Text Available This paperanalyzed the visual representations of African-Americans‘physical appearance on Alice Randall‘s The Wind Done Gone (2001. The Wind Done Gone is one of the slavery novels which appeared in early 21st century in America as a respond to the most parennial and hegemonic novel Gone with the wind(1938 authored by Margaret Mitchell. In many proslavery discourse,African-Americans found on popular culture artifacts or documents frequently employ the visual metaphor of others-as-beast. Tomap the discursive features ofthis form of racist ideology, attention is paid to the iconographic and linguistic strategies employed to depict African-Americans as physically, intellectually, and temperamentally distinct and inferior. Slavery was initially justified on the basis of the need for cheap labor, a racist ideology developed to support the subjugation of people of African descent. Included in this process was a denigration of African physical features and attributes.To respond this fact, Alice Randall tried to redefine the African- Americans‘physical appearances in her slavery novel as a resistence to colonial stereotype on African-American beauty. As the novel appeared in 21st century, Randall conviced thatAfrican-Americando no need to bleach his Negro soul in a flood of white American ideal of beauty, but the most important thing is that the change of perception on African-Americanidentity(blackness. It had to become part of an organised practice of struggles requiring the building up of black resistances as well as the development of new forms of black consciousness in new millenium.

Update on HIV-1 acquired and transmitted drug resistance in Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

Ssemwanga, Deogratius; Lihana, Raphael W; Ugoji, Chinenye; Abimiku, Alash'le; Nkengasong, John; Dakum, Patrick; Ndembi, Nicaise

2015-01-01

The last ten years have witnessed a significant scale-up and access to antiretroviral therapy in Africa, which has improved patient quality of life and survival. One major challenge associated with increased access to antiretroviral therapy is the development of antiretroviral resistance due to inconsistent drug supply and/or poor patient adherence. We review the current state of both acquired and transmitted drug resistance in Africa over the past ten years (2001-2011) to identify drug resistance associated with the different drug regimens used on the continent and to help guide affordable strategies for drug resistance surveillance. A total of 161 references (153 articles, six reports and two conference abstracts) were reviewed. Antiretroviral resistance data was available for 40 of 53 African countries. A total of 5,541 adult patients from 99 studies in Africa were included in this analysis. The pooled prevalence of drug resistance mutations in Africa was 10.6%, and Central Africa had the highest prevalence of 54.9%. The highest prevalence of nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor mutations was in the west (55.3%) and central (54.8%) areas; nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor mutations were highest in East Africa (57.0%) and protease inhibitors mutations highest in Southern Africa (16.3%). The major nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor mutation in all four African regions was M184V. Major nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor as well as protease inhibitor mutations varied by region. The prevalence of drug resistance has remained low in several African countries although the emergence of drug resistance mutations varied across countries. Continued surveillance of antiretroviral therapy resistance remains crucial in gauging the effectiveness of country antiretroviral therapy programs and strategizing on effective and affordable strategies for successful treatment.

Evolution of the serum resistance-associated SRA gene in African trypanosomes

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Lai, D. H.; Wang, Q.P.; Lukeš, Julius; Lun, Z.R.

2009-01-01

Roč. 54, č. 7 (2009), s. 1275-1278 ISSN 1001-6538 R&D Projects: GA MŠk 2B06129 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z60220518 Keywords : SRA * SRAbc * evolution * African trypanosomes Subject RIV: EB - Genetics ; Molecular Biology Impact factor: 0.898, year: 2009

Slave songs: Codes of resistance

OpenAIRE

Bayer, Sidney Konrad

2010-01-01

When slaves were forcibly taken from their homes in Africa and brought to North America to live, work, and die in servitude, they brought with them their culture. This included music and dance, which had been used for generations to express their feelings. Africans still use songs to criticize, to protest, for social commentary, and to resist oppression. Slaves used a variety of means to protest and resist their condition; for example, secret meetings, songs which encouraged escape and sabota...

Nalidixic acid-resistant Salmonella enterica serotype Typhi presenting as a primary psoas abscess: case report and review of the literature.

Science.gov (United States)

Shakespeare, William A; Davie, Daniel; Tonnerre, Claude; Rubin, Michael A; Strong, Michael; Petti, Cathy A

2005-02-01

We report an unusual case of Salmonella enterica serotype Typhi presenting as a primary psoas abscess. The isolate tested susceptible to ciprofloxacin but resistant to nalidixic acid in vitro, a pattern associated with fluoroquinolone therapeutic failures. We review the literature for serovar Typhi psoas abscess in the absence of bacteremia and discuss the importance of identifying isolates with reduced susceptibility to fluoroquinolones.

Appraising the quality of sub-Saharan African cancer registration systems that contributed to GLOBOCAN 2008: a review of the literature and critical appraisal.

Science.gov (United States)

Crocker-Buque, Tim; Pollock, Allyson M

2015-02-01

To critically appraise the quality of sub-Saharan African cancer registration systems that submitted data to GLOBOCAN 2008 with respect to population coverage using publicly available information and to show the use of GLOBOCAN statistics in determining global health priorities. Sources of cancer registration data for twenty-six sub-Saharan African cancer registries were identified from GLOBOCAN 2008 factsheets. Additional information was extracted from International Agency for Research on Cancer publications. A literature search was conducted to identify studies that reported additional information on data collection methods and provided 27 studies. The websites of the 10 largest funders of development assistance for health were searched for GLOBOCAN citations. Twenty-six sub-Saharan African cancer registration systems submitting data to GLOBOCAN 2008 in relation to 21 countries. Information on 15 quality variables were extracted and compared with the international gold standard for cancer registration systems. Population coverage of the cancer registries ranged from from 2.3% of the population in Kenya to 100% in The Gambia, with a heavy urban bias in all countries. However, 20 countries (300 million people) had no cancer registration systems. Nineteen of the 26 registries failed to meet more than five of the 15 quality criteria and only one country met more than 10. Seven of the 10 largest funders of development assistance for health cite GLOBOCAN statistics in support of policy priorities. GLOBOCAN 2008 estimates are based on data drawn from poor quality cancer registration systems, with limited or no population registry coverage. It is essential the GLOBOCAN 2012 estimates should provide information on the quality of the data collection and explain the limitations of the estimates. Development organisations and the World Health Organization need to take a more cautious approach when using these data to determine priorities and allocating resources. © The

How African-American Elementary Students in High-Poverty Schools Experience Creative Expression: A Case Study Approach

Science.gov (United States)

Willis, Belinda F.

2016-01-01

Literature that addresses how the arts enhance student learning through creative expression is minimal. This is especially true for African-American elementary students from high-poverty backgrounds. The purpose of this study was to employ a case study design to explore how African-American elementary students in high-poverty schools experience…

Emerging (val)ganciclovir resistance during treatment of congenital CMV infection: a case report and review of the literature.

Science.gov (United States)

Morillo-Gutierrez, Beatriz; Waugh, Sheila; Pickering, Ailsa; Flood, Terence; Emonts, Marieke

2017-08-22

Congenital cytomegalovirus (cCMV) infection is an important illness that is a common cause of hearing loss in newborn infants and a major cause of disability in children. For that reason, treatment of symptomatic patients with either ganciclovir or its pro-drug valganciclovir is recommended. Treatment duration of 6 months has been shown to be more beneficial than shorter courses; however, there is uncertainty regarding emergence of resistance strains, secondary effects and long term sequelae. Here we present a female infant with symptomatic cCMV who was treated from day 5 of life with oral valganciclovir. In spite of close monitoring of her drug levels and increments of her treatment dose according to weight gain, she developed ganciclovir resistance after 4 months of treatment, with increasing viraemia and petechiae. Adherence to treatment was assessed and felt to be good. Clinically, although she had marked developmental delay, she was making steady progress. In view of the development of resistance treatment was stopped at 5 months of age. No secondary effects of ganciclovir were noted during the whole course. There were few cases in the literature reporting resistance to ganciclovir for cCMV before the new recommendations for a 6 months treatment course for this infection were published. As demonstrated in our patient, surveillance with periodic viral loads and drug monitoring are vital to identify emerging resistance and optimise antiviral dosing according to weight gain.

Improvement of common bacterial blight resistance in South African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Common bacterial blight (CBB) caused by Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. phaseoli is an important seed-borne disease of dry beans in South Africa. Development of resistant cultivars is considered the best control measurement for the disease. Backcross breeding was used to improve BB resistance in the small white ...

Toward a Historical Archaeology of West African Borderlands ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Whereas, the ethnographic cum archival study of West African borderlands abounds in the literature, there is the dearth of the comparative analysis of these sources in tandem with the archaeological findings of material culture. Thus, this paper seeks to open up a new dialogue on the importance of borderlands studies in ...

Association between insulin resistance and sustained virologic response in hepatitis C treatment, genotypes 1 versus 2 and 3: systematic literature review and meta-analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Laurito, Marcela Pezzoto; Parise, Edison Roberto

2013-01-01

Controversial results have been found in literature for the association between insulin resistance and sustained virologic response to standard chronic hepatitis C treatment. This study aims to provide a systematic literature review with meta-analysis, in order to evaluate if insulin resistance interferes with sustained virologic response in patients infected by the HCV genotype 1 versus HCV genotypes 2 and 3, undergoing treatment with interferon and ribavirin or pegylated interferon and ribavarin. Systematic search was performed on main electronic databases until May 2012. Primary outcome was sustained virologic response, defined as undetectable levels of HCV-RNA six months after the end of treatment. Meta-analytic measure was estimated using Dersimonian and Laird's method, using Stata software. Thirteen studies involving 2238 infected patients were included. There was a statistically significant association between insulin resistance and lower sustained virologic response rate, and this difference occurred in HCV genotype G1 (OR: 2.23; 95% CI: 1.59-3.13) and G2/G3 (OR: 4.45; 95% CI: 1.59-12.49). In addition, a difference was seen in the cut-offs used for defining insulin resistance by Homeostasis Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance. To minimize this limitation, sub-analysis that excluded the studies that did not use 2 as a cut-off value was performed and the results still demonstrated association between insulin resistance and sustained virologic response, for both genotypic groups. This meta-analysis provides evidence that elevated Homeostasis Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance is associated with a lower sustained virologic response rate in patients with hepatitis C treated with interferon and ribavirin or pegylated interferon and ribavarin, regardless of their genotype. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.

Diversity within African American, female therapists: variability in clients' expectations and assumptions about the therapist.

Science.gov (United States)

Kelly, Jennifer F; Greene, Beverly

2010-06-01

Despite the presence of some literature that has addressed the characteristics of the African American female therapist, most psychotherapy training proceeds with the assumption that therapists are members of dominant groups, and most of the psychological and psychotherapy literature has been written by therapists and psychologists who come from dominant cultural perspectives. Not as much has been written about psychological paradigms or the process of psychotherapy from the perspective of the therapist who is not a dominant group member. This article explores both the common and divergent experiences that we, the authors, share as African American female therapists and the different reactions we frequently elicit in clients. We also explore how individual differences in our physical appearances, personal backgrounds, and different characteristics of our respective practices elicit distinct responses from clients that we believe are based on differences between us, despite the fact that we are both African American women. We believe that many of the stereotypes that affect perceptions of African American female clients also exist for African American female therapists. We will address how the intersection of gender, race, and sexual orientation of the client highlights the complexity of culturally competent practice. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved.

Nalidixic Acid-Resistant Salmonella enterica Serotype Typhi Presenting as a Primary Psoas Abscess: Case Report and Review of the Literature

Science.gov (United States)

Shakespeare, William A.; Davie, Daniel; Tonnerre, Claude; Rubin, Michael A.; Strong, Michael; Petti, Cathy A.

2005-01-01

We report an unusual case of Salmonella enterica serotype Typhi presenting as a primary psoas abscess. The isolate tested susceptible to ciprofloxacin but resistant to nalidixic acid in vitro, a pattern associated with fluoroquinolone therapeutic failures. We review the literature for serovar Typhi psoas abscess in the absence of bacteremia and discuss the importance of identifying isolates with reduced susceptibility to fluoroquinolones. PMID:15695728

African Journals Online: African Studies

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Items 51 - 56 of 56 ... Research Review of the Institute of African Studies. Please note: As of 2013 the Research Review of the Institute of African Studies is now publishing under the title Contemporary Journal of African Studies. You can view the CJAS pages on AJOL here: http://www.ajol.info/index.php/contjas/index.

Black versus Black: The Relationship among African, African American, and African Caribbean Persons.

Science.gov (United States)

Jackson, Jennifer V.; Cothran, Mary E.

2003-01-01

Surveyed people of African descent regarding relationships among African, African-American, and African-Caribbean persons, focusing on contact and friendship, travel to countries of the diaspora, cross-cultural communication, thoughts and stereotypes, and education. Most respondents had contacts with the other groups, but groups had preconceived…

Engineering insect-resistant crops: A review

African Journals Online (AJOL)

dgeorge

African Journal of Biotechnology ... Transgenic crops engineered for enhanced levels of resistance to insect ... this background that research work targeting other candidate genes such as ... nisms, and potential deleterious environmental effects. ... The global market value of biotech crops was esti- .... located in repeat 11.

African immigrants in South Africa: Job takers or job creators?

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Vivence Kalitanyi

2010-12-01

Full Text Available During the last decade African immigrants have been met with and exposed to severe forms of hostility towards their presence in this country. A significant number of these migrants have successfully applied their entrepreneurial flair in establishing small enterprises and employing workers, often to the envy of their local counterparts. This paper presents the findings of an empirical study conducted in 2007 on job creation by African immigrant entrepreneurs for South Africans with face-to-face interviews with 120 African immigrant entrepreneurs. These findings were triangulated 7 non-governmental organisations that interact with immigrants in Cape Town. A review of the literature on migration, entrepreneurship and immigrant entrepreneurs formed the basis for the study The findings indicate that more than 80% of African immigrant entrepreneurs interviewed employ South Africans in their businesses. Despite a generally negative national perception towards immigrants, this study has also revealed that entrepreneurial skills are transferred from immigrant entrepreneurs to their South African employees. Whilst the study was only conducted in the suburban areas of Cape Town, the researcher believes that the results represent the general trend for South Africa. Furthermore, the study only involved those migrants who come from African continent. The overall result is the acknowledgement of the contribution that non-citizens are making to the country’s growth and development. The findings suggest recommendations geared towards policy changes regarding South African immigration law, an inclusive research about the role of immigrants on job creation in South Africa, as well as the consideration of immigrant entrepreneurs when allocating financial support.

Acceptability of the female condom by Sub-Saharan African women: A literature review 

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Peters, J.T.P.; Driel, F.T.M. van; Jansen, W.H.M.

2014-01-01

Sub-Saharan African women are affected disproportionately highly by AIDS, while experiencing lack of choice for devices which protect them against sexual transmitted diseases, including HIV. One should expect that global policy makers react positive to the female condom, a contraceptive device which

Antimicrobial resistance, heavy metal resistance and integron content in bacteria isolated from a South African tilapia aquaculture system.

Science.gov (United States)

Chenia, Hafizah Y; Jacobs, Anelet

2017-11-21

Antibacterial compounds and metals co-select for antimicrobial resistance when bacteria harbour resistance genes towards both types of compounds, facilitating the proliferation and evolution of antimicrobial and heavy metal resistance. Antimicrobial and heavy metal resistance indices of 42 Gram-negative bacteria from a tilapia aquaculture system were determined to identify possible correlations between these phenotypes. Agar dilution assays were carried out to determine susceptibility to cadmium, copper, lead, mercury, chromate and zinc, while susceptibility to 21 antimicrobial agents was investigated by disk diffusion assays. Presence of merA, the mercury resistance gene, was determined by dot-blot hybridizations and PCR. Association of mercury resistance with integrons and transposon Tn21 was also investigated by PCR. Isolates displayed a high frequency of antimicrobial (erythromycin: 100%; ampicillin: 85%; trimethoprim: 78%) and heavy metal (Zn2+: 95%; Cd2+: 91%) resistance. No correlation was established between heavy metal and multiple antibiotic resistance indices. Significant positive correlations were observed between heavy metal resistance profiles, indices, Cu2+ and Cr3+ resistance with erythromycin resistance. Significant positive correlations were observed between merA (24%)/Tn21 (24%) presence and heavy metal resistance profiles and indices; however, significant negative correlations were obtained between integron-associated qacE∆1 (43%) and sulI (26%) gene presence and heavy metal resistance indices. Heavy metal and antimicrobial agents co-select for resistance, with fish-associated, resistant bacteria demonstrating simultaneous heavy metal resistance. Thus, care should be taken when using anti-fouling heavy metals as feed additives in aquaculture facilities.

Plasmodium falciparum drug resistance in Angola.

Science.gov (United States)

Fançony, Cláudia; Brito, Miguel; Gil, Jose Pedro

2016-02-09

Facing chloroquine drug resistance, Angola promptly adopted artemisinin-based combination therapy as the first-line to treat malaria. Currently, the country aims to consolidate malaria control, while preparing for the elimination of the disease, along with others African countries in the region. However, the remarkable capacity of Plasmodium to develop drug resistance represents an alarming threat for those achievements. Herein, the available, but relatively scarce and dispersed, information on malaria drug resistance in Angola, is reviewed and discussed. The review aims to inform but also to encourage future research studies that monitor and update the information on anti-malarial drug efficacy and prevalence of molecular markers of drug resistance, key fields in the context and objectives of elimination.

The Importance of Logotherapy In African Culture | Asagba | IFE ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

From literature review, Logotherapy is less utilized in Nigeria. Despite of the brevity of the therapy, many Nigerian psychotherapists are yet to imbibe it in their practice. In demonstrating the effectiveness of Logotherapy in African culture, specifically Nigerian culture, the paper briefly examines the history of psychotherapy ...

A Critical Review of the Literature on Electronic Records ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This article provides a critical review of existing articles addressing the management of electronic records in the Eastern and Southern African Regional Branch of the International Council on Archives (ESARBICA) region. The article argues that while the literature in developed countries has come up with practical solutions ...

Women and the social construction of gender in African development.

Science.gov (United States)

Kalu, A C

1996-01-01

Because a footnote of Marxism teaches that capitalism must first destroy primitive cultures that lack a dynamic social change mechanism and then rejuvenate them as modern industrialized states, the economic and cultural bases of social relationships in developing countries have been deemed irrelevant. In a similar way, Western feminist paradigms fail to acknowledge epistemological differences from those of African women. This article explores these contradictions and analyzes social change mechanisms within the Igbo culture in Africa that were stunted by colonialism. The first topic considered is the relationship of African literature (using Toni Morrison's "Beloved" as a point of reference) with sustainable African development and African women. The remainder of the article is devoted to an examination of the role of women in light of precolonial and colonial literary traditions. It is noted that continued use of Western feudal and capitalist terms for self-identification alienates Africans from Africa's problems. Traditional African thought assigned women the power to feed the family and to serve as protectors of children and society, and ancestral wisdom directed how societies responded to threats, took charge of their world, and resolved conflict. Problems faced by contemporary African researchers are shown to center on the dilemma faced by those who wish to design a program that analyzes the content of African development and provides contemporary solutions without completely deriving the program completely from contemporary thought. It is, thus, concluded that redefinition of the African development agenda must involve recognition of the essential role of African women as a change agent and a rearticulation of the male role within traditional thought.

Resistance Manifestations in Mozafar Al Nawwab’s Poems

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ناصر تابع جابری

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Resistance Manifestations in Mozafar Al Nawwab’s Poems       * Hasan Dadkhah   Naser Tabe` Jabery **       Abstract     A mixture of political views and resistance literature is so visible in the poems of some contemporary Arab poets that they are known as resistance poets. Mozafar Al Nawwab, the contemporary Iraqi poet, is one of them. Nawwab grew up in a noble and gentle Shia family in Iraq. From his family, he inherited an interest in literature and music and also political views to resist tyranny and colonialism. Also, he was influenced by revolutionary Shia beliefs which are based on Imam Ali’s views and the devotions of Imam Hussein. In his youth, he became a follower of Communism because he found Communism close to his ideals at that time. Therefore, his poem corresponded with his aims and ideals to reach equality and freedom and to end oppression. Nawwab was jailed and tortured several times and was forced to emigrate from Iraq to different countries.   The language of Nawwab’s poems is colloquial and fluent, but after the defeat of Arab countries by Israel and the occupation of Palestine, his poems were influenced by revolutionary views and resistance literature. This influence was to such an extent that he was called Palestine poet. Nawwab sharply criticizes Arab leaders and governments- especially Gulf countries – for their failure to deal with Palestine occupation and the disorders in Arab countries. Such criticisms led to his works being banned in these countries. On the other hand, his poems are full of admiration and praise for revolutionaries, devotees, and martyrs. He calls for following martyrs and resisting enemies to reach freedom and equality. He calls for defeating the occupiers and resisting colonial powers. In this study, we intend to examine the manifestations of resistance literature.     Key words: Contemporary Arabic literature- Resistance literature- Political literature- Mozafor Al Nawwab   �

Review: Maize research and production in Nigeria | Iken | African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Maize (Zea mays) is a major important cereal being cultivated in the rainforest and the derived Savannah zones of Nigeria. Land races, improved high yielding and pest and diseases resistant varieties of maize have been developed. Key words: Maize, Zea mays, Nigeria. African Journal of Biotechnology Vol.3(6) 2004: 302- ...

Management of treatment resistant schizophrenia | Jones | African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Whilst gains have been made in recent years in the pharmacological treatment of schizophrenia, a number of patients still have residual symptoms and disabilities, or simply do not show response to antipsychotic medications. For such 'treatment resistant' patients, there is little by way of randomised controlled data to ...

e-Readiness in South African Higher Education: A Delphi study

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Pillay, K

2017-09-01

Full Text Available to use others. From review of existing literature, it is unclear as to which factors are regarded as important to be "e-Ready" in the South African Higher education context. In order to address this problem, a research project with the following...

African traditional widowhood rites and their benefits and/or detrimental effects on widows in a context of African Christianity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matsobane Manala

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Traditional Africans teach ubuntu principles of communality, mutual respect, caring and so forth, but they do not walk the talk with regard to the treatment of widows. In the footsteps of Jesus of Nazareth, Christian communities preach unconditional love, especially for the poor, marginalised and vulnerable. Implementation is, however, grossly lacking in respect of the treatment of widows. There is thus an apparent deliberate uncaring, disrespectful, discriminatory, impolite and unjust treatment of widows in African communities in spite of the ubuntu values and Christian teaching that emphasise love and caring, especially towards the grieving and thus vulnerable widows. Widows seem to be neglected and even oppressed in our time. The aim of this research is to critically examine African traditional widowhood rites and practices with special reference to the comfort or pain to which they subject African widows. The research further aims to examine the behaviour of some African Christians belonging to three congregations of one mainline church to determine whether their treatment of widows resonates with Jesus’ teaching regarding the requisite care of widows. The issue of widowhood in Africa, in terms of the apparent plight of these bereaved and grieving women, needs to be urgently addressed for change in the 21st century. A critical literature study of relevant sources and a newspaper article will be used for this research. My personal experiences and continuing observation as an insider will also inform the research in useful ways.

Biogas technology research in selected sub-Saharan African countries

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This reviews aims to provide an insight and update of the state of biogas technology research in some selected sub-Saharan African countries in peer reviewed literature. This paper also aims to highlight the sub-Saharan countries' strengths and weaknesses in biogas research and development capacity. An attempt is ...

Nasal cavity of the farmed african catfish Clarias gariepinus ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The nasal cavity microanatomy of farmed fingerlings of African catfish, Clarias gariepunus was investigated to fill existing knowledge gap on its histology from available literatures. This becomes very important as no gustatory cell was reported from previous researches on the fingerling digestive tract. A slice of nasal cavity of ...

The relationship of self-esteem and risky sexual behaviors in young African-American women.

Science.gov (United States)

Pittiglio, Laura; Jackson, Frances; Florio, Ann

2012-07-01

In the United States, African-American women are at disproportionate risk for contracting human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and face the most profound burden of HIV infection. Reducing the risk of exposure to HIV in African-American women is a priority for health-care providers. The findings of this study add to the existing literature by examining the relationship of self-esteem and risky sexual behaviors in young African-American women. Lack of self-esteem was one of the themes that emerged from a larger study that investigated how African-American women define HIV-risky behavior. In the current study, quantitative and qualitative data were collected from a convenience sample of 33 African-American women (N = 33) from three metropolitan regions within Michigan. Findings highlight the importance of understanding the relationship between self-esteem and its implications for HIV/sexually transmitted disease (STD) prevention.

Between freedom and self-subjection: the dilemma of writing in an African language

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N. Maake

2006-07-01

Full Text Available This article is an analysis of the dilemmas that confront an author who chooses to write in an African language. (Language choice remains a particularly vexing issue in African literature. On the one hand a language that he is a master of gives him the freedom to assert himself and oppose the imperial way of thinking, which is liberating. On the other hand choice of language confines his work to a specific audience and a particular set of literary canons. Sometimes certain influential gatekeepers overtly prescribe boundaries and limit the possibilities of transcending them. On the other hand, as a case study of Sesotho literature shows, the literature itself manifests generic and thematic propensities that limit the freedom of literary expression. From the subjective and privileged position of being a writer in Sesotho himself the author in the end makes a number of suggestions on how to overcome this stifling status quo.

Peripheral insulin resistance rather than beta cell dysfunction accounts for geographical differences in impaired fasting blood glucose among sub-Saharan African individuals: findings from the RODAM study.

Science.gov (United States)

Meeks, Karlijn A C; Stronks, Karien; Adeyemo, Adebowale; Addo, Juliet; Bahendeka, Silver; Beune, Erik; Owusu-Dabo, Ellis; Danquah, Ina; Galbete, Cecilia; Henneman, Peter; Klipstein-Grobusch, Kerstin; Mockenhaupt, Frank P; Osei, Kwame; Schulze, Matthias B; Spranger, Joachim; Smeeth, Liam; Agyemang, Charles

2017-05-01

The aim of this study was to assess the extent to which insulin resistance and beta cell dysfunction account for differences in impaired fasting blood glucose (IFBG) levels in sub-Saharan African individuals living in different locations in Europe and Africa. We also aimed to identify determinants associated with insulin resistance and beta cell dysfunction among this population. Data from the cross-sectional multicentre Research on Obesity and Diabetes among African Migrants (RODAM) study were analysed. Participants included Ghanaian individuals without diabetes, aged 18-96 years old, who were residing in Amsterdam (n = 1337), Berlin (n = 502), London (n = 961), urban Ghana (n = 1309) and rural Ghana (n = 970). Glucose and insulin were measured in fasting venous blood samples. Anthropometrics were assessed during a physical examination. Questionnaires were used to assess demographics, physical activity, smoking status, alcohol consumption and energy intake. Insulin resistance and beta cell function were determined using homeostatic modelling (HOMA-IR and HOMA-B, respectively). Logistic regression analysis was used to study the contribution of HOMA-IR and inverse HOMA-B (beta cell dysfunction) to geographical differences in IFBG (fasting glucose 5.6-6.9 mmol/l). Multivariate linear regression analysis was used to identify determinants associated with HOMA-IR and inverse HOMA-B. IFBG was more common in individuals residing in urban Ghana (OR 1.41 [95% CI 1.08, 1.84]), Amsterdam (OR 3.44 [95% CI 2.69, 4.39]) and London (OR 1.58 [95% CI 1.20 2.08), but similar in individuals living in Berlin (OR 1.00 [95% CI 0.70, 1.45]), compared with those in rural Ghana (reference population). The attributable risk of IFBG per 1 SD increase in HOMA-IR was 69.3% and in inverse HOMA-B was 11.1%. After adjustment for HOMA-IR, the odds for IFBG reduced to 0.96 (95% CI 0.72, 1.27), 2.52 (95%CI 1.94, 3.26) and 1.02 (95% CI 0.78, 1.38) for individuals in Urban Ghana

Histórias de resistência de mulheres negras Resistance stories of African-Brazilian women

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Stela Nazareth Meneghel

2005-12-01

Full Text Available Esta é uma pesquisa intervenção na qual foram usadas oficinas de narrativas de histórias como dispositivo para estimular o empoderamento de mulheres. Essas oficinas, que contaram com a participação de dez mulheres em situação de violência de gênero, foram realizadas na sede da organização não-governamental Maria Mulher, situada na Vila Cruzeiro do Sul, no município de Porto Alegre. A partir de oficinas de narrativas de histórias em que se tematizaram histórias do feminino, especialmente afro-brasileiras, a pesquisa teve como objetivo principal compreender o que acontece com as mulheres que sofreram ou sofrem violência. Realizadas em cinco encontros nos quais as mulheres contaram e ouviram histórias e participaram de vivências, as oficinas oportunizaram espaço para narrar, ouvir e ritualizar as histórias das orixás e ressignificar as vidas a partir dessas vivências. Essa intervenção operou com as subjetividades das mulheres que fizeram parte da pesquisa e mostrou-se capaz de fortalecer algumas delas. A experiência constituiu um dispositivo de estímulo ao empoderamento das mulheres e contribuiu para o resgate da memória individual e coletiva desse grupo.This study consists of an intervention using narrative workshops as a device to stimulate the empowerment of women. Ten women, victims of gender violence, took part in a workshop developed by non-governmental organization for African-Brazilian women Maria Mulher, which gives assistance to women living in Vila Cruzeiro do Sul, in the city of Porto Alegre. The main objective of the research was to debate questions related to gender and violence, making use of stories and histories related to the feminine, specifically African-Brazilian stories. Five meetings were held, where the women told and were told stories, took part in group discussions, experiences and rituals. The workshops gave those women a space where they could tell and hear stories, take part in the rituals of

Primary familial hypercholesterolaemia in a South African black. A case report

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Wingerden, J. J.

1981-01-01

A case of familial hypercholesterolaemia is presented. This is to the best of our knowledge the first report of such a case in a South African black. The modes of presentation and inheritance are discussed and the relevant literature is reviewed

PREVALENCE OF BENIGN PROSTATIC HYPERPLASIA AND PROSTATE CANCER IN AFRICANS AND AFRICANS IN THE DIASPORA.

Science.gov (United States)

Yeboah, E D

2016-01-01

There have been several publications on population or community prevalence of benign prostatic hyperplasia and prostate cancer from various countries and races but few reports are from Africa on Africans. A review on the prevalence of benign prostatic hyperplasia and prostate cancer in Africans and other races. The current literature on prevalence of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), prostate cancer (PC), and benign prostatic hyperplasia co-existing with prostate cancer in Africans and other races is reviewed. Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) prevalence in Ghana is responsible for 60% acute retention of urine and 28.6% of haematuria. Worldwide prevalence of BPH varies from 20 - 62% in men over 50 years and this includes USA, UK, Japan and Ghana. Reports from South Africa indicate prevalence of over 50% in adult males of 60 years. BPH co-existing with PC - Reports from USA, UK and Japan and Ghana reveal moderate association of BPH and PC. The co-existence of PC in patients being treated for BPH is 3 - 20% Prostate Cancer prevalence - There is high prevalence in USA, Scandinavian Countries, African Americans (AA) and Caribbean blacks. Ghana, Trinidad & Tobago have reported high prevalence of 6 -10% in men aged 50 years and above but others reported low prevalence in Africans from Africa. The low reporting from Africa of 10 - 40:100,000 is attributable to under reporting, absence of PSA screening/testing, lack of reliable cancer registries and poor medical facilities. Economic Costs of BPH and PC: BPH in the USA national direct costs are estimated at U$4Billion and individual costs of US$1536 annually. In Ghana, individual costs for BPH medications range from US$300 - 550 per year and cost for simple prostatectomy/TURP is estimated at US$1100. For prostate cancer, individual direct costs from Europe range from 6,575 - 12,000 euros, £2818.00 UK and over U$12,000 - 20,000 in USA per annum. In Ghana, individual direct costs ranges, for radical prostatectomy and

Nurses of African descent and career advancement.

Science.gov (United States)

Wesley, Yvonne; Dobal, May T

2009-01-01

The purpose of this article is to evaluate a leadership institute designed to promote career advancement and leadership in administration, education, and research among nurses of African descent. Government reports indicate that Black Americans receive lower quality health care than other racial groups even when insurance and income are equal. Moreover, the literature suggests that less than 10% of practicing professional nurses in America are Black-and of these, less than 1% are in senior executive leadership positions. However, the literature lacks detailed discussion of the effectiveness of leadership programs. This article provides an in-depth look at a leadership institute for Black nurses and outlines the impact of the program.

Bibliography of sandy beaches and sandy beach organisms on the African continent

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Bally, R

1986-01-01

Full Text Available This bibliography covers the literature relating to sandy beaches on the African continent and outlying islands. The bibliography lists biological, chemical, geographical and geological references and covers shallow marine sediments, surf zones off...

Reducing Psychological Resistance to Digital Repositories

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Brian Quinn

2010-06-01

Full Text Available The potential value of digital repositories is dependent on the cooperation of scholars to deposit their work. Although many researchers have been resistant to submitting their work, the literature on digital repositories contains very little research on the psychology of resistance. This article looks at the psychological literature on resistance and explores what its implications might be for reducing the resistance of scholars to submitting their work to digital repositories. Psychologists have devised many potentially useful strategies for reducing resistance that might be used to address the problem; this article examines these strategies and how they might be applied.

The quest for a culture of learning: a South African schools perspective

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F H Weeks

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Within the media and the literature the need is often expressed for the establishment of a culture of learning within South African schools. The contrasting view tends to be one of dysfunctional schools that have come into being, giving rise to significant learner behaviour problems and poor pass rates being encountered in practice. This paper is directed at gaining conceptual clarity as to what is meant by a "culture of learning" and exploring two fundamentally different views as to how such a culture can be nurtured within South African schools. The study is based on a multidisciplinary literature review to gain an understanding of the concept and the theories advocated for bringing about a culture change. A key finding emanating from the study is that the traditional culture management approach advocated in the literature may not be all that effective in practice and that an alternative approach that views "culture of learning" as an emergent phenomenon that has its origins in the social interaction taking place within classrooms, schools and learning communities may be more effective.

Cash flow forecast for South African firms

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Yun Li

2015-06-01

Full Text Available This paper applies models in the extant literature that have been used to forecast operating cash flows to predict the cash flows of South African firms listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. Out-of-sample performance is examined for each model and compared between them. The reported results show that some accrual terms, i.e. depreciation and changes in inventory do not enhance cash flow prediction for the average South African firm in contrast to the reported results of studies in USA and Australia. Inclusion of more explanatory variables does not necessarily improve the models, according to the out-of-sample results. The paper proposes the application of moving average model in panel data, and vector regressive model for multi-period-ahead prediction of cash flows for South Africa firms.

Gender Gaps in Political Participation across Sub-Saharan African Nations

Science.gov (United States)

Coffe, Hilde; Bolzendahl, Catherine

2011-01-01

A substantial literature has studied gender differences in political participation in Western industrialized democracies, but little is known about such gaps in sub-Saharan African nations. Using 2005 Afrobarometer data, this paper presents a systematic investigation of the gender gap in political participation across 18 sub-Saharan African…

Lip histology of the adult farmed African Catfish ( Clarias gariepinus ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The lip histology of the adult farmed African catfish was investigated to fill the knowledge gap in available literature especially those from commercial concrete tanks. This microanatomy is important as the lip is the principal organ involved in prehension. The lip epidermis was lined by stratified squamous epithelium ...

Human Rights and the African Renaissance | Acheampong | African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This article examines the idea of African renaissance in relation to the teaching of human rights in African schools. It explores the connection between the African Renaissance and human rights, and whether there is a specific African concept of human rights. In the light of these discussions, the article sketches a perspective ...

Theatre and social criticism in African literature: socio-cultural ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Since literature is a creative work that mirrors society, Alachi in The Dilemma of Oko, observes aspects of the social, political, cultural and moral degeneration of contemporary society. He presents them in this play with thorough detachment and clinical dispassion. The play presents the image of a society, whose moral order ...

An econometric model of the South African stock market

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E Moolman

2015-01-01

Full Text Available A wealth of literature exists concerning the modelling of stock markets, as well as the examination of the relationshiop between share price and various economic factors, both theoretically and empirically.  However, most studies use data for developed countries in their analyses, while the literature moselling emerging stock markets in general, and the south African stock market in particular, is quite sparse.  This study develops a structural theoretically founded model of the South African stock market that is estimated using co-integration and error-correction techniques. These techniques respectively estimate the long-term equilibrium or intrinsic value of the stock market, and the short-term fluctuations around the quilibrium level. According to the results, share prices are co-integrated with the variables dictated by the expected present value model of asset price determination.  The short-term fluctuations are determined by various factors such as interest rates, a risk premium, the exchange rate, foreign stock market adn other variables.

In chains, yet prophetic! An African liberationist reading of the ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

... Paul's prophetic voice is equally evident in the chapter. From an African liberationist perspective, lessons are therefore drawn from Acts 27 regarding the liberationist prophetic voice of Paul. In the end, this article sees Paul's prophetic voice as an embodiment of both resilience and resistance in the face of imperialism and ...

The present state of Children's Literature in Indigenous African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This effort, it is hoped, will engender the infusion of the spirit of revitalization and rebirth and the eventual language pride into the owners of Igbo language. It is a well known fact that Children's literature provides opportunity of response, appreciation and internalization of one's cultural heritage as well as the nurture, growth ...

The Present State of Children's Literature in Indigenous African

African Journals Online (AJOL)

USER

This work tries to explore the state of children's indigenous literature at both nursery .... short of that is interpreted as illiteracy and a credit pass in the foreign language is an ... Igbos have summarized their scorn of what Igbo stands for by coining the word ... The notable exception was Mazi Mbonu Ojike of blessed memory.

119 Research Article Resistance to European Penetration into Africa ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2017-06-22

Jun 22, 2017 ... Many Africans resisted the imperialist penetration while some people welcomed them at the initial stage but ... slave trade was abolished and replaced by peaceful trade in the ... they started manifesting imperialist designs.

Church-based health programs for mental disorders among African Americans: a review.

Science.gov (United States)

Hankerson, Sidney H; Weissman, Myrna M

2012-03-01

African Americans underutilize traditional mental health services, compared with white Americans. The authors conducted a systematic review of studies involving church-based health promotion programs for mental disorders among African Americans to assess the feasibility of utilizing such programs to address racial disparities in mental health care. A literature review of MEDLINE, PsycINFO, CINAHL, and ATLA Religion databases was conducted to identify articles published between January 1, 1980, and December 31, 2009. Inclusion criteria were as follows: studies were conducted in a church; the primary objective involved assessment, perceptions and attitudes, education, prevention, group support, or treatment for DSM-IV mental disorders or their correlates; number of participants was reported; qualitative or quantitative data were reported; and African Americans were the target population. Of 1,451 studies identified, only eight met inclusion criteria. Five studies focused on substance-related disorders, six were designed to assess the effects of a specific intervention, and six targeted adults. One study focused on depression and was limited by a small sample size of seven participants. Although church-based health promotion programs have been successful in addressing racial disparities for several chronic medical conditions, the literature on such programs for mental disorders is extremely limited. More intensive research is needed to establish the feasibility and acceptability of utilizing church-based health promotion programs as a possible resource for screening and treatment to improve disparities in mental health care for African Americans.

Fighting African Capital Flight: Empirics on Benchmarking Policy Harmonization

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Simplice A. Asongu

2014-06-01

Full Text Available With earthshaking and heartbreaking trends in African capital flight provided by a new database, this paper complements existing literature by answering some key policy questions on the feasibility of and timeframe for policy harmonization in the battle against the economic scourge. The goal of the paper is to study beta-convergence of capital flight across a set of 37 African countries in the period 1980-2010 and to discuss the policy implications. Three main findings are established. (1 African countries with low capital flight rates are catching-up their counterparts with higher rates, implying the feasibility ofpolicy harmonization towards fighting capital flight. (2 Petroleum-exporting and conflict-affected countries significantly play out in absolute and conditional convergences respectively. (3 Regardless of fundamental characteristics, a genuine timeframe for harmonizing policies is within a horizon of 6 to 13 years. Inother words, full (100% convergence within the specifiedhorizon is an indication that policies and regulations can be enforced without distinction of nationality or locality.

Happy Festivus! Parody as playful consumer resistance

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mikkonen, Ilona; Bajde, Domen

2013-01-01

Drawing upon literary theory, play and consumer resistance literature, we conceptualize consumer parodic resistance – a resistant form of play that critically refunctions dominant consumption discourses and marketplace ideologies. We explore parodic resistance empirically by analyzing Festivus, a...

Literature survey of heat transfer and hydraulic resistance of water, carbon dioxide, helium and other fluids at supercritical and near-critical pressures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pioro, I.L.; Duffey, R.B

2003-04-01

This survey consists of 430 references, including 269 Russian publications and 161 Western publications devoted to the problems of heat transfer and hydraulic resistance of a fluid at near-critical and supercritical pressures. The objective of the literature survey is to compile and summarize findings in the area of heat transfer and hydraulic resistance at supercritical pressures for various fluids for the last fifty years published in the open Russian and Western literature. The analysis of the publications showed that the majority of the papers were devoted to the heat transfer of fluids at near-critical and supercritical pressures flowing inside a circular tube. Three major working fluids are involved: water, carbon dioxide, and helium. The main objective of these studies was the development and design of supercritical steam generators for power stations (utilizing water as a working fluid) in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. Carbon dioxide was usually used as the modeling fluid due to lower values of the critical parameters. Helium, and sometimes carbon dioxide, were considered as possible working fluids in some special designs of nuclear reactors. (author)

Prevention strategies for antimicrobial resistance: a systematic review of the literature

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Whitney P Caron

2010-05-01

Full Text Available Whitney P Caron1, Shaker A Mousa1,21The Pharmaceutical Research Institute, Center of Excellence of Infection Prevention (CEIP, Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Albany, NY, USA; 2King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi ArabiaAbstract: Antibiotics offer great benefits by reducing the duration and severity of illnesses and aiding in infection transmission control. With this being said, the inexorable process of antimicrobial drug resistance is to some degree unavoidable. Although drug resistance will likely persist and is to be expected, the overall level can be dramatically decreased with increased attention to antibiotic overuse and the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties of different drug formulations, and the use of proper hygiene and protective barriers. Implementation of such practices as microbial surveillance and prophylaxis has been shown to result in decreased hospital length of stay, health care costs and mortality due to drug-resistant infections. This review will summarize current progress in preventative techniques aimed at reducing the incidence of infection by antimicrobial-resistant bacteria and the emergence and spread of antimicrobial-resistant strains. By employing a variety of prevention strategies, including proper personal hygiene, prescreening for carrier status before hospital admission, disinfection of hospital rooms, and careful monitoring of antimicrobial prescribing, marked progress can be achieved in the control of drug-resistant pathogens, which can translate into more effective antimicrobial therapy.Keywords: infection prevention, antibiotic, personal hygiene, disinfection, microbial surveillance, drug-resistant pathogen

"Fool Me Once, Shame on You; Fool Me Twice, Shame on Me": African American Students' Reclamation of Smartness as Resistance

Science.gov (United States)

Twyman Hoff, Pamela

2016-01-01

In African American culture competing value systems shape the definition and value of smartness. This article will explore African American "sayins" as a tool to transmit the counter-hegemonic cultural value of smartness. "Sayins," a facet of the African American oral tradition, are drawn from the deep structures of African…

Shifts in Mycobacterial Populations and Emerging Drug-Resistance in West and Central Africa.

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Florian Gehre

Full Text Available In this study, we retrospectively analysed a total of 605 clinical isolates from six West or Central African countries (Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Guinea-Conakry, Niger and Senegal. Besides spoligotyping to assign isolates to ancient and modern mycobacterial lineages, we conducted phenotypic drug-susceptibility-testing for each isolate for the four first-line drugs. We showed that phylogenetically modern Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains are more likely associated with drug resistance than ancient strains and predict that the currently ongoing replacement of the endemic ancient by a modern mycobacterial population in West/Central Africa might result in increased drug resistance in the sub-region.

The relationship between environment, efficacy beliefs, and academic achievement of low-income African American children in special education.

Science.gov (United States)

Bean, Kristen F; Sidora-Arcoleo, Kimberly

2012-01-01

African American students are overrepresented in special education. Ecological systems theory, social cognitive theory, and a literature review demonstrate that children's environments, particularly school, and self-efficacy impact the educational outcomes of African American children. Interventions have aimed to improve children's environmental resources and efficacy. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of environment, efficacy beliefs, and the Nurse-Family Partnership intervention on the educational achievements of African American children in special education. A secondary data analysis of 126 African American children in special education found that self-efficacy and the number of hours spent in special education were associated with their academic achievement.

Work Characteristics and Fathers' Vocabulary to Infants in African American Families

Science.gov (United States)

Pancsofar, Nadya; Vernon-Feagans, Lynne; Odom, Erika C.

2013-01-01

Fathers' vocabulary to infants has been linked in the literature to early child language development, however, little is known about the variability in fathers' language behavior. This study considered associations between fathers' work characteristics and fathers' vocabulary among a sample of employed African American fathers of 6-month-old…

African American Race and Prevalence of Atrial Fibrillation:A Meta-Analysis

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Marlow B. Hernandez

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Background. It has been observed that African American race is associated with a lower prevalence of atrial fibrillation (AF compared to Caucasian race. To better quantify the association between African American race and AF, we performed a meta-analysis of published studies among different patient populations which reported the presence of AF by race. Methods. A literature search was conducted using electronic databases between January 1999 and January 2011. The search was limited to published studies in English conducted in the United States, which clearly defined the presence of AF in African American and Caucasian subjects. A meta-analysis was performed with prevalence of AF as the primary endpoint. Results. In total, 10 studies involving 1,031,351 subjects were included. According to a random effects analysis, African American race was associated with a protective effect with regard to AF as compared to Caucasian race (odds ratio 0.51, 95% CI 0.44 to 0.59, <0.001. In subgroup analyses, African American race was significantly associated with a lower prevalence of AF in the general population, those hospitalized or greater than 60 years old, postcoronary artery bypass surgery patients, and subjects with heart failure. Conclusions. In a broad sweep of subjects in the general population and hospitalized patients, the prevalence of AF in African Americans is consistently lower than in Caucasians.

Pastoral care to or with sex-starved pregnant women in an African context

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Magezi E. Baloyi

2013-09-01

Full Text Available The aim of this article is to highlight some African women’s problematic sex life, even in their married lives, as a result of prescribed and lengthy periods of abstinence from sex – especially during pregnancy. Literature studies, especially on Yoruba sexual practices, showed that forced abstinence from sexual activity during pregnancy is rife and that many women seem content with the situation, probably as a result of their internalisation of patriarchal beliefs and values, prescribed as a means of socialisation. This phenomenon of abstinence from sexual intercourse during pregnancy by the women in some African societies is the focus of the study. The article examined the following: views of sex amongst Black African people, medical views of sex and views of sex in Christian tradition. Also examined at length was the phenomenon of abstinence from sex in an African context. The findings led to a critical evaluation of the phenomenon and a search for pastoral guidelines that could facilitate transformation, intimacy and committed sexual life in African families.

A resistance locus in the American heirloom rice variety Carolina Gold Select is triggered by TAL effectors with diverse predicted targets and is effective against African strains of Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzicola.

Science.gov (United States)

Triplett, Lindsay R; Cohen, Stephen P; Heffelfinger, Christopher; Schmidt, Clarice L; Huerta, Alejandra I; Tekete, Cheick; Verdier, Valerie; Bogdanove, Adam J; Leach, Jan E

2016-09-01

The rice pathogens Xanthomonas oryzae pathovar (pv.) oryzae and pv. oryzicola produce numerous transcription activator-like (TAL) effectors that increase bacterial virulence by activating expression of host susceptibility genes. Rice resistance mechanisms against TAL effectors include polymorphisms that prevent effector binding to susceptibility gene promoters, or that allow effector activation of resistance genes. This study identifies, in the heirloom variety Carolina Gold Select, a third mechanism of rice resistance involving TAL effectors. This resistance manifests through strong suppression of disease development in response to diverse TAL effectors from both X. oryzae pathovars. The resistance can be triggered by an effector with only 3.5 central repeats, is independent of the composition of the repeat variable di-residues that determine TAL effector binding specificity, and is independent of the transcriptional activation domain. We determined that the resistance is conferred by a single dominant locus, designated Xo1, that maps to a 1.09 Mbp fragment on chromosome 4. The Xo1 interval also confers complete resistance to the strains in the African clade of X. oryzae pv. oryzicola, representing the first dominant resistance locus against bacterial leaf streak in rice. The strong phenotypic similarity between the TAL effector-triggered resistance conferred by Xo1 and that conferred by the tomato resistance gene Bs4 suggests that monocots and dicots share an ancient or convergently evolved mechanism to recognize analogous TAL effector epitopes. © 2016 The Authors The Plant Journal © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Homophobia and Sexuality Diversity in South African Schools: A Review

Science.gov (United States)

Francis, Dennis A.

2017-01-01

Post-apartheid, there has been an increase in research on issues of gender and sexuality diversity in South African schools. To build upon and advance gender and sexuality diversity studies, I conducted a review of the literature that addresses how lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youth experience schooling and how schools, if at…

Embodied resistance to persuasion in advertising

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lewinski, Peter; Fransen, Marieke L.; Tan, Ed

2016-01-01

expression in resisting persuasion is so far underexplored. This is a surprising observation if one considers that at least 40% of advertisements use positive emotions (i.e., happiness) to persuade people to like the ad, brand, and product (Weinberger et al., 1995). In this article we present a framework......From the literature on resistance to persuasion in advertising, much is known about how people can resist advertising by adopting resistance strategies, such as avoidance, counter-arguing, and selective attention (e.g., Fransen et al., 2015b). However, the role of emotion regulation and bodily...... in which we apply previous knowledge and theories on emotion regulation and embodiment to the process of resistance to persuasion. In doing so, we specifically address the role of facial expression in the course of resistance. The literature and findings from our own research lead us to propose that people...

Problematizing the concept ‘epistemological access’: A review of literature

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Lucinda du Plooy

2014-07-01

Full Text Available This paper provides a review of literature which aims at problematizing the concept ‘epistemological access”, a fairly under-researched topic in South African education. Morrow’s distinction between formal access (institutional access and epistemological access (access to the goods distributed by the institution is used as a conceptual framework. We argue that the meaning of the concept ‘epistemological access’ as Morrow intended was borne out of a particular political need that arose in higher education; the need to democratize access to higher education. The dearth of literature on the concept “epistemological access” and its meaning for access to basic education, especially foundation phase schooling, therefore warranted this literature review.

Investment decisions in the South African saddle horse industry / Johannes Hendrik Dreyer

OpenAIRE

Dreyer, Johannes Hendrik

2014-01-01

This study originated in the phenomenon that has been observed in the South African Saddle Horse Industry of substantial investments being made over time in the absence of obvious financial or economic reward. A literature study confirmed that, internationally, investment without obvious financial and economic rewards is not unknown and at the same time it was obvious that it is a rarely studied subject. From the literature study it was also evident that this phenomenon occurs ...

Why do We Need ‘Myth-Busting’ in the Study of Sino-African Relations?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hirono, Miwa; Suzuki, Shogo

2014-01-01

The literature on Sino-African relations has debated whether or not China’s growing presence is a threat to Western or African interests, and has come to the conclusion that China’s behavior is not particularly unique. Many countries, including Western liberal democracies, similarly give aid...... exclusive concern with the idea of a China threat; second, Eurocentrism in IR has led to the view that non-European/Western powers are different entities that would somehow threaten the moral fabric of the international order....

Resistance Manifestations in Mozafar Al Nawwab’s Poems

OpenAIRE

ناصر تابع جابری

2012-01-01

Resistance Manifestations in Mozafar Al Nawwab’s Poems       * Hasan Dadkhah   Naser Tabe` Jabery **       Abstract     A mixture of political views and resistance literature is so visible in the poems of some contemporary Arab poets that they are known as resistance poets. Mozafar Al Nawwab, the contemporary Iraqi poet, is one of them. Nawwab grew up in a noble and gentle Shia family in Iraq. From his family, he inherited an interest in literature and music and also political views to resist...

Acculturation and psychosocial stress show differential relationships to insulin resistance (HOMA) and body fat distribution in two groups of blacks living in the US Virgin Islands.

Science.gov (United States)

Tull, Eugene S.; Thurland, Anne; LaPorte, Ronald E.; Chambers, Earle C.

2003-01-01

The objective of this study was to determine whether acculturation and psychosocial stress exert differential effects on body fat distribution and insulin resistance among native-born African Americans and African-Caribbean immigrants living in the US Virgin Islands (USVI). Data collected from a non-diabetic sample of 183 USVI-born African Americans and 296 African-Caribbean immigrants age > 20 on the island of St. Croix, USVI were studied. Information on demographic characteristics, acculturation and psychosocial stress was collected by questionnaire. Anthropometric measurements were taken, and serum glucose and insulin were measured from fasting blood samples. Insulin resistance was estimated by the homeostasis model assessment (HOMA) method. The results showed that in multivariate regression analyses, controlling for age, education, gender, BMI, waist circumference, family history of diabetes, smoking and alcohol consumption, acculturation was independently related to logarithm of HOMA (InHOMA) scores among USVI-born African Americans, but not among African-Caribbean immigrants. In contrast, among USVI-born African Americans psychosocial stress was not significantly related to InHOMA, while among African-Caribbean immigrants psychosocial stress was independently related to InHOMA in models that included BMI, but not in those which included waist circumference. This study suggests that acculturation and psychosocial stress may have a differential effect on body fat distribution and insulin resistance among native-born and immigrant blacks living in the US Virgin Islands. PMID:12911254

The African Diaspora, Civil Society and African Integration

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Opoku-Mensah, Paul Yaw

This paper, a work-in-progress, makes a contribution to the discussions on the appropriate modalities for incorporating the African diaspora in the African integration project.  It argues that the most appropriate entry points for incorporating the African diaspora into the integration project...... might not, necessarily, be in the formal political structures, although this is important. To the contrary, the most effective and sustainable might be within civil society---that is the links between the peoples and organizations of Africa and the diaspora. Using the case of the African academy......-- as an institution of civil society--- the paper outlines a conceptual framework for incorporating the diaspora into the African integration project....

A Systematic Review of Literature on Culturally Adapted Obesity Prevention Interventions for African American Youth

Science.gov (United States)

Lofton, Saria; Julion, Wrenetha A.; McNaughton, Diane B.; Bergren, Martha Dewey; Keim, Kathryn S.

2016-01-01

Obesity and overweight prevalence in African American (AA) youth continues to be one of the highest of all major ethnic groups, which has led researchers to pursue culturally based approaches as a means to improve obesity prevention interventions. The purpose of this systematic review was to evaluate culturally adapted obesity prevention…

Engineering insect-resistant crops: A review | George | African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Insect pests cause significant damage to crops world-wide. This is despite integrated pest management strategies combining such control measures as chemical control, use of resistant varieties and other measures. Other control measures such as use of genetically modified crops are being adopted. Transgenic crops ...

Embodied resistance to persuasion in advertising

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lewinski, P.; Fransen, M.L.; Tan, E.S.

From the literature on resistance to persuasion in advertising, much is known about how people can resist advertising by adopting resistance strategies, such as avoidance, counter-arguing, and selective attention (e.g., Fransen et al., 2015b). However, the role of emotion regulation and bodily

Capacity Building for Women in African Countries: A Case Study of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Capacity Building for Women in African Countries: A Case Study of Sierra Leone. ... In the case of women this has further inured from histories of discrimination most of which stems from socio-cultural factors and forces. Ongoing ... The paper is informed by conceptual analysis of existing literature and official documentation.

Molecular mechanisms of insulin resistance | Pillay | South African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This review discusses recent advances in understanding of the structure and function of the insulin receptor and insulin action, and how these relate to the clinical aspects of insulin resistance associated with non-insulin-dependent diabetes and other disorders. Improved understanding of the molecular basis of insulin ...

The process of subjectivation as a site of resistance – for the privileged

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bojsen, Heidi

2011-01-01

Hampâté Bâ (1900-1991) and a discussion with Kussum Aggarwal’s analysis of significant moments in the history of French Africanism, the paper argues that the works of Hampâté Bâ constitute an early example of a subtle but important discursive and epistemological resistance by describing the complexities...... of African processes of subjectivation during the French colonial period in West Africa....

Accounting for youth audiences' resistances to HIV and AIDS messages in the television drama Tsha Tsha in South Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

Makwambeni, Blessing; Salawu, Abiodun

2018-12-01

Theoretical debates and literature on E-E efforts in Africa have largely focussed on understanding how and why interventions on HIV and AIDS are effective in influencing behaviour change among target communities. Very few studies have sought to investigate and understand why a substantial number of targeted audiences resist the preferred readings that are encoded into E-E interventions on HIV and AIDS. Using cultural studies as its conceptual framework and reception analysis as its methodology, this study investigated and accounted for the oppositional readings that subaltern black South African youths negotiate from Tsha Tsha, an E-E television drama on HIV and AIDS in South Africa. Results from the study show that HIV and AIDS messages in Tsha Tsha face substantial resistances from situated youth viewers whose social contexts of consumption, shared identities, quotidian experiences and subjectivities, provide critical lines along which the E-E text is often resisted and inflected. These findings do not only hold several implications for E-E practice and research, they further reflect the utility of articulating cultural studies and reception analysis into a more nuanced theoretical and methodological framework for evaluating the 'impact' of E-E interventions on HIV and AIDS.

Barriers to Physical Activity Among African American Women: An Integrative Review of the Literature

OpenAIRE

Joseph, Rodney P.; Ainsworth, Barbara E.; Keller, Colleen; Dodgson, Joan E

2015-01-01

A key aspect for researchers to consider when developing culturally appropriate physical activity (PA) interventions for African American (AA) women are the specific barriers AA women face that limit their participation in PA. Identification and critical examination of these barriers is the first step in developing comprehensive culturally relevant approaches to promote PA and help resolve PA-related health disparities in this underserved population. We conducted a systemati...

Masticatory form and function in the African apes.

Science.gov (United States)

Taylor, Andrea B

2002-02-01

This study examines variability in masticatory morphology as a function of dietary preference among the African apes. The African apes differ in the degree to which they consume leaves and other fibrous vegetation. Gorilla gorilla beringei, the eastern mountain gorilla, consumes the most restricted diet comprised of mechanically resistant foods such as leaves, pith, bark, and bamboo. Gorilla gorilla gorilla, the western lowland gorilla subspecies, consumes leaves and other terrestrial herbaceous vegetation (THV) but also consumes a fair amount of ripe, fleshy fruit. In contrast to gorillas, chimpanzees are frugivores and rely on vegetation primarily as fallback foods. However, there has been a long-standing debate regarding whether Pan paniscus, the pygmy chimpanzee (or bonobo), consumes greater quantities of THV as compared to Pan troglodytes, the common chimpanzee. Because consumption of resistant foods involves more daily chewing cycles and may require larger average bite force, the mechanical demands placed on the masticatory system are expected to be greater in folivores as compared to primates that consume large quantities of fleshy fruit. Therefore, more folivorous taxa are predicted to exhibit features that improve load-resistance capabilities and increase force production. To test this hypothesis, jaw and skull dimensions were compared in ontogenetic series of G. g. beringei, G. g. gorilla, P. t. troglodytes, and P. paniscus. Controlling for the influence of allometry, results show that compared to both chimpanzees and bonobos, gorillas exhibit some features of the jaw complex that are suggestive of improved masticatory efficiency. For example, compared to all other taxa, G. g. beringei has a significantly wider mandibular corpus and symphysis, larger area for the masseter muscle, higher mandibular ramus, and higher mandibular condyle relative to the occlusal plane of the mandible. However, the significantly wider mandibular symphysis may be an

African American Parent Involvement in Special Education: Perceptions, Practice, and Placement

Science.gov (United States)

Thompson, Pamela W.

2014-01-01

The disproportional representation of Black students in special education has been an issue of concern for many years in the United States. A review of the literature illustrates the struggle of African American children in the American educational system: from the Civil Rights Movement and desegregation to the re-segregation of these same…

Resistance in Everyday Life

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

This book is about resistance in everyday life, illustrated through empirical contexts from different parts of the world. Resistance is a widespread phenomenon in biological, social and psychological domains of human cultural development. Yet, it is not well articulated in the academic literature....... The contributors deal with strategies for handling dissent by individuals or groups, specifically dissent through resistance. Resistance can be a location of intense personal, interpersonal and cultural negotiation, and that is the primary reason for interest in this phenomenon. Ordinary life events contain...

Towards an indigenous African bioethics | Behrens | South African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

One way is for African bioethicists to begin to apply indigenous African philosophy, thought and values to ethical issues. This project is important (i) to restore dignity; (ii) because a bioethics grounded in indigenous ideas is more likely to be accepted by Africans; and (iii) because such ideas can enrich bioethical discourse.

Social Justice and Resilience for African American Male Counselor Educators: A Phenomenological Study

Science.gov (United States)

Dollarhide, Colette T.; Mayes, Renae D.; Dogan, Sabri; Aras, Yahyahan; Edwards, Kaden; Oehrtman, J. P.; Clevenger, Adam

2018-01-01

In this phenomenological study, the authors interviewed 4 African American male counselor educators about their social justice efforts. Resulting themes were lifelong commitment to social justice, reaction to resistance, professional and personal support, and the meaning of social justice work. Findings suggest that social justice work can…

Marriage Expectations among African American Couples in Early Adulthood: A Dyadic Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Barr, Ashley B.; Simons, Ronald L.

2012-01-01

Using Family and Community Health Study data consisting of 168 unmarried, primarily African American couples, the current study sought to understand the dyadic interplay among school, work, and partner-specific marriage expectations in early adulthood. Drawing on the economic prospects, adult transitions, and work-family literatures, the authors…

A Meta-Analysis of Resistance Training in Female Youth: Its Effect on Muscular Strength, and Shortcomings in the Literature.

Science.gov (United States)

Moran, Jason; Sandercock, Gavin; Ramirez-Campillo, Rodrigo; Clark, Cain C T; Fernandes, John F T; Drury, Benjamin

2018-07-01

Resistance training is an effective way to enhance strength in female youth but, to date, no researcher has meta-analysed its effect on muscular strength in that population. This meta-analysis characterised female youths' adaptability to resistance training (RT). A second objective was to highlight the limitations of the body of literature with a view to informing future research. Google Scholar, PubMed, Web of Science. Resistance training interventions in healthy females with a mean age between 8 and 18 years. Programmes of between 4 and 16 weeks' duration that included a control group. The inverse-variance random effects model for meta-analyses was used because it allocates a proportionate weight to trials based on the size of their individual standard errors and facilitates analysis whilst accounting for heterogeneity across studies. Effect sizes, calculated from a measure of muscular strength, are represented by the standardised mean difference and are presented alongside 95% confidence intervals. The magnitude of the main effect was 'small' (0.54, 95% confidence interval: 0.23-0.85). Effect sizes were larger in older (> 15 years; ES = 0.72 [0.23-1.21] vs. 0.38 [- 0.02-0.79]), taller (> 163 cm; ES = 0.67 [0.20-1.13] vs. 0.55 [0.08-1.02]) and heavier (< 54 kg; ES = 0.67 [0.30-1.03] vs. 0.53 [- 0.00-1.06]) participants. Resistance training is effective in female youth. These findings can be used to inform the prescription of RT in female youth.

The Umbilical Artery Resistive Index and the Cerebro-Placental ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The Umbilical Artery Resistive Index and the Cerebro-Placental Ratio as a Predictor of Adverse Foetal Outcome in Patients with Hypertensive Disorders of ... East and Central African Journal of Surgery ... Background: Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy causes adverse effects both the maternal and faetal circulations.

Do the majority of South Africans regularly consult traditional healers?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gabriel Louw

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Background The statutory recognition of traditional healers as healthcare practitioners in South Africa in terms of the Traditional Health Practitioners Act 22 of 2007 is based on various assumptions, opinions and generalizations. One of the prominent views is that the majority of South Africans regularly consult traditional healers. It even has been alleged that this number can be as high as 80 per cent of the South African population. For medical doctors and other health practitioners registered with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA, this new statutory status of traditional health practitioners, means the required presence of not only a healthcare competitor that can overstock the healthcare market with service lending, medical claims and healthcare costs, but also a competitor prone to malpractice. Aims The study aimed to determine if the majority of South Africans regularly consult traditional healers. Methods This is an exploratory and descriptive study following the modern historical approach of investigation and literature review. The emphasis is on using current documentation like articles, books and newspapers, as primary sources to determine if the majority of South Africans regularly consult traditional healers. The findings are offered in narrative form. Results It is clear that there is no trustworthy statistics on the percentages of South Africans using traditional healers. A scientific survey is needed to determine the extent to which traditional healers are consulted. This will only be possible after the Traditional Health Practitioners Act No 22 has been fully enacted and traditional health practitioners have become fully active in the healthcare sector. Conclusion In poorer, rural areas no more than 11.2 per cent of the South African population regularly consult traditional healers, while the figure for the total population seems to be no more than 1.4 per cent. The argument that the majority of South

Home Literacy Environment of African American Head Start Children

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Janese Daniels

2012-08-01

Full Text Available Researchers have documented culturally specific family literacy practices in which low-income families engage, which are often a function of the context in which the family is currently embedded.  These practices are well documented in ethnographic literature. Although this evidence exists, its utility is limited due to small sample sizes and lack of quantitative documentation on their contribution to children’s language and literacy development.  This study attempted to quantify those culturally specific family literacy practices.  51 low-income African-American mother-child dyads participated.  The contribution of multiple literacy practices was examined in relation to child language and literacy outcomes.  Most low-income African-American families engaged in multiple literacy practices.  Recommended areas for future research directions are discussed.

Muscle Attenuation Is Associated With Newly Developed Hypertension in Men of African Ancestry.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Qian; Zmuda, Joseph M; Kuipers, Allison L; Bunker, Clareann H; Patrick, Alan L; Youk, Ada O; Miljkovic, Iva

2017-05-01

Increased ectopic adipose tissue infiltration in skeletal muscle is associated with insulin resistance and diabetes mellitus. We evaluated whether change in skeletal muscle adiposity predicts subsequent development of hypertension in men of African ancestry, a population sample understudied in previous studies. In the Tobago Health Study, a prospective longitudinal study among men of African ancestry (age range 40-91 years), calf intermuscular adipose tissue, and skeletal muscle attenuation were measured with computed tomography. Hypertension was defined as a systolic blood pressure ≥140 mm Hg, or a diastolic blood pressure ≥90 mm Hg, or receiving antihypertensive medications. Logistic regression was performed with adjustment for age, insulin resistance, baseline and 6-year change in body mass index, baseline and 6-year change in waist circumference, and other potential confounding factors. Among 746 normotensive men at baseline, 321 (43%) developed hypertension during the mean 6.2 years of follow-up. Decreased skeletal muscle attenuation was associated with newly developed hypertension after adjustment for baseline and 6-year change of body mass index (odds ratio [95% confidence interval] per SD, 1.3 [1.0-1.6]) or baseline and 6-year change of waist circumference (odds ratio [95% confidence interval] per SD, 1.3 [1.0-1.6]). No association was observed between increased intermuscular adipose tissue and hypertension. Our novel findings show that decreased muscle attenuation is associated with newly developed hypertension among men of African ancestry, independent of general and central adiposity and insulin resistance. Further studies are needed to adjust for inflammation, visceral and other ectopic adipose tissue depots, and to confirm our findings in other population samples. © 2017 American Heart Association, Inc.

The Genetic Structure and History of Africans and African Americans

Science.gov (United States)

Tishkoff, Sarah A.; Reed, Floyd A.; Friedlaender, Françoise R.; Ehret, Christopher; Ranciaro, Alessia; Froment, Alain; Hirbo, Jibril B.; Awomoyi, Agnes A.; Bodo, Jean-Marie; Doumbo, Ogobara; Ibrahim, Muntaser; Juma, Abdalla T.; Kotze, Maritha J.; Lema, Godfrey; Moore, Jason H.; Mortensen, Holly; Nyambo, Thomas B.; Omar, Sabah A.; Powell, Kweli; Pretorius, Gideon S.; Smith, Michael W.; Thera, Mahamadou A.; Wambebe, Charles; Weber, James L.; Williams, Scott M.

2010-01-01

Africa is the source of all modern humans, but characterization of genetic variation and of relationships among populations across the continent has been enigmatic. We studied 121 African populations, four African American populations, and 60 non-African populations for patterns of variation at 1327 nuclear microsatellite and insertion/deletion markers. We identified 14 ancestral population clusters in Africa that correlate with self-described ethnicity and shared cultural and/or linguistic properties. We observed high levels of mixed ancestry in most populations, reflecting historical migration events across the continent. Our data also provide evidence for shared ancestry among geographically diverse hunter-gatherer populations (Khoesan speakers and Pygmies). The ancestry of African Americans is predominantly from Niger-Kordofanian (~71%), European (~13%), and other African (~8%) populations, although admixture levels varied considerably among individuals. This study helps tease apart the complex evolutionary history of Africans and African Americans, aiding both anthropological and genetic epidemiologic studies. PMID:19407144

Recent Advances in Drug Discovery from South African Marine Invertebrates

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael T. Davies-Coleman

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Recent developments in marine drug discovery from three South African marine invertebrates, the tube worm Cephalodiscus gilchristi, the ascidian Lissoclinum sp. and the sponge Topsentia pachastrelloides, are presented. Recent reports of the bioactivity and synthesis of the anti-cancer secondary metabolites cephalostatin and mandelalides (from C. gilchristi and Lissoclinum sp., respectively and various analogues are presented. The threat of drug-resistant pathogens, e.g., methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA, is assuming greater global significance, and medicinal chemistry strategies to exploit the potent MRSA PK inhibition, first revealed by two marine secondary metabolites, cis-3,4-dihydrohamacanthin B and bromodeoxytopsentin from T. pachastrelloides, are compared.

Perceived Discrimination and Binge Eating Disorder; Gender Difference in African Americans

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shervin Assari

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Environmental stressors, such as perceived discrimination (PD, are linked to Binge Eating Disorder (BED. The current study investigated the association between PD and BED among African Americans, and the variation in such an association based on gender. Data of the National Survey of American Life (NSAL, 2001–2003, with a nationally-representative sample of African American adults, were used (n = 3516. The independent variable in the study was PD. The dependent variable was BED, measured using the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI. Socio-demographics (age, education, employment, and marital status were covariates, and gender was the moderator variable. Survey logistic regressions with and without gender × PD interaction terms were used for data analysis. In the pooled sample, PD was associated with higher odds of BED, net of socio-demographic factors. Models also showed a significant gender × PD interaction term suggesting a stronger association between PD and BED for women, compared to men. Gender specific models showed an association between PD and BED among female, but not male, African Americans. Although a link may exist between PD and BED among African Americans, the magnitude of this association depends on gender, with a stronger association among females than males. This finding is in line with the literature that has shown gender-specific consequences of environmental stress for African Americans.

Mycobacterium sherrisii visceral disseminated infection in an African HIV-infected adolescent

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Francesco Santoro

2016-04-01

Full Text Available A case of visceral disseminated infection by Mycobacterium sherrisii in an African HIV-infected adolescent with multiple abdominal abscesses is reported. Despite multiple drug resistance to first-line antibiotics in vitro, long-term treatment with clarithromycin, moxifloxacin, and clindamycin, together with appropriate antiretroviral treatment, resulted in clinical and radiological cure after 19 months of therapy and follow-up.

Discourses of culture and illness in South African mental health care and indigenous healing, Part I: Western psychiatric power.

Science.gov (United States)

Yen, Jeffery; Wilbraham, Lindy

2003-12-01

This discourse analytic study explores constructions of culture and illness in the talk of psychiatrists, psychologists and indigenous healers as they discuss possibilities for collaboration in South African mental health care. Versions of 'culture', and disputes over what constitutes 'disorder', are an important site for the negotiation of power relations between mental health practitioners and indigenous healers. The results of this study are presented in two parts. Part I explores discourses about western psychiatric/psychological professionalism, tensions in diagnosis between cultural relativism and psychiatric universalism, and how assertion of 'cultural differences' may be used to resist psychiatric power. Part II explores how discursive constructions of 'African culture' and 'African madness' work to marginalize indigenous healing in South African mental health care, despite repeated calls for collaboration.

Insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, and lipids in African women

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2016-01-27

Jan 27, 2016 ... high‑density lipoprotein (TG/HDL), total cholesterol (TC)/HDL, and atherogenic index of ... Key words: Insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, triglycerides, women ... been reported that a TG/HDL ratio of >3.0 is predictive of.

Lack of integrase inhibitors associated resistance mutations among HIV-1C isolates.

Science.gov (United States)

Mulu, Andargachew; Maier, Melanie; Liebert, Uwe Gerd

2015-12-01

Although biochemical analysis of HIV-1 integrase enzyme suggested the use of integrase inhibitors (INIs) against HIV-1C, different viral subtypes may favor different mutational pathways potentially leading to varying levels of drug resistance. Thus, the aim of this study was to search for the occurrence and natural evolution of integrase polymorphisms and/or resistance mutations in HIV-1C Ethiopian clinical isolates prior to the introduction of INIs. Plasma samples from chronically infected drug naïve patients (N = 45), of whom the PR and RT sequence was determined previously, were used to generate population based sequences of HIV-1 integrase. HIV-1 subtype was determined using the REGA HIV-1 subtyping tool. Resistance mutations were interpreted according to the Stanford HIV drug resistance database ( http://hivdb.stanford.edu ) and the updated International Antiviral Society (IAS)-USA mutation lists. Moreover, rates of polymorphisms in the current isolates were compared with South African and global HIV-1C isolates. All subjects were infected with HIV-1C concordant to the protease (PR) and reverse transcriptase (RT) regions. Neither major resistance-associated IN mutations (T66I/A/K, E92Q/G, T97A, Y143HCR, S147G, Q148H/R/K, and N155H) nor silent mutations known to change the genetic barrier were observed. Moreover, the DDE-catalytic motif (D64G/D116G/E152 K) and signature HHCC zinc-binding motifs at codon 12, 16, 40 and 43 were found to be highly conserved. However, compared to other South African subtype C isolates, the rate of polymorphism was variable at various positions. Although the sample size is small, the findings suggest that this drug class could be effective in Ethiopia and other southern African countries where HIV-1C is predominantly circulating. The data will contribute to define the importance of integrase polymorphism and to improve resistance interpretation algorithms in HIV-1C isolates.

Association between insulin resistance and plasma amino acid profile in non-diabetic Japanese subjects

OpenAIRE

Yamada, Chizumi; Kondo, Masumi; Kishimoto, Noriaki; Shibata, Takeo; Nagai, Yoko; Imanishi, Tadashi; Oroguchi, Takashige; Ishii, Naoaki; Nishizaki, Yasuhiro

2015-01-01

Aims/Introduction Elevation of the branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), valine, leucine and isoleucine; and the aromatic amino acids, tyrosine and phenylalanine, has been observed in obesity-related insulin resistance. However, there have been few studies on Asians, who are generally less obese and less insulin-resistant than Caucasian or African-Americans. In the present study, we investigated the relationship between homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and plasma ami...

Effects of 16 weeks of aerobic, resistance and combination exercise ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Effects of 16 weeks of aerobic, resistance and combination exercise programmes on smoking. ... African Journal for Physical Activity and Health Sciences ... Abstract. Previous research on the cessation of smoking and the prevention of smoking recidivism using exercise training has mainly focused on aerobic training (AER).

Rajend Mesthrie. A Lexicon of South African Indian English, 1st edition

African Journals Online (AJOL)

with biryani) and the House of Deli-goats (House of Delegates). More positive contributions will emerge from politics, music, arts, culture, literature, diplo- macy and tourism. Moreover, as Mesthrie concedes, "the early history of South. African Indian English has yet to be fully uncovered" (p. xxiii). To this, one could add that a ...

'A little hard piece of grass in your shoe': understanding student ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

In particular, I focus on moments of resistance in a critical reading course using South African literature, exploring the students' difficulties in dealing with the apartheid past. I theorise these moments of resistance in relation to Kress's challenge to the notion of 'critique' and in relation to the feminist post-structuralist theorising ...

African-American males in computer science---Examining the pipeline for clogs

Science.gov (United States)

Stone, Daryl Bryant

The literature on African-American males (AAM) begins with a statement to the effect that "Today young Black men are more likely to be killed or sent to prison than to graduate from college." Why are the numbers of African-American male college graduates decreasing? Why are those enrolled in college not majoring in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines? This research explored why African-American males are not filling the well-recognized industry need for Computer Scientist/Technologists by choosing college tracks to these careers. The literature on STEM disciplines focuses largely on women in STEM, as opposed to minorities, and within minorities, there is a noticeable research gap in addressing the needs and opportunities available to African-American males. The primary goal of this study was therefore to examine the computer science "pipeline" from the African-American male perspective. The method included a "Computer Science Degree Self-Efficacy Scale" be distributed to five groups of African-American male students, to include: (1) fourth graders, (2) eighth graders, (3) eleventh graders, (4) underclass undergraduate computer science majors, and (5) upperclass undergraduate computer science majors. In addition to a 30-question self-efficacy test, subjects from each group were asked to participate in a group discussion about "African-American males in computer science." The audio record of each group meeting provides qualitative data for the study. The hypotheses include the following: (1) There is no significant difference in "Computer Science Degree" self-efficacy between fourth and eighth graders. (2) There is no significant difference in "Computer Science Degree" self-efficacy between eighth and eleventh graders. (3) There is no significant difference in "Computer Science Degree" self-efficacy between eleventh graders and lower-level computer science majors. (4) There is no significant difference in "Computer Science Degree

The impact of mobile phone penetration on African inequality

OpenAIRE

Asongu Simplice

2013-01-01

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to complement theoretical and qualitative literature with empirical evidence on the income-redistributive effect of mobile phone penetration in 52 African countries. Design/methodology/approach – Robust Ordinary Least Squares and Two Stage Least Squares empirical strategies are employed. Findings – The findings suggest that mobile penetration is pro-poor, as it has a positive income equality effect. Social implications – 'Mobile phone'-oriented poverty reduc...

Embodied Resistance to Persuasion in Advertising

Science.gov (United States)

Lewinski, Peter; Fransen, Marieke L.; Tan, Ed S.

2016-01-01

From the literature on resistance to persuasion in advertising, much is known about how people can resist advertising by adopting resistance strategies, such as avoidance, counter-arguing, and selective attention (e.g., Fransen et al., 2015b). However, the role of emotion regulation and bodily expression in resisting persuasion is so far underexplored. This is a surprising observation if one considers that at least 40% of advertisements use positive emotions (i.e., happiness) to persuade people to like the ad, brand, and product (Weinberger et al., 1995). In this article we present a framework in which we apply previous knowledge and theories on emotion regulation and embodiment to the process of resistance to persuasion. In doing so, we specifically address the role of facial expression in the course of resistance. The literature and findings from our own research lead us to propose that people can resist persuasion by controlling their facial expression of emotion when exposed to an advertisement. Controlling the expression of emotions elicited by an ad (for example refusing to smile) might be a fruitful way to resist the ad’s persuasive potential. Moreover, we argue that co-viewers can affect embodied resistance to persuasion. Showing the viability of embodied resistance to persuasion is relevant in view of the fact that ads trying to persuade us by addressing our positive emotions are ubiquitous. Embodied resistance might help people to cope with these induced positive emotions in order to resist advertisements and might therefore work as a novel and effective strategy to resist persuasion. PMID:27574512

Embodied Resistance to Persuasion in Advertising

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter Lewinski

2016-08-01

Full Text Available From the literature on resistance to persuasion in advertising, much is known about how people can resist advertising by adopting resistance strategies, such as avoidance, counter-arguing and selective attention (e.g., Fransen, Verlegh, Kirmani, & Smit, 2015a. However, the role of emotion regulation and bodily expression in resisting persuasion is so far underexplored. This is a surprising observation if one considers that at least 40% of advertisements use positive emotions (i.e., happiness to persuade people to like the ad, brand, and product (Weinberger et al., 1995. In this article we present a framework in which we apply previous knowledge and theories on emotion regulation and embodiment to the process of resistance to persuasion. In doing so, we specifically address the role of facial expression in the course of resistance. Based on the literature and findings largely established in our own research, we propose that people can resist persuasion by controlling their facial expression of emotion when exposed to an advertisement. Controlling the expression of emotions elicited by an ad (for example refusing to smile might be a fruitful way to resist the ad’s persuasive potential. Moreover, we argue that co-viewers can affect embodied resistance to persuasion. Showing the viability of embodied resistance to persuasion is relevant in view of the fact that ads trying to persuade us by addressing our positive emotions are ubiquitous. Embodied resistance might help people to cope with these induced positive emotions in order to resist advertisements and might therefore work as a novel and effective strategy to resist persuasion.

Embodied Resistance to Persuasion in Advertising.

Science.gov (United States)

Lewinski, Peter; Fransen, Marieke L; Tan, Ed S

2016-01-01

From the literature on resistance to persuasion in advertising, much is known about how people can resist advertising by adopting resistance strategies, such as avoidance, counter-arguing, and selective attention (e.g., Fransen et al., 2015b). However, the role of emotion regulation and bodily expression in resisting persuasion is so far underexplored. This is a surprising observation if one considers that at least 40% of advertisements use positive emotions (i.e., happiness) to persuade people to like the ad, brand, and product (Weinberger et al., 1995). In this article we present a framework in which we apply previous knowledge and theories on emotion regulation and embodiment to the process of resistance to persuasion. In doing so, we specifically address the role of facial expression in the course of resistance. The literature and findings from our own research lead us to propose that people can resist persuasion by controlling their facial expression of emotion when exposed to an advertisement. Controlling the expression of emotions elicited by an ad (for example refusing to smile) might be a fruitful way to resist the ad's persuasive potential. Moreover, we argue that co-viewers can affect embodied resistance to persuasion. Showing the viability of embodied resistance to persuasion is relevant in view of the fact that ads trying to persuade us by addressing our positive emotions are ubiquitous. Embodied resistance might help people to cope with these induced positive emotions in order to resist advertisements and might therefore work as a novel and effective strategy to resist persuasion.

Providence-St. Mel School: How a School That Works for African American Students Works

Science.gov (United States)

Pressley, Michael; Raphael, Lisa; Gallagher, J. David; DiBella, Jeanette

2004-01-01

A portrait, using grounded theory qualitative methodologies, was constructed of a K-12 school serving urban, African American students, one producing high achievement. The primary data were observations complemented by questionnaire responses and document analyses. Consistent with conclusions in the effective schooling literature, this school has…

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

It has also been difficult for African researchers to access the work of other African academics. In partnership with hundreds of journals from all over the continent, AJOL works to change this, so that African-origin research output is available to Africans and to the rest of the world. AJOL is ... African Journal of AIDS Research.

Immunizations and African Americans

Science.gov (United States)

... Data > Minority Population Profiles > Black/African American > Immunizations Immunizations and African Americans African American adults are less ... 19 to 35 months had comparable rates of immunization. African American women are as likely to have ...

Accounting for youth audiences’ resistances to HIV and AIDS messages in the television drama Tsha Tsha in South Africa

Science.gov (United States)

Makwambeni, Blessing; Salawu, Abiodun

2018-01-01

Abstract Theoretical debates and literature on E-E efforts in Africa have largely focussed on understanding how and why interventions on HIV and AIDS are effective in influencing behaviour change among target communities. Very few studies have sought to investigate and understand why a substantial number of targeted audiences resist the preferred readings that are encoded into E-E interventions on HIV and AIDS. Using cultural studies as its conceptual framework and reception analysis as its methodology, this study investigated and accounted for the oppositional readings that subaltern black South African youths negotiate from Tsha Tsha, an E-E television drama on HIV and AIDS in South Africa. Results from the study show that HIV and AIDS messages in Tsha Tsha face substantial resistances from situated youth viewers whose social contexts of consumption, shared identities, quotidian experiences and subjectivities, provide critical lines along which the E-E text is often resisted and inflected. These findings do not only hold several implications for E-E practice and research, they further reflect the utility of articulating cultural studies and reception analysis into a more nuanced theoretical and methodological framework for evaluating the ‘impact’ of E-E interventions on HIV and AIDS. PMID:29508641

African Journals: An Evaluation of their Use in African Universities ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The use of African published journals in two African universities was surveyed through the use of questionnaire, interviews, journal usage count and citation analysis. The survey reveals that African published journals are not popular with academics because of lack of bibliographic and physical access. For conclusion to be ...

Community based participatory research of breastfeeding disparities in African American women.

Science.gov (United States)

Kulka, Tamar Ringel; Jensen, Elizabeth; McLaurin, Sue; Woods, Elizabeth; Kotch, Jonathan; Labbok, Miriam; Bowling, Mike; Dardess, Pamela; Baker, Sharon

2011-08-01

OBJECTIVE: Lack of support for breastfeeding mothers has been consistently identified in the literature as a barrier for breastfeeding across racial and ethnic groups. Using a community-based participatory approach, academic and community-based partners conducted an iterative process to assess barriers, facilitators and potential mediating interventions for breastfeeding in the African-American community in Durham, North Carolina. METHODS: Eight focus groups were conducted with African-American mothers, fathers and grandmothers. Researchers transcribed and coded each focus group and analyzed using Atlas ti. 5.2. Patterns and themes that emerged informed the development of community stakeholder interviews; 41 interviews were conducted with community representatives. These findings informed the development of a support group pilot intervention. The pilot support groups were evaluated for increase in knowledge of attendees. RESULTS: Focus group and community interviews indicate that African Americans may disproportionately experience inadequate support for breastfeeding. This lack of support was reported in the home, the workplace, among peers, and from healthcare providers. The pilot support groups resulted in increased knowledge of breastfeeding among group participants OR=3.6 (95% CI: 2.5, 5.2). CONCLUSIONS: The findings from this research underscore the importance of a multi-level approach to breastfeeding support for African American women to address breastfeeding disparities.

Rhythms of Resistance and Existence

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Chaudhary, Nandita; Hviid, Pernille; Marsico, Giuseppina

2017-01-01

This book is about resistance in everyday life, illustrated through empirical contexts from different parts of the world. Resistance is a widespread phenomenon in biological, social and psychological domains of human cultural development. Yet, it is not well articulated in the academic literature...... occurrence, the focus here is on everyday resistance as an intentional process where new meaning constructions emerge in thinking, feeling, acting or simply living with others. Resistance is thus conceived as a meaning-making activity that operates at the intersection of personal and collective systems...

Family matters: Familial support and science identity formation for African American female STEM majors

Science.gov (United States)

Parker, Ashley Dawn

This research seeks to understand the experiences of African American female undergraduates in STEM. It investigates how familial factors and science identity formation characteristics influence persistence in STEM while considering the duality of African American women's status in society. This phenomenological study was designed using critical race feminism as the theoretical framework to answer the following questions: 1) What role does family play in the experiences of African American women undergraduate STEM majors who attended two universities in the UNC system? 2) What factors impact the formation of science identity for African American women undergraduate STEM majors who attended two universities in the UNC system? Purposive sampling was used to select the participants for this study. The researcher conducted in-depth interviews with 10 African American female undergraduate STEM major from a predominantly White and a historically Black institution with the state of North Carolina public university system. Findings suggest that African American families and science identity formation influence the STEM experiences of the African American females interviewed in this study. The following five themes emerged from the findings: (1) independence, (2) support, (3) pressure to succeed, (4) adaptations, and (5) race and gender. This study contributes to the literature on African American female students in STEM higher education. The findings of this study produced knowledge regarding policies and practices that can lead to greater academic success and persistence of African American females in higher education in general, and STEM majors in particular. Colleges and universities may benefit from the findings of this study in a way that allows them to develop and sustain programs and policies that attend to the particular concerns and needs of African American women on their campuses. Finally, this research informs both current and future African American female

Writeshops: An effective tool to enable African academics to publish

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Vincent, K

2012-08-01

Full Text Available -1 Writeshops: An effective tool to enable African academics to publish Vincent*, K., T. Cull, (Kulima Integrated Development Solutions, South Africa) E. Archer van Garderen, (CSIR, South Africa) and A. Awiti, (Aga Khan University, Kenya) * Corresponding... Seipt, Lisa Schipper and Richard J. T. Klein for their commitment to writeshops, and for various discussions on improving the accessibility of developing country researchers to the peer-reviewed literature. ...

On Being "Attractive" With Resistant Clients.

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, Mark J.; Wells, Don

1990-01-01

Calls client resistance a frequent occurrence within the helping profession. Defines client resistance, provides a brief review of related literature, and offers counselor attractiveness as one way of addressing the issue. Identifies attractive counselor behaviors and attitudes and presents case study illustrating specific attractive counselor…

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journals OnLine (AJOL) is the world's largest online library of ... AJOL works to change this, so that African-origin research output is available to Africans ... South African Medical Journal ... Global Journal of Pure and Applied Sciences.

Empowerment of African American Women Leaders in Higher Education: A Multiple Case Study

Science.gov (United States)

McDaniel, Sharon L.

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of the perspectives on empowerment held by African American women who work in executive positions within higher educational settings. This study also seeks to provide other women with a deeper level of awareness regarding the journey towards executive leadership. Current literature explores…

Exploring How African American Males from an Urban Community Navigate the Interracial and Intra-Racial Dimensions of Their Experiences at an Urban Jesuit High School

Science.gov (United States)

Simmons, Robert W., III

2012-01-01

African American males from urban communities have been attending Jesuit high schools in urban spaces for many years, yet little to no literature exists that explores their experiences while attending these elite private schools. This qualitative study of 10 African American males from an urban community attending a similarly positioned Jesuit…

Contemplating and Extending the Scholarship on Children's and Young Adult Literature

Science.gov (United States)

Brooks, Wanda; Cueto, Desiree

2018-01-01

To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the "Journal of Literacy Research," this article reviews the trajectory of a particular line of scholarship published in this journal over the past five decades. We focus on African diaspora youth literature to contemplate and extend the ways in which literacy researchers carry out textual analysis…

Identifying tagging SNPs for African specific genetic variation from the African Diaspora Genome.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnston, Henry Richard; Hu, Yi-Juan; Gao, Jingjing; O'Connor, Timothy D; Abecasis, Gonçalo R; Wojcik, Genevieve L; Gignoux, Christopher R; Gourraud, Pierre-Antoine; Lizee, Antoine; Hansen, Mark; Genuario, Rob; Bullis, Dave; Lawley, Cindy; Kenny, Eimear E; Bustamante, Carlos; Beaty, Terri H; Mathias, Rasika A; Barnes, Kathleen C; Qin, Zhaohui S

2017-04-21

A primary goal of The Consortium on Asthma among African-ancestry Populations in the Americas (CAAPA) is to develop an 'African Diaspora Power Chip' (ADPC), a genotyping array consisting of tagging SNPs, useful in comprehensively identifying African specific genetic variation. This array is designed based on the novel variation identified in 642 CAAPA samples of African ancestry with high coverage whole genome sequence data (~30× depth). This novel variation extends the pattern of variation catalogued in the 1000 Genomes and Exome Sequencing Projects to a spectrum of populations representing the wide range of West African genomic diversity. These individuals from CAAPA also comprise a large swath of the African Diaspora population and incorporate historical genetic diversity covering nearly the entire Atlantic coast of the Americas. Here we show the results of designing and producing such a microchip array. This novel array covers African specific variation far better than other commercially available arrays, and will enable better GWAS analyses for researchers with individuals of African descent in their study populations. A recent study cataloging variation in continental African populations suggests this type of African-specific genotyping array is both necessary and valuable for facilitating large-scale GWAS in populations of African ancestry.

Elder Abuse in the African Diaspora: A Review.

Science.gov (United States)

Mouton, Charles P; Southerland, Janet H

2017-01-01

As with many other populations, abuse of older adults is a growing problem across the Africa Diaspora. Modernization and urbanization are eroding the traditional values of respect for older adults. Also, older adults living in environments with limited social and economic resources, and having no means of economic support create a recipe for elder abuse and neglect. This article reviews the current literature on the epidemiology, risk factors, and interventions used for elder abuse across the African Diaspora. Reports of elder abuse range from 24.9% to 81.1% across the Diaspora. Risk factors include cognitive and physical impairment, social isolation, lack of resources and widowhood. Community-based programs using the unique social networks of older populations of African descent can provide a venue to improve caregiver training and support, reinforce traditional filial and informal caregiving practices, increase the utilization of available governmental and institutional. Copyright © 2017 National Medical Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The Efficacy of Self-Report Measures in Predicting Social Phobia in African American Adults.

Science.gov (United States)

Chapman, L Kevin; Petrie, Jenny M; Richards, Allyn

2015-03-01

Empirical literature pertaining to anxiety in African Americans has been relatively sparse. More recent studies indicate that the construct of social fear is different in African Americans than in non-Hispanic Whites. Although some of these studies have examined factor structure utilizing self-report measures of anxiety in African American samples, none to date have examined the clinical utility of these measures in predicting anxiety diagnoses, particularly social phobia. A total of sixty-five African American adults from the community completed the Fear Survey Schedule-Second Edition (FSS-II), Social Anxiety Interaction Scale (SIAS), Social Phobia Scale (SPS), and Albany Panic and Phobia Questionnaire (APPQ). The Anxiety Disorder Interview Schedule-Fourth Edition (ADIS-IV) was administered to all participants to specify differential diagnoses of anxiety and related disorders. Twenty-three African American adults were diagnosed with social phobia leaving 42 diagnostic controls. Results suggest that the social anxiety factors were highly predictive of a social phobia diagnosis (AUC=.84 to .90; CI .73-.98, p<.01) and sensitivity and specificity rates revealed optimal cutoff scores for each measure. The optimal cutoff scores reveal the clinical utility of the social fear factor from these measures in screening for social phobia in African Americans. Future direction and implications are discussed. Psychinfo, PubMed, Medline. © 2015 National Medical Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Teachers' perceptions of resistant behaviour of children in the middle childhood developmental phase / Nicola Taryn Richardson

OpenAIRE

Richardson, Nicola Taryn

2014-01-01

Resistant behaviour is a serious reality in South African primary schools. South Africa’s teachers strive to be agents of positive change amidst the multiple challenges they and their learners encounter, yet they admittedly experience daily frustration at addressing resistant behaviour. Considering the harsh external realities which many learners encounter, resistant behaviour cannot be expected to disappear at the introduction of specific techniques. The research consequently aimed to examin...

Nomenclatural adjustments in African plants 1

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter Goldblatt

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Background: Ongoing systematic studies of the African flora necessitate periodic nomenclatural adjustments and corrections. Objectives: To effect requisite nomenclatural changes. Method: Relevant literature was surveyed and type material located and studied. Results: Nomenclatural corrections were published in Justicia L. (Acanthaceae, Babiana KerGawl. and Geissorhiza Ker Gawl. (Iridaceae and Zaluzianskya F.W.Schmidt (Scrophulariaceae. Conclusions: Firstly, a complete enumeration of all southern African species of Justicia was provided within the infrageneric classification for the genus accepted by Graham (1988 and later modified and expanded by Ensermu (1990 and Hedrén (1990. In this circumscription, Justicia includes such well-established segregates in an African context as Adhatoda Miller, Aulojusticia Lindau, Duvernoia E.Mey. ex Nees, Monechma Hochst. and Siphonoglossa Oersted.Both southern African species of Adhatoda were transferred to Justicia, as well as all of the southern African species of Monechma, with eight new combinations or replacement names provided. All species were placed to section within Justicia. Secondly, the type of Gladiolus nervosus Lam. (1788 was considered to be conspecific with Gladiolus strictus Aiton (1789 and is therefore the earliest available name for the species currently known as Babiana stricta (Aiton Ker Gawl. The new combination Babiana nervosa (Lam. Goldblatt & J.C.Manning was provided. Thirdly, Geissorhiza ornithogaloides has been regarded as a new species described by F.W. Klatt (1866 but the name should be treated as the combination G. ornithogaloides (Lichst. ex Roem. & Schult. Klatt, based on Ixia ornithogaloides Lichst. ex Roem. & Schult.(1817a. Examination of the type showed that it is conspecific with Geissorhiza marlothii R.C.Foster (1941 and it is therefore the valid name for the taxon treated as G. ornithogaloides subsp. marlothii (R.C.Foster Goldblatt. An epitype for the taxon was designated

Parental Support, Mental Health, and Alcohol and Marijuana Use in National and High-Risk African-American Adolescent Samples

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Julie Maslowsky

2015-01-01

Full Text Available African-American adolescents experience disproportionate rates of negative consequences of substance use despite using substances at average or below-average rates. Due to underrepresentation of African-American adolescents in etiological literature, risk and protective processes associated with their substance use require further study. This study examines the role of parental support in adolescents’ conduct problems (CPs, depressive symptoms (DSs, and alcohol and marijuana use in a national sample and a high-risk sample of African-American adolescents. In both samples, parental support was inversely related to adolescent CPs, DSs, and alcohol and marijuana use. CPs, but not DSs, partially mediated the relation of parental support to substance use. Results were consistent across the national and high-risk samples, suggesting that the protective effect of parental support applies to African-American adolescents from a range of demographic backgrounds.

THE AMBUSH OF AFRICAN PHILOSOPHY: AN EXHUMATION OF CLASSICAL LIBERAL PRINCIPLES IN THE EVOLUTION OF AFRICA SOCIETIES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ibrahim B. Anoba

2017-05-01

Full Text Available The persistent resentment towards classical liberal principles especially individualism and free market in contemporary Africa, represents an outcome of decades of ambush against the ideology despite its clear connections with traditional African philosophy and relevance to the prosperity of modern African states. This work attempts to draw comparisons between social and economic organisation in traditional Africa and classical liberal principles. Contrary to literatures that portray the community as the real and only end in traditional African societies, elements like free trade; market economy; consensus; anarchy and limited governance negates this position. While tracing the cause of Africa’s cling to socialism and communism, this paper presents an ideological transition from pre-colonialism to nationalist and post-independent Africa. It concludes by demystifying the arguments of individualism as antithetical to African morality. It also justified the inevitability of classical liberal principles in modern Africa.

Subjective Socioeconomic Status Moderates the Association between Discrimination and Depression in African American Youth

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shervin Assari

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Background: Most of the literature on the association between socioeconomic status (SES and health is focused on the protective effects of SES. However, a growing literature suggests that high SES may also operate as a vulnerability factor. Aims: Using a national sample of African American youth, this study compared the effects of perceived discrimination on major depressive disorder (MDD based on SES. Methods: The current cross-sectional study included 810 African American youth who participated in the National Survey of American Life-Adolescent supplement. The independent variable was perceived discrimination. Lifetime, 12-month, and 30-day MDD were the dependent variables. Age and gender were covariates. Three SES indicators (subjective SES, income, and poverty index were moderators. We used logistic regressions for data analysis. Results: Perceived discrimination was associated with higher risk of lifetime, 12-month, and 30-day MDD. Interactions were found between subjective SES and perceived discrimination on lifetime, 12-month, and 30-day MDD, suggesting a stronger effect of perceived discrimination in youth with high subjective SES. Objective measures of SES (income and poverty index did not interact with perceived discrimination on MDD. Conclusion: While perceived discrimination is a universally harmful risk factor for MDD, its effect may depend on the SES of the individual. Findings suggest that high subjective SES may operate as a vulnerability factor for African American youth.

The predicament of the African wild dog, Lycaon pictus, is less precarious than claimed

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Koetsier, T.; Jongeling, Tjeerd B.

2014-01-01

In a paper published fifteen years ago, Gorman et al. (Nature 391, 479–481) made precise claims about how sensitive the African wild dog is to kleptoparasitism by spotted hyaenas Crocuta crocuta and lions Panthera leo. These claims are regularly referred to in the literature, and so far, they have

Production of Basella plants resistant to rust by irradiation of seeds and vegetative tissue

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Makambila, C.

1997-01-01

Basella is classified in the family Chenopodiaceae or Basellaceae. Also known as African spinach, this plant is consumed in Central Africa and several other African countries. There are two types of varieties grown in Congo: i. a local variety characterized by red leaves and stalks in which the principal way of propagation is from cuttings; ii. a group of varieties which have green or purple leaves and stalks. These varieties are called Basella alba and Basella rubra. These varieties have sexual reproduction. Among the two groups of varieties, the local variety is propagated vegetatively but is resistant to rust, while varieties with green leaves or with purple leaves (B. alba and B. rubra) that are propagated from seed are susceptible to rust. Since hybrid cannot be made by conventional crossing, the following procedures have been adopted to produce plants with disease tolerance: 1. production of resistant variants by irradiation of Basella alba seeds with Cesium 137; 2. production of resistant variants by irradiation of vegetative tissues obtained by culture of meristematic cells of B alba; and 3. obtaining resistant plants through somaclonal variation. 1 tab

Production of Basella plants resistant to rust by irradiation of seeds and vegetative tissue

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Makambila, C [Laboratory of Phytopathology, Faculty of Sciences, Univ. of Brazzaville, Brazzaville (Congo)

1997-12-01

Basella is classified in the family Chenopodiaceae or Basellaceae. Also known as African spinach, this plant is consumed in Central Africa and several other African countries. There are two types of varieties grown in Congo: i. a local variety characterized by red leaves and stalks in which the principal way of propagation is from cuttings; ii. a group of varieties which have green or purple leaves and stalks. These varieties are called Basella alba and Basella rubra. These varieties have sexual reproduction. Among the two groups of varieties, the local variety is propagated vegetatively but is resistant to rust, while varieties with green leaves or with purple leaves (B. alba and B. rubra) that are propagated from seed are susceptible to rust. Since hybrid cannot be made by conventional crossing, the following procedures have been adopted to produce plants with disease tolerance: 1. production of resistant variants by irradiation of Basella alba seeds with Cesium 137; 2. production of resistant variants by irradiation of vegetative tissues obtained by culture of meristematic cells of B alba; and 3. obtaining resistant plants through somaclonal variation. 1 tab.

Use of Ifa as a Means of Addressing Mental Health Concerns among African American Clients

Science.gov (United States)

Ojelade, Ifetayo I.; McCray, Kenja; Ashby, Jeffrey S.; Meyers, Joel

2011-01-01

African Americans underuse counseling services because of factors such as cultural mistrust, stigma, and culturally incongruent treatment interventions. As a result, this population relies on informal healing networks. The foundations of these networks have been outlined within the professional literature. However, limited attention has been given…

Mythology to reality: case report on a giant cutaneous horn of the scalp in an African American female.

Science.gov (United States)

Leppard, William; Loungani, Rahul; Saylors, Bradley; Delaney, Kevin

2014-01-01

We present a case study of a patient with a rare and disfiguring dermatologic condition known as cornu cutaneum, or giant cutaneous horn (GCH). While this condition has been well described in people of European and Asian ancestry, its presence in African populations is perceived to be rare and has not been reported in the literature until recently. We present the case of cornu cutaneum in a woman of African descent, contributing to the recent evidence that this condition may not be as rare in African populations as believed. Etiologic factors, epidemiology and management are also reviewed. Copyright © 2013 British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

African Anthropologist

African Journals Online (AJOL)

PROMOTING ACCESS TO AFRICAN RESEARCH ... It provides a forum for African and Africanist anthropologists to publish research reports, articles, book ... A Qualitative Exploration · EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT

African Anthropologist: Submissions

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Author Guidelines. The African Anthropologist is a biannual journal of the Pan African Anthropological Association. It provides a forum for African and Africanist anthropologists to publish articles, research reports, review articles, and book reviews. The views expressed in any published material are those of the authors and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journals OnLine (AJOL) is the world's largest and pre-eminent collection of peer-reviewed, African-published scholarly journals. Historically, scholarly information has flowed from North to South and from West to East. It has also been difficult for African researchers to access the work of other African academics.

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

It has also been difficult for African researchers to access the work of other African academics. In partnership with hundreds of journals from all over the continent, AJOL works to change this, so that African-origin research output is available to Africans and ... Featured Country: South Africa, Featured Journal: Ergonomics SA ...

Bioprospecting of South African Plants as a Unique Resource for Bioactive Endophytic Microbes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Muna Ali Abdalla

2018-05-01

Full Text Available South Africa has a long history and strong belief in traditional herbal medicines. Using ethnobotanical knowledge as a lead, a large number of South African medicinal plants have been discovered to possess a wide spectrum of pharmacological properties. In this review, bioprospecting of endophytes is highlighted by following the advantages of the ethnomedicinal approach together with identifying unique medicinal plants where biological activity may be due to endophytes. This review focuses on the current status of South African medicinal plants to motivate the research community to harness the benefits of ethnobotanical knowledge to investigate the presence of endophytic microbes from the most potent South African medicinal plants. The potential chemical diversity and subsequent putative medicinal value of endophytes is deserving of further research. A timely and comprehensive review of literature on recently isolated endophytes and their metabolites was conducted. Worldwide literature from the last 2 years demonstrating the importance of ethnobotanical knowledge as a useful approach to discover endophytic microbes was documented. Information was obtained from scientific databases such as Pubmed, Scopus, Scirus, Google Scholar, Dictionary of Natural Products, Chemical Abstracts Services, official websites, and scientific databases on ethnomedicines. Primary sources such as books, reports, dissertations, and thesises were accessed where available. Recently published information on isolated endophytes with promising bioactivity and their bioactive natural products worldwide (2015-2017 was summarized. The potential value of South African medicinal plants as sources of endophytes is discussed. The insights provided through this study indicate that medicinal plants in South Africa are highly under-investigated sources of potentially useful endophytic microbes. New approaches may be used by medicinal plant scientists for further exploration of natural

The impact of child-resistant containers on the incidence of paraffin ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The commonest cause of accidental poisoning in the South African black paediatric population is paraffin ingestion. In this intervention study a specifically designed child-resistant container (CRG) was introduced to evaluate whether its use would decrease the incidence ofparaffin ingestion. CRCs were distributed to 20 000 ...

Potential burden of antibiotic resistance on surgery and cancer chemotherapy antibiotic prophylaxis in the USA: a literature review and modelling study.

Science.gov (United States)

Teillant, Aude; Gandra, Sumanth; Barter, Devra; Morgan, Daniel J; Laxminarayan, Ramanan

2015-12-01

The declining efficacy of existing antibiotics potentially jeopardises outcomes in patients undergoing medical procedures. We investigated the potential consequences of increases in antibiotic resistance on the ten most common surgical procedures and immunosuppressing cancer chemotherapies that rely on antibiotic prophylaxis in the USA. We searched the published scientific literature and identified meta-analyses and reviews of randomised controlled trials or quasi-randomised controlled trials (allocation done on the basis of a pseudo-random sequence-eg, odd/even hospital number or date of birth, alternation) to estimate the efficacy of antibiotic prophylaxis in preventing infections and infection-related deaths after surgical procedures and immunosuppressing cancer chemotherapy. We varied the identified effect sizes under different scenarios of reduction in the efficacy of antibiotic prophylaxis (10%, 30%, 70%, and 100% reductions) and estimated the additional number of infections and infection-related deaths per year in the USA for each scenario. We estimated the percentage of pathogens causing infections after these procedures that are resistant to standard prophylactic antibiotics in the USA. We estimate that between 38·7% and 50·9% of pathogens causing surgical site infections and 26·8% of pathogens causing infections after chemotherapy are resistant to standard prophylactic antibiotics in the USA. A 30% reduction in the efficacy of antibiotic prophylaxis for these procedures would result in 120,000 additional surgical site infections and infections after chemotherapy per year in the USA (ranging from 40,000 for a 10% reduction in efficacy to 280,000 for a 70% reduction in efficacy), and 6300 infection-related deaths (range: 2100 for a 10% reduction in efficacy, to 15,000 for a 70% reduction). We estimated that every year, 13,120 infections (42%) after prostate biopsy are attributable to resistance to fluoroquinolones in the USA. Increasing antibiotic

Fat, Fiber and Cancer Risk in African Americans and Rural Africans

Science.gov (United States)

O'Keefe, Stephen J.D.; Li, Jia V.; Lahti, Leo; Ou, Junhai; Carbonero, Franck; Mohammed, Khaled; Posma, Joram M; Kinross, James; Wahl, Elaine; Ruder, Elizabeth; Vipperla, Kishore; Naidoo, Vasudevan; Mtshali, Lungile; Tims, Sebastian; Puylaert, Philippe G.B.; DeLany, James; Krasinskas, Alyssa; Benefiel, Ann C.; Kaseb, Hatem O.; Newton, Keith; Nicholson, Jeremy K.; de Vos, Willem M.; Gaskins, H. Rex; Zoetendal, Erwin G.

2015-01-01

Rates of colon cancer are much higher in African Americans (65:100,000) than in rural South Africans (<5:100,000). The higher rates are associated with higher animal protein and fat and lower fiber consumption, higher colonic secondary bile acids, lower colonic short chain fatty acid quantities and higher mucosal proliferative biomarkers of cancer risk in otherwise healthy middle aged volunteers. Here we investigate further the role of fat and fiber in this association. We performed two-week food exchanges in subjects from the same populations, where African Americans were fed a high-fiber, lowfat African-style diet, and rural Africans a high-fat low-fiber western-style diet under close supervision. In comparison to their usual diets, the food changes resulted in remarkable reciprocal changes in mucosal biomarkers of cancer risk and in aspects of the microbiota and metabolome known to affect cancer risk, best illustrated by increased saccharolytic fermentation and butyrogenesis and suppressed secondary bile acid synthesis in the African Americans. PMID:25919227

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

It has also been difficult for African researchers to access the work of other African ... search for an article by title, author/s or keywords,; and find other information sources ... Southern African Business Review; The role played by the South African ... The Basis of Distinction Between Qualitative and Quantitative Research in ...

Trends in African philosophy

African Journals Online (AJOL)

JONATHAN

In the contention of Oladipo (2006), the debate on the idea of. African philosophy which has been divided into trends or schools, dates back to the 1960's and 70's, which constitute the modern epoch of African philosophy, when some African thinkers began to question the perspective that traditional African beliefs and.

Determinants of dividend policy: Evidence from listed firms in the African stock exchanges

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Nnadi Matthias

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The study demonstrates that much of the existing theoretical literature on dividend policy can be applied to the emerging capital markets of Africa. Using available financial data of listed firms in the 29 stock exchanges in Africa, the study finds similarities in the determinants of dividend policy in African firms with those in most developed economies. In particular, agency costs are found to be the most dominant determinant of dividend policy among African firms. The finding is non-synonymous with emerging capital markets which have a high concentration of private ownership and trading volumes. Agency cost theory may be important in both emerging and developed capital markets but the nature of the agency problem may be different in each case. Other factors such as level of market capitalization, age and growth of firms, as well as profitability also play key roles in the dividend policy of listed African firms.

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

It has also been difficult for African researchers to access the work of other African academics. In partnership with hundreds of journals from all over the continent, AJOL works to change this, so that African-origin research output is available to Africans and to the rest of the ... Egyptian Journal of Medical Human Genetics.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in Zimbabwe ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Resistance was high for most widely used drugs in Zimbabwe with high sensitivity to vancomycin, linezolid and teicoplanin. Conclusion: Although there are no recent reports in the literature of the presence of MRSA in Zimbabwe, this study documented a 7.0% prevalence. Resistance to common antibiotics is high and ...

Resisting the Stigma of Mental Illness

Science.gov (United States)

Thoits, Peggy A.

2011-01-01

The relationship between stigmatization and the self-regard of patients/consumers with mental disorder is negative but only moderate in strength, probably because a subset of persons with mental illness resists devaluation and discrimination by others. Resistance has seldom been discussed in the stigma and labeling literatures, and thus conditions…

Framing African American Students' Success and Failure in Urban Settings: A Typology for Change

Science.gov (United States)

Lewis, Chance W.; James, Marlon; Hancock, Stephen; Hill-Jackson, Valerie

2008-01-01

Grounded in critical race theory, this article seeks to frame the ideological positions of success and failure for African American students in urban school settings. First, we revisit national data and research literature that illustrate the ongoing urban Black-White achievement gap. Second, the Matrix of Achievement Paradigms is shared in an…

Systematic review of stigma reducing interventions for African/Black diasporic women.

Science.gov (United States)

Loutfy, Mona; Tharao, Wangari; Logie, Carmen; Aden, Muna A; Chambers, Lori A; Wu, Wei; Abdelmaseh, Marym; Calzavara, Liviana

2015-01-01

Literature indicates that racism, sexism, homophobia and HIV-related stigma have adverse impacts on health, well-being, and quality of life among HIV-positive women of African descent (African/Black diaspora). However, limited evidence exists on the effectiveness of interventions aimed at reducing stigma tailored for these women. This study systematically reviewed randomized controlled trials (RCTs), non-randomized observational and quasi-experimental studies evaluating the effectiveness of interventions aimed at reducing stigma experienced by this population. The Cochrane methodology was used to develop a search strategy in consultation with a librarian scientist. Databases searched included the Cochrane Library, Ovid EMBASE, PsycInfo, and 10 others. Two reviewers independently assessed the studies for potential relevance and conducted the Cochrane grading of RCTs to assess risk of bias and the Newcastle-Ottawa scale to assess the quality of non-randomized studies. Eligible papers were selected if they employed an intervention design with African/Black diasporic women living with HIV as the target population and had a primary outcome of stigma reduction. Of the five studies that met all of the eligibility criteria, four demonstrated the effectiveness of interventions in reducing HIV-related stigma. Only two of the five studies were designed specifically for HIV-positive African/Black diasporic women. Limitations included the absence of interventions addressing other forms of stigma and discrimination (e.g. gender discrimination, racism, heterosexism). Our findings suggest that there are limited interventions designed to address multiple forms of stigma, including gender and racial discrimination, experienced by HIV-positive African/Black diasporic women.

Reduction of cellular cisplatin resistance by hyperthermia - a review

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hettinga, JVE; Konings, AWT; Kampinga, HH

1997-01-01

Resistance to cisplatin (cDDP) is a major limitation to its clinical effectiveness. Review of literature data indicates that cDDP resistance is a multifactorial phenomenon. This provides an explanation why attempts to reverse or circumvent resistance using cDDP-analogues or combination therapy with

African American Diaspora

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Angela Brown

2013-05-01

Full Text Available The migration of blacks in North America through slavery became united.  The population of blacks past downs a tradition of artist through art to native born citizens. The art tradition involved telling stories to each generation in black families. The black culture elevated by tradition created hope to determine their personal freedom to escape from poverty of enslavement and to establish a way of life through tradition. A way of personal freedoms was through getting a good education that lead to a better foundation and a better way of life. With regard to all historic migrations (forced and voluntary, the African Union defined the African diaspora as "[consisting] of people of African origin living outside the continent, irrespective of their citizenship and nationality and who are willing to contribute to the development of the continent and the building of the African Union." Its constitutive act declares that it shall "invite and encourage the full participation of the African diaspora as an important part of our continent, in the building of the African Union."

Zār Spirit Possession in Iran and African Countries: Group Distress, Culture-Bound Syndrome or Cultural Concept of Distress?

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Fahimeh Mianji

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Zār is the term used to describe a form of spirit possession common in northern African, eastern African, and some Middle-Eastern societies. Although these regions share some cultural similarities arising from their history of slavery, in these places, zār varies in prevalence, clinical characteristics, and social context. Based on a selective review of the literature, this paper looks at the place of zār spirit possession in both DSM-IV and DSM-V; it also examines how zār is manifested in Iran and in African countries including Sudan, Ethiopia, and Egypt; and it aims to provide practical information to mental health clinicians so that they can better understand how this cultural concept is practiced by Iranians and Middle Eastern and African immigrants living near the Persian Gulf coast.

The Dictionary Unit for South African English. South African Concise Oxford Dictionary

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Rajend Mesthrie

2011-10-01

Full Text Available The South African Concise Oxford Dictionary (henceforth SACOD is a South Af-rican version of the Concise Oxford Dictionary, the first time that this particular hybrid has been prepared. It is testimony to the enduring success of the work of the Dictionary Unit for South African English at Rhodes University, headed by teams that included Jean and William Branford in the 1970s, Penny Silva in the 1990s and now, Kathryn Kavanagh. The lexicographical work from the unit saw the publication of four editions of the Dictionary of Southern African English (1978, 1980, 1987, 1991, a South African Pocket Oxford Dictionary (SAPOD and the Dictionary of South African English on Historical Principles (DOSAEHP (1995. SACOD differs from the rest in several ways. It is larger in scope than SAPOD, smaller than DOSAEHP, and unlike DOSAE and DOSAEHP, does not deal with South African words alone. Based on the 10th edition of the Concise Oxford Dictionary SACOD has excised some words from the parent, whilst adding many new words of general English as well as of South Africa.

Threatened southern African soils: A need for appropriate ecotoxicological risk assessment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Eijsackers, Herman [Unit for Environmental Sciences and Management, North-West University, Private Bag X6001, Potchefstroom 2520 (South Africa); Reinecke, Adriaan; Reinecke, Sophie [Department of Botany & Zoology, Stellenbosch University, Private Bag X1, Matieland 7602 (South Africa); Maboeta, Mark, E-mail: mark.maboeta@nwu.ac.za [Unit for Environmental Sciences and Management, North-West University, Private Bag X6001, Potchefstroom 2520 (South Africa)

2017-03-15

In southern Africa arable soils are limited due to low rainfall and are threatened by anthropogenic activities like agriculture and mining making it susceptible to degradation. The aim of this study is to review the existing information available with regards to soil contamination and its possible threats towards biodiversity and quality of southern African soils. Some of the issues being addressed in this paper include the focus areas of ecotoxicological research in southern African countries, levels of contaminants in soils, the impacts of climate on soil animals and the representativity of standardised test species. In order to address this, we report on a literature search, which was done to determine the main focus areas of soil ecotoxicological research, highlighting strengths and research needs in comparison to approaches elsewhere in the world. Further, to address if the risk assessment approaches of Europe and the USA are valid for southern African environmental conditions; this in the light of differences in temperature, rainfall and fauna. It is concluded that risk assessment procedures for Europe and the USA were based on non-southern African conditions making it necessary to rethink risk assessment studies; although limited, in southern Africa. We recommend future research that has to be undertaken to address these issues. This research should include investigating species sensitivities in responses to contamination and including insects likes ants and termites in ecological risk assessment studies.

Threatened southern African soils: A need for appropriate ecotoxicological risk assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eijsackers, Herman; Reinecke, Adriaan; Reinecke, Sophie; Maboeta, Mark

2017-01-01

In southern Africa arable soils are limited due to low rainfall and are threatened by anthropogenic activities like agriculture and mining making it susceptible to degradation. The aim of this study is to review the existing information available with regards to soil contamination and its possible threats towards biodiversity and quality of southern African soils. Some of the issues being addressed in this paper include the focus areas of ecotoxicological research in southern African countries, levels of contaminants in soils, the impacts of climate on soil animals and the representativity of standardised test species. In order to address this, we report on a literature search, which was done to determine the main focus areas of soil ecotoxicological research, highlighting strengths and research needs in comparison to approaches elsewhere in the world. Further, to address if the risk assessment approaches of Europe and the USA are valid for southern African environmental conditions; this in the light of differences in temperature, rainfall and fauna. It is concluded that risk assessment procedures for Europe and the USA were based on non-southern African conditions making it necessary to rethink risk assessment studies; although limited, in southern Africa. We recommend future research that has to be undertaken to address these issues. This research should include investigating species sensitivities in responses to contamination and including insects likes ants and termites in ecological risk assessment studies.

Cardiovascular disease and diabetes in patients with African or Asian background.

Science.gov (United States)

Aambø, Arild; Klemsdal, Tor Ole

2017-11-28

Population groups of different ancestry appear to have varying prevalence of diabetes, different risks of developing cardiovascular disease and different responses to certain drugs that are used for these conditions. We wished to review the literature in this field. We have performed searches in several databases for systematic review articles published from the year 2000 onwards, and supplemented these with articles from reference lists, our own literature archives and a pyramid search in the Norwegian Electronic Health Library database. Altogether 37 articles were included. With regard to diagnosed diabetes, the prevalence of coronary heart disease and stroke varies among groups of South Asian, East Asian, African and European ancestry. In patients of South Asian ancestry, the risk of coronary heart disease appears to be twice that of Europeans, and the disease occurs 5–10 years earlier. The prevalence of stroke is especially high in persons of African ancestry. Risk factors such as dyslipidemia and hypertension are distributed differently among these groups. The therapeutic response to drugs such as beta blockers, ACE inhibitors and various statins differs; for example, statin doses in Asians may often be halved in relation to those used for Caucasians, and ACE inhibitors are not recommended as monotherapy for hypertension in persons of African ancestry. These differences are partly attributable to variations in genetic disposition. The findings are clinically significant – better insight in this field enables optimal tailoring of treatment for each patient, with more rapid achievement of goals and reduced risk of adverse effects. The recommendations given in this article are consistent with and complement the Directorate of Health’s revised guidelines for the treatment of diabetes.

African languages and African studies librarianship: taking a ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Most African educational systems are centred on imported languages such as English, French, and Portuguese. The emphasis in national publishing industries on producing books, journals and newspapers overwhelmingly in those tongues is also hard to justify. It is difficult to imagine a future African renaissance that does ...

Social Realism in the African Novel: The South African and East ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Although the African novel arose from Europe, the African has used it to explore a different world view; a world where gods and men hold a place together in the affairs of men. But more importantly, the African novel has followed the peculiar history of colonization and decolonization. While the earlier novels depicted the ...

Three essays on political economy of oil revenues in the African states

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Omgba, Luc Desire

2010-01-01

The vision of the role of natural resources in the development process has changed over the last thirty years. The optimistic views of the beginning became more moderate, even pessimistic. This thesis focuses on the role of oil in the political, institutional, and economic performances of African countries, some of which are richly endowed. It revolves around three empirical essays. Chapter 2 focuses on the duration of political regimes in Africa and shows from a duration model that revenues from oil exploitation play an important role. Chapter 3 examines the high indebtedness of oil-producing countries. A collateral effect of oil resources is highlighted, it dominates an instability effect. Chapter 4 includes, in a dynamic computable general equilibrium model, the permanent income hypothesis presented in the literature as the answer to the fiscal management of oil revenues. It concludes that a relevant rule of oil revenues management in African countries should not reduce only the impact of volatility on public finances, but it should also address the development needs of African oil producing countries. (author)

Check The Rhime!: Hip Hop as a continuation of the African American protest tradition, from David Walker’s Appeal (1829) to Kendrick Lamar’s “The Blacker the Berry”(2015)

OpenAIRE

Gothelf, Jasmine

2015-01-01

My thesis presents Hip Hop as a continuation of the African American protest tradition. Drawing upon literature from recognized African American protest movements, including abolitionism, antilynching campaigns, the Civil Rights movement and Black Power, I present Hip Hop as the current embodiment of the protest aesthetic. My work develops the existing understanding of the African American protest aesthetic through the creation of three rhetorical devices or identifiers, embodied by all canon...

Obesity and African Americans

Science.gov (United States)

... Data > Minority Population Profiles > Black/African American > Obesity Obesity and African Americans African American women have the ... youthonline . [Accessed 08/18/2017] HEALTH IMPACT OF OBESITY People who are overweight are more likely to ...

First report of Hypsipyla grandella (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae on African mahogany Khaya ivorensis

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Ronald Zanetti

Full Text Available ABSTRACT The mahogany shoot borer Hypsipyla grandella Zeller is an important economic pest in all American tropical forests, because it prevents monoculture of valuable timber trees species like mahogany and cedar. The shoot borer damages several tree structures, especially the apical shoots, impairing the formation of the commercial stem. This pest can attack the plants during the year and one larva per plant is enough to cause significant damage. In infested areas, the attack can reach up to 100 % of the trees. The Australian cedar and African mahogany have been cultivated in Brazil for timber production, because they are considered resistant to H. grandella (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae attack. However, in this work we report for the first time the H. grandella attack to African mahogany Khaya ivorensis.

African Zoology

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Zoology, a peer-reviewed research journal, publishes original scientific contributions and critical reviews that focus principally on African fauna in terrestrial, freshwater, and marine ecosystems. Research from other regions that advances practical and theoretical aspects of zoology will be considered. Rigorous ...

Coping with perceived racism: a significant factor in the development of obesity in African American women?

Science.gov (United States)

Mwendwa, Denee T; Gholson, Georica; Sims, Regina C; Levy, Shellie-Anne; Ali, Mana; Harrell, C Jules; Callender, Clive O; Campbell, Alfonso L

2011-07-01

African American women have the highest rates of obesity in the United States. The prevalence of obesity in this group calls for the identification of psychosocial factors that increase risk. Psychological stress has been associated with obesity in women; however, there is scant literature that has explored the impact of racism on body mass index (BMI) in African American women. The current study aimed to determine whether emotional responses and behavioral coping responses to perceived racism were associated with BMI in African American women. A sample of 110 African American women participated in a community-based study. Height and weight measurements were taken to calculate BMI and participants completed the Perceived Racism Scale and the Perceived Stress Scale. Hierarchical regression analyses demonstrated a significant relationship between BMI and behavioral coping responses to perceived racism. Findings for emotional responses to perceived racism and appraisal of one's daily life as stressful were nonsignificant. Mean comparisons of BMI groups showed that obese African American women used more behavioral coping responses to perceived racism as compared to normal-weight and overweight women in the sample. Findings suggest that behavioral coping responses better explained increased risk for obesity in African American women. A biobehavioral pathway may explain this finding with a stress-response process that includes cortisol reactivity. Maladaptive behavioral coping responses may also provide insight into obesity risk. Future research is needed to determine which behavioral coping responses place African American women at greater risk for obesity.

Does Resistance Training Stimulate Cardiac Muscle Hypertrophy?

Science.gov (United States)

Bloomer, Richard J.

2003-01-01

Reviews the literature on the left ventricular structural adaptations induced by resistance/strength exercise, focusing on human work, particularly well-trained strength athletes engaged in regular, moderate- to high-intensity resistance training (RT). The article discusses both genders and examines the use of anabolic-androgenic steroids in…

African Journals Online: Kenya

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Items 1 - 29 of 29 ... African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development ... African and international non-governmental organizations (NGOs); African and .... for scholars and practitioners in all spheres of biological sciences to publish ...

Heart Disease and African Americans

Science.gov (United States)

... Minority Population Profiles > Black/African American > Heart Disease Heart Disease and African Americans Although African American adults are ... were 30 percent more likely to die from heart disease than non-Hispanic whites. African American women are ...

The correlation between relationship value and business expansion in the South African automotive supply chains

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Aletta S. Tolmay

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Background: The South African automotive industry includes complete supply chains. The South African automotive supply chain stakeholders operating within the global arena are faced with opportunities as well as challenges. The South African government supports the automotive industry and encourages the vision to drastically expand the industry by the year 2020. However, having to adhere to strict prescriptions from customers regarding product quality and logistics, automotive component suppliers have only the actual relationship with customers through which value can be added. Literature acknowledges the importance of relationship value and agrees that it results in business retention. However, literature fails to prove whether relationship value can result in business expansion where more business is generated. Objectives: The objective of this article was to provide a better understanding of how to optimise relationship value within the South African automotive supply chains between Tier 1 and Tier 2 suppliers. Furthermore, the correlation between relationship value and business expansion was tested through a linear regression model. It was also important to determine whether supply chain stakeholders from different countries of origin and cultural backgrounds attach the same importance to relationship value. Method: This article reports on research which followed a positivistic paradigm, through a quantitative study undertaken in the South African automotive supply chains. Members of the National Association for Automobile Component and Allied Manufacturers of South Africa (NAACAM, defined as Tier 1 suppliers, were approached to describe their best Tier 2 suppliers. Questions relating to relationship value and business expansion were asked via a closed-ended questionnaire. The aim was to obtain the perceptions of Tier 1 suppliers of their best Tier 2 suppliers in terms of relationship value and business expansion. The data were analysed

The African Political Organisation's contributions to South African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The history of South African sport remains an under researched area. According to the historian, Ander Odendaal, the racist nature of 20th Century South African society implies that there are “past exclusions that persist” (Odendaal, 2006:27) In order to address this situation, a scientifichistorical enquiry into the publications ...

The Resistome: A Comprehensive Database of Escherichia coli Resistance Phenotypes.

Science.gov (United States)

Winkler, James D; Halweg-Edwards, Andrea L; Erickson, Keesha E; Choudhury, Alaksh; Pines, Gur; Gill, Ryan T

2016-12-16

The microbial ability to resist stressful environmental conditions and chemical inhibitors is of great industrial and medical interest. Much of the data related to mutation-based stress resistance, however, is scattered through the academic literature, making it difficult to apply systematic analyses to this wealth of information. To address this issue, we introduce the Resistome database: a literature-curated collection of Escherichia coli genotypes-phenotypes containing over 5,000 mutants that resist hundreds of compounds and environmental conditions. We use the Resistome to understand our current state of knowledge regarding resistance and to detect potential synergy or antagonism between resistance phenotypes. Our data set represents one of the most comprehensive collections of genomic data related to resistance currently available. Future development will focus on the construction of a combined genomic-transcriptomic-proteomic framework for understanding E. coli's resistance biology. The Resistome can be downloaded at https://bitbucket.org/jdwinkler/resistome_release/overview .

Competing Claims: Religious Affiliation and African Americans' Intolerance of Homosexuals.

Science.gov (United States)

Ledet, Richard

2017-01-01

Literature on religion and political intolerance indicates competing expectations about how Black Protestant church affiliation affects African Americans' attitudes about civil liberties. On the one hand, Black Protestant theology emphasizes personal freedom and social justice, factors generally linked to more tolerant attitudes. On the other hand, Black Protestants tend to be conservative on family and social issues, factors often linked to intolerance of gays and lesbians. Data from the General Social Survey are used to examine the influence of religious group identification, as well as other relevant aspects of religiosity, on political intolerance among African Americans. Results indicate that although other aspects of religion (beliefs and behaviors) help explain variation in political intolerance, Black Protestant church affiliation has no relationship with attitudes about the civil liberties of homosexuals. However, additional tests show that Black Protestant church affiliation significantly predicts intolerance of other target groups (atheists and racists).

Dating-Partner Preferences among a Group of Inner-City African-American High School Students.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Sherry P.

1996-01-01

Examines a set of characteristics that African American inner-city high school students may or may not value in a dating partner. A total of 80 students indicated how important they perceived certain qualities to be in a person they would like to date. The results are in contrast to the previous literature regarding dating-partner preferences…

Retraction | Simon | African Zoology

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Panthera leo) ina. West African national park”. African Zoology is publishing an Editorial Expression of Concern regarding the following article: “New records of a threatened lion population (Panthera leo) in a West African national park” by ...

More than an Ally: A Successful White Teacher Who Builds Solidarity with His African American Students

Science.gov (United States)

Boucher, Michael Lee, Jr.

2016-01-01

This qualitative case study provides a counternarrative to the literature of White teachers who are unsuccessful in bridging the achievement gap and disrupts the assumed meaning of solidarity between successful White teachers and their African American students. As part of successful classroom practice, this teacher interrogated his own whiteness…

Widespread Pyrethroid and DDT Resistance in the Major Malaria Vector Anopheles funestus in East Africa Is Driven by Metabolic Resistance Mechanisms

Science.gov (United States)

Mulamba, Charles; Riveron, Jacob M.; Ibrahim, Sulaiman S.; Irving, Helen; Barnes, Kayla G.; Mukwaya, Louis G.; Birungi, Josephine; Wondji, Charles S.

2014-01-01

Background Establishing the extent, geographical distribution and mechanisms of insecticide resistance in malaria vectors is a prerequisite for resistance management. Here, we report a widespread distribution of insecticide resistance in the major malaria vector An. funestus across Uganda and western Kenya under the control of metabolic resistance mechanisms. Methodology/Principal Findings Female An. funestus collected throughout Uganda and western Kenya exhibited a Plasmodium infection rate between 4.2 to 10.4%. Widespread resistance against both type I (permethrin) and II (deltamethrin) pyrethroids and DDT was observed across Uganda and western Kenya. All populations remain highly susceptible to carbamate, organophosphate and dieldrin insecticides. Knockdown resistance plays no role in the pyrethroid and DDT resistance as no kdr mutation associated with resistance was detected despite the presence of a F1021C replacement. Additionally, no signature of selection was observed on the sodium channel gene. Synergist assays and qRT-PCR indicated that metabolic resistance plays a major role notably through elevated expression of cytochrome P450s. DDT resistance mechanisms differ from West Africa as the L119F-GSTe2 mutation only explains a small proportion of the genetic variance to DDT resistance. Conclusion The extensive distribution of pyrethroid and DDT resistance in East African An. funestus populations represents a challenge to the control of this vector. However, the observed carbamate and organophosphate susceptibility offers alternative solutions for resistance management. PMID:25333491

Resisting and Redirecting: Agentive Practices within an African American Parent-Child Dyad during Digital Storytelling

Science.gov (United States)

Lewis Ellison, Tisha; Wang, Huan

2018-01-01

This article examines the digital storytelling practices between an African American mother and son. We used agency as a theoretical framework to explore how the two exercised their own power to collaborate on their digital story. As digital technologies became part of their practice, challenges and tensions arose when both participants attempted…

Critical prophecy and political leadership in biblical, African and Islamic worldviews

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

P.O. Abioje

2010-07-01

Full Text Available This article examines the socio-political influence of prophecy in traditional African and the biblical perspectives, in order to challenge contemporary African religious men and women to serve as the conscience of society. There is hardly any doubt that political leaders are usually prone to abuse of their positions and they need to be reprimanded and lampooned. A discussion on Islam is included, because, together with Christianity, it dominates, to a large extent, socio-political and economic leadership in Africa. It is the view of many scholars that neither Christianity nor Islam have been applied sufficiently to political leadership in Africa to have an impact on mass socio-political and economic welfare, although some heroic individual exceptions are noted. The materials were gathered through a literature study. The study is comparative in the sense that it compares prophecy in traditional Africa with what is obtained from the Bible and the church as we know it today. The study recommends critical prophecy in the two dominant Old Testament religions, namely Christianity and Islam, and in African Traditional Religion, for improved political leadership and development in Africa.

The Resistable Rise of Surgical Sepsis in Malawi | Lavy | Malawi ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The Resistable Rise of Surgical Sepsis in Malawi. C Lavy, C Schmidt, E Kalau, J Phuka. Full Text: EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT · DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT · AJOL African Journals Online. HOW TO USE AJOL... for Researchers · for Librarians · for Authors · FAQ's · More about ...

South African medical students’ perceptions and knowledge about antibiotic resistance and appropriate prescribing: Are we providing adequate training to future prescribers?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sean Wasserman,

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Background. Education of medical students has been identified by the World Health Organization as an important aspect of antibiotic resistance (ABR containment. Surveys from high-income countries consistently reveal that medical students recognise the importance of antibiotic prescribing knowledge, but feel inadequately prepared and require more education on how to make antibiotic choices. The attitudes and knowledge of South African (SA medical students regarding ABR and antibiotic prescribing have never been evaluated. Objective. To evaluate SA medical students’ perceptions, attitudes and knowledge about antibiotic use and resistance, and the perceived quality of education relating to antibiotics and infection. Methods. This was a cross-sectional survey of final-year students at three medical schools, using a 26-item self-administered questionnaire. The questionnaires recorded basic demographic information, perceptions about antibiotic use and ABR, sources, quality, and usefulness of current education about antibiotic use, and questions to evaluate knowledge. Hard-copy surveys were administered during whole-class lectures. Results. A total of 289 of 567 (51% students completed the survey. Ninety-two percent agreed that antibiotics are overused and 87% agreed that resistance is a significant problem in SA – higher proportions than those who thought that antibiotic overuse (63% and resistance (61% are problems in the hospitals where they had worked (p<0.001. Most reported that they would appreciate more education on appropriate use of antibiotics (95%. Only 33% felt confident to prescribe antibiotics, with similar proportions across institutions. Overall, prescribing confidence was associated with the use of antibiotic prescribing guidelines (p=0.003, familiarity with antibiotic stewardship (p=0.012, and more frequent contact with infectious diseases specialists (p<0.001. There was an overall mean correct score of 50% on the knowledge

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

reviewed, African-published scholarly journals. Historically, scholarly information has flowed from North to South and from West to East. It has also been difficult for African researchers to access the work of other African academics. In partnership with ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

reviewed, African-published scholarly journals. Historically ... It has also been difficult for African researchers to access the work of other African academics. In partnership with ... Vol 15, No 1 (2018). SAHARA-J: Journal of Social Aspects of HIV/AIDS.

Neighborhood Disadvantage, Neighborhood Safety and Cardiometabolic Risk Factors in African Americans: Biosocial Associations in the Jackson Heart Study

Science.gov (United States)

Clark, Cheryl R.; Ommerborn, Mark J.; Hickson, DeMarc A.; Grooms, Kya N.; Sims, Mario; Taylor, Herman A.; Albert, Michelle A.

2013-01-01

Objective We examined associations between neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage, perceived neighborhood safety and cardiometabolic risk factors, adjusting for health behaviors and socioeconomic status (SES) among African Americans. Methods Study participants were non-diabetic African Americans (n = 3,909) in the baseline examination (2000–2004) of the Jackson Heart Study. We measured eight risk factors: the metabolic syndrome, its five components, insulin resistance and cardiovascular inflammation. We assessed neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage with US Census 2000 data. We assessed perceived neighborhood safety, health behaviors and SES via survey. We used generalized estimating equations to estimate associations with a random intercept model for neighborhood effects. Results After adjustment for health behaviors and SES, neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage was associated with the metabolic syndrome in women (PR 1.13, 95% CI 1.01, 1.27). Lack of perceived safety was associated with elevated glucose (OR 1.36, 95% CI 1.03, 1.80) and waist circumference (PR 1.06, 95% CI 1.02, 1.11) among women, and with elevated glucose (PR 1.30, 95% CI 1.02, 1.66) and insulin resistance (PR 1.25, 95% CI 1.08, 1.46) among men. Conclusions Neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage and perceived safety should be considered as targets for intervention to reduce cardiometabolic risks among African Americans. PMID:23691005

Strengthening African Union for African Integration: An African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Toshiba

to secure African continent, speed up development process, and strengthen our survival ... Regional integration generally involves a somewhat complex web of cooperation ... networking of various government institutions to provide and shape.

A systematic literature review of the average IQ of sub-Saharan Africans

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wicherts, J.M.; Dolan, C.V.; van der Maas, H.L.J.

2010-01-01

On the basis of several reviews of the literature, Lynn [Lynn, R., (2006). Race differences in intelligence: An evolutionary analysis. Augusta, GA: Washington Summit Publishers.] and Lynn and Vanhanen [Lynn, R., & Vanhanen, T., (2006). IQ and global inequality. Augusta, GA: Washington Summit

The status of HIV-1 resistance to antiretroviral drugs in sub-Saharan Africa

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hamers, Raph L.; Derdelinckx, Inge; van Vugt, Michèle; Stevens, Wendy; Rinke de Wit, Tobias F.; Schuurman, Rob

2008-01-01

Access to highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) for persons infected with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa has greatly improved over the past few years. However, data on long-term clinical outcomes of Africans receiving HAART, patterns of HIV resistance to antiretroviral drugs and implications of

Black lesbian gender and sexual culture: celebration and resistance.

Science.gov (United States)

Wilson, Bianca D M

2009-04-01

Lesbian gender expression is a persistent theme in research and writing about lesbian culture. Yet little empirical research has examined the ways lesbian gender functions within the sexual culture of lesbian communities, particularly among lesbians of colour. This study was aimed at documenting and assessing the functions of lesbian gender among African American lesbians. Particular attention was paid to identifying core characteristics of sexual discourses, such as evidence of dominant and resistant sexual scripts and contradictions between messages about sex. This study took the form of a rapid ethnography of an African American lesbian community in the USA using focus groups, individual community leader interviews and participant observations at a weekly open mic event. Findings document how lesbian gender roles translated into distinct sexual roles and expectations that appear to both parallel and radically reject heterosexual norms for sex. The deep roots of the social pressure to date within these roles were also evident within observations at the open microphone events. While data highlighted the central role that lesbian gender roles play in this community, analyses also revealed a strong resistance to the dominance of this sexual cultural system.

Leadership in the African context

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Masango

2002-08-01

Full Text Available The Western world has always viewed the African continent as plagued by corruption; dictatorship; military coups; rebellious leaders; greediness; misuse of power; and incompetent, politically unstable leaders - in effect, suspicious leaders who undermine their own democracies. This paper analyzes African leadership and its impact by concentrating on three historical eras, namely; the African Religious era; the Christian era, and the era of Globalization. These affected African leadership. In addition, many brilliant minds left the continent in search of greener pastures. A review of these three eras will help us understand how leadership shifted from African values into Western concepts. The role of missionaries lead African people to live with both an African and a Western concept of life. In spite of the above problems, our past leaders did their best in addressing the difficulties they faced during the three eras. African concepts of leadership were often regarded as barbaric and uncultured. Structures were evaluated by Western standards. Due to globalisation, African leaders, through programmes like NEPAD, are going back to basics, drawing on African concepts of unity among its leadership. Effectiveness or life-giving leadership is emerging and empowering villagers/communities in the continent. This type of leadership is innovative and has brought new hope for the continent.

Soul Mates: Religion, Sex, Love, and Marriage among African Americans and Latinos.

Science.gov (United States)

Gillum, Richard F; Dodd, Kristen D

2016-01-01

This book review analyzes the complex and profound impact active religious participation has on relationships and family outcomes among African Americans and Latinos. In Soul Mates, Wilcox and Wolfinger discuss the legacy of slavery and Jim Crow laws and the resulting devastating effects on African American and Latino families despite their high religious involvement. The authors make the case that many African American men are unlikely candidates for marriage or stable relationships due to trends of family instability driven by the declining income-power of working-class men as well as entry of more women into the labor force, government penalties for low-income couples, revolt against traditional values, increased access to birth control and abortion, and the persistence of discrimination and incarceration of minority men. The authors examine data from six national surveys as well as additional data from interviews, focus groups, ethnographic field work, and an extensive literature review. Wilcox and Wolfinger find evidence that when African American couples actively participate in Christian churches, the men are more likely to adhere to a "code of decency" which decreases street behaviors, such as binge drinking, having multiple sex partners, and having multi-partner fertility, which are known to inhibit family stability. This book will be helpful for health providers who would like to better understand and serve their African American and Latino patients. The findings suggest that health care providers can promote a healthy emotional environment for families by encouraging minority men to renew or maintain church involvement. Copyright © 2016 National Medical Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Extracting dirt from water: a strengths-based approach to religion for African American same-gender-loving men.

Science.gov (United States)

Lassiter, Jonathan Mathias

2014-02-01

Religion is one of the most powerful and ubiquitous forces in African American same-gender-loving (SGL) men's lives. Research indicates that it has both positive and negative influences on the health behaviors and outcomes of this population. This paper presents a review of the literature that examines religion as a risk and protective factor for African American SGL men. A strengths-based approach to religion that aims to utilize its protective qualities and weaken its relation to risk is proposed. Finally, recommendations are presented for the use of a strengths-based approach to religion in clinical work and research.

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journals OnLine (AJOL) is the world's largest and pre-eminent collection of peer-reviewed, African-published scholarly journals. Historically ... African Research Review; The Roles of Information Communication Technologies in Education: Review Article with Emphasis to the Computer and Internet Ethiopian Journal ...

Paule Marshall and the search for the African diaspora

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Simon Gikandi

1999-01-01

Full Text Available [First paragraph] The Fiction of Paule Marshall: Reconstructions of History, Culture, and Gender. DOROTHY HAMER DENNISTON. Knoxville: University of Tennesee Press, 1995. xxii + 187 pp. (Paper US$ 15.00 Toward Wholeness in Paule Marshall's Fiction. JOYCE PETTIS. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 1995. xi + 173 pp. (Cloth US$ 29.50 Black and Female: Essays on Writings by Black Women in the Diaspora. BRITA LINDBERG-SEYERSTED. Oslo: Scandinavian University Press, 1994. 164 pp. (Paper n.p. Literary history has not been very kind to Paule Marshall. Even in the early 1980s when literature produced by African-American women was gaining prominence among general readers and drawing the attention of critics, Marshall was still considered to be an enigmatic literary figure, somehow important in the canon but not one of its trend setters. As Mary Helen Washington observed in an influential afterword to Brown Girl, Brownstones, although Marshall had been publishing novels and short stories since the early 1950s, and was indeed the key link between African-American writers of the 1940s and those of the 1960s, she was just being "discovered" in the 1980s. While there has always been a small group of scholars, most notably Kamau Brathwaite, who have called attention to the indispensable role Marshall has played in the shaping of the literary canon of the African Diaspora, and of her profound understanding of the issues that have affected the complex formation and survival of African-derived cultures in the New World, many critics have found it difficult to locate her within the American, African-American, and Caribbean traditions that are the sources of her imagination and the subject of her major works. Marshall has embraced all these cultures in more profound ways than her more famous contemporaries have, but she has not gotten the accolades that have gone to lesser writers like Alice Walker. It is indeed one of the greatest injustices of

African Journal on Conflict Resolution

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The African Journal on Conflict Resolution (AJCR) publishes the writings of a wide range of African and international authors in the field, but emphasis has deliberately been kept on African writers and the thinking emerging from African universities, colleges and organisations. Other websites assiciated with this Journal: ...

Haemonchotolerance in West African Dwarf goats: contribution to sustainable, anthelmintics-free helminth control in traditionally managed Nigerian dwarf goats

Science.gov (United States)

Chiejina, Samuel N.; Behnke, Jerzy M.; Fakae, Barineme B.

2015-01-01

West African Dwarf (WAD) goats are extremely important in the rural village economy of West Africa, but still little is known about their biology, ecology and capacity to cope with gastrointestinal nematode (GIN) infections. Here, we summarise the history of this breed and explain its economic importance in rural West Africa. We review recent work showing that Nigerian WAD goats are highly trypanotolerant and resist infections with Haemonchus contortus more effectively than other breeds of domestic goat (haemonchotolerance). We believe that haemonchotolerance is largely responsible for the generally low level GIN infections and absence of clinical haemonchosis in WADs under field conditions, and has contributed to the relatively successful and sustainable, anthelmintics-free, small-scale system of goat husbandry in Nigeria’s humid zone, and is immunologically based and genetically controlled. If haemonchotolerance can be shown to be genetically controlled, it should be possible to exploit the underlying genes to improve GIN resistance among productive fibre and milk producing breeds of goats, most of which are highly susceptible to nematode infections. Genetic resistance to GIN and trypanosome infections would obviate the need for expensive chemotherapy, mostly unaffordable to small-holder farmers in Africa, and a significant cost of goat husbandry in more developed countries. Either introgression of resistance alleles into susceptible breeds by conventional breeding, or transgenesis could be used to develop novel parasite-resistant, but highly productive breeds, or to improve the resistance of existing breeds, benefitting the local West African rural economy as well as global caprine livestock agriculture. PMID:25744655

Haemonchotolerance in West African Dwarf goats: contribution to sustainable, anthelmintics-free helminth control in traditionally managed Nigerian dwarf goats.

Science.gov (United States)

Chiejina, Samuel N; Behnke, Jerzy M; Fakae, Barineme B

2015-01-01

West African Dwarf (WAD) goats are extremely important in the rural village economy of West Africa, but still little is known about their biology, ecology and capacity to cope with gastrointestinal nematode (GIN) infections. Here, we summarise the history of this breed and explain its economic importance in rural West Africa. We review recent work showing that Nigerian WAD goats are highly trypanotolerant and resist infections with Haemonchus contortus more effectively than other breeds of domestic goat (haemonchotolerance). We believe that haemonchotolerance is largely responsible for the generally low level GIN infections and absence of clinical haemonchosis in WADs under field conditions, and has contributed to the relatively successful and sustainable, anthelmintics-free, small-scale system of goat husbandry in Nigeria's humid zone, and is immunologically based and genetically controlled. If haemonchotolerance can be shown to be genetically controlled, it should be possible to exploit the underlying genes to improve GIN resistance among productive fibre and milk producing breeds of goats, most of which are highly susceptible to nematode infections. Genetic resistance to GIN and trypanosome infections would obviate the need for expensive chemotherapy, mostly unaffordable to small-holder farmers in Africa, and a significant cost of goat husbandry in more developed countries. Either introgression of resistance alleles into susceptible breeds by conventional breeding, or transgenesis could be used to develop novel parasite-resistant, but highly productive breeds, or to improve the resistance of existing breeds, benefitting the local West African rural economy as well as global caprine livestock agriculture. © S.N. Chiejina et al., published by EDP Sciences, 2015.

Emergence of Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis at a South African Mine

Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

This podcast describes the emergence of increasingly drug resistant tuberculosis at a mine in South Africa. CDC’s Dr. Dixie Snider discusses the outbreak and some of the reasons it may have occurred, despite the existence of a well-functioning TB control program at the mine.

High prevalence of multidrug resistant tuberculosis in Djibouti: a retrospective study.

Science.gov (United States)

Boyer-Cazajous, Géraldine; Martinaud, Christophe; Déhan, Céline; Hassan, Mohammed Osman; Gaas, Yassin; Chenilleau-Vidal, Marie-Caroline; Soler, Charles

2014-02-13

The Republic of Djibouti is an African country that exhibits one of the highest incidence rate of tuberculosis in the world. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis among new cases. We studied retrospectively every tuberculosis case diagnosed over a 12-month period in patients hospitalized at the French Military Hospital of Bouffard. During this period, 1,274 samples from 675 patients were tested. We isolated 266 mycobacteria corresponding to 180 cases of tuberculosis. Thirty-three were fully susceptible and 57% met the tuberculosis criteria, with 46% primary resistance. No extensively-drug-resistant tuberculosis was found. Our results highlight a major concern about the situation in this part of the world.

Community leaders' perspectives on engaging African Americans in biobanks and other human genetics initiatives.

Science.gov (United States)

Buseh, Aaron G; Stevens, Patricia E; Millon-Underwood, Sandra; Townsend, Leolia; Kelber, Sheryl T

2013-10-01

There is limited information about what African Americans think about biobanks and the ethical questions surrounding them. Likewise, there is a gap in capacity to successfully enroll African Americans as biobank donors. The purposes of this community-based participatory study were to: (a) explore African Americans' perspectives on genetics/genomic research, (b) understand facilitators and barriers to participation in such studies, and (c) enlist their ideas about how to attract and sustain engagement of African Americans in genetics initiatives. As the first phase in a mixed methods study, we conducted four focus groups with 21 African American community leaders in one US Midwest city. The sample consisted of executive directors of community organizations and prominent community activists. Data were analyzed thematically. Skepticism about biomedical research and lack of trust characterized discussions about biomedical research and biobanks. The Tuskegee Untreated Syphilis Study and the Henrietta Lacks case influenced their desire to protect their community from harm and exploitation. Connections between genetics and family history made genetics/genomics research personal, pitting intrusion into private affairs against solutions. Participants also expressed concerns about ethical issues involved in genomics research, calling attention to how research had previously been conducted in their community. Participants hoped personalized medicine might bring health benefits to their people and proposed African American communities have a "seat at the table." They called for basic respect, authentic collaboration, bidirectional education, transparency and prerogative, and meaningful benefits and remuneration. Key to building trust and overcoming African Americans' trepidation and resistance to participation in biobanks are early and persistent engagement with the community, partnerships with community stakeholders to map research priorities, ethical conduct of research, and

Globalization and African Political Science | Nnoli | African Journal ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

No Abstract Available African Journal of Political Science Vol.8(2) 2003: 11-32. Full Text: EMAIL FULL TEXT EMAIL FULL TEXT · DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT · http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/ajps.v8i2.27352 · AJOL African Journals Online. HOW TO USE AJOL... for Researchers · for Librarians · for Authors ...

The contribution of agricultural insecticide use to increasing insecticide resistance in African malaria vectors.

Science.gov (United States)

Reid, Molly C; McKenzie, F Ellis

2016-02-19

The fight against malaria is increasingly threatened by failures in vector control due to growing insecticide resistance. This review examines the recent primary research that addresses the putative relationship between agricultural insecticide use and trends in insecticide resistance. To do so, descriptive evidence offered by the new research was categorized, and additional factors that impact the relationship between agricultural insecticide use and observed insecticide resistance in malaria vectors were identified. In 23 of the 25 relevant recent publications from across Africa, higher resistance in mosquito populations was associated with agricultural insecticide use. This association appears to be affected by crop type, farm pest management strategy and urban development.

The contribution of agricultural insecticide use to increasing insecticide resistance in African malaria vectors

OpenAIRE

Reid, Molly C.; McKenzie, F. Ellis

2016-01-01

The fight against malaria is increasingly threatened by failures in vector control due to growing insecticide resistance. This review examines the recent primary research that addresses the putative relationship between agricultural insecticide use and trends in insecticide resistance. To do so, descriptive evidence offered by the new research was categorized, and additional factors that impact the relationship between agricultural insecticide use and observed insecticide resistance in malari...

From Contextual Theology to African Christianity: The Consideration of Adiaphora from a South African Perspective

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joel Mokhoathi

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The move towards contextual Christianity in Africa is an essential venture if Christianity is to communicate with the African cultural heritage. As a universal religion, Christianity has to find an expression within the cultural context. However, the contextualization of Christianity in Africa appears to have permitted the practice of syncretism. It has resulted in the emergence of African Christianity, which is the amalgamation of Christianity and African Traditional Religion. The amalgamation of Christianity and African Traditional Religion appears to overlook the essence of both religions as there is currently no clarity on how Christianity can best be expressed within the African cultural and religious heritage. This paper employs the document review method to explore the things that fall in between—“adiaphora”, which the proponents of contextual Christianity may have overlooked with regard to the African cultural and religious heritage. These include the pragmatic nature of the African cultural and religious heritage, and the African traditional methods of healing.

Epigastric Hernia in Pregnancy: A Management Plan Based on a Systematic Review of Literature and a Case History

OpenAIRE

Debrah, Samuel A.; Okpala, Amalachukwu M.

2012-01-01

Symptomatic epigastric hernia is rare in pregnant women. A case history, management of which prompted a systematic review of the literature and proposed plan for treatment of such cases, is hereby presented. There is paucity of information on management of this condition in the standard literature as searches in Pubmed, Science Direct, Hinari, Medline, African Journal Online, Bioone as well as Cochrane library revealed. There are two schools of thought for the management of hernias in pregnan...

Oral health-related cultural beliefs for four racial/ethnic groups: Assessment of the literature.

Science.gov (United States)

Butani, Yogita; Weintraub, Jane A; Barker, Judith C

2008-09-15

The purpose of this study was to assess information available in the dental literature on oral health-related cultural beliefs. In the US, as elsewhere, many racial/ethnic minority groups shoulder a disproportionate burden of oral disease. Cultural beliefs, values and practices are often implicated as causes of oral health disparities, yet little is known about the breadth or adequacy of literature about cultural issues that could support these assertions. Hence, this rigorous assessment was conducted of work published in English on cultural beliefs and values in relation to oral health status and dental practice. Four racial/ethnic groups in the US (African-American, Chinese, Filipino and Hispanic/Latino) were chosen as exemplar populations. The dental literature published in English for the period 1980-2006 noted in the electronic database PUBMED was searched, using keywords and MeSH headings in different combinations for each racial/ethnic group to identify eligible articles. To be eligible the title and abstract when available had to describe the oral health-related cultural knowledge or orientation of the populations studied. Overall, the majority of the literature on racial/ethnic groups was epidemiologic in nature, mainly demonstrating disparities in oral health rather than the oral beliefs or practices of these groups. A total of 60 relevant articles were found: 16 for African-American, 30 for Chinese, 2 for Filipino and 12 for Hispanic/Latino populations. Data on beliefs and practices from these studies has been abstracted, compiled and assessed. Few research-based studies were located. Articles lacked adequate identification of groups studied, used limited methods and had poor conceptual base. The scant information available from the published dental and medical literature provides at best a rudimentary framework of oral health related ideas and beliefs for specific populations.

Oral health-related cultural beliefs for four racial/ethnic groups: Assessment of the literature

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Barker Judith C

2008-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The purpose of this study was to assess information available in the dental literature on oral health-related cultural beliefs. In the US, as elsewhere, many racial/ethnic minority groups shoulder a disproportionate burden of oral disease. Cultural beliefs, values and practices are often implicated as causes of oral health disparities, yet little is known about the breadth or adequacy of literature about cultural issues that could support these assertions. Hence, this rigorous assessment was conducted of work published in English on cultural beliefs and values in relation to oral health status and dental practice. Four racial/ethnic groups in the US (African-American, Chinese, Filipino and Hispanic/Latino were chosen as exemplar populations. Methods The dental literature published in English for the period 1980–2006 noted in the electronic database PUBMED was searched, using keywords and MeSH headings in different combinations for each racial/ethnic group to identify eligible articles. To be eligible the title and abstract when available had to describe the oral health-related cultural knowledge or orientation of the populations studied. Results Overall, the majority of the literature on racial/ethnic groups was epidemiologic in nature, mainly demonstrating disparities in oral health rather than the oral beliefs or practices of these groups. A total of 60 relevant articles were found: 16 for African-American, 30 for Chinese, 2 for Filipino and 12 for Hispanic/Latino populations. Data on beliefs and practices from these studies has been abstracted, compiled and assessed. Few research-based studies were located. Articles lacked adequate identification of groups studied, used limited methods and had poor conceptual base. Conclusion The scant information available from the published dental and medical literature provides at best a rudimentary framework of oral health related ideas and beliefs for specific populations.

Opening access to African scholarly content: Stellenbosch University's AOARI platforms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dr Reggie Raju

2013-03-01

Full Text Available Africa is viewed as a consumer of the world's knowledge production. A significant factor influencing this status is the low research output, with the main contributor to this status being minimum access to scholarly content to support research. Stellenbosch University, a leading research institution on the African continent, is committed to contributing to changing this status quo through the distribution of its own research output utilizing open sources. Given the challenges that have plagued Africa in developing processes for the distribution of their research, Stellenbosch University has developed the African Open Access Repository Initiative (AOARI which uses open source software for two platforms that support the ‘green’ and ‘gold’ route to sharing scholarly literature: Ubuntu is used as the operating system, DSpace is used for its repository and Open Journal Systems for its publication platform. It is anticipated that AOARI will be the bridge that facilitates the sharing of research output and nurtures a culture of research production in Africa.

Using Visual Ethnography to Explore a Principal's Perceptions of Innovations Made in a South African Primary School

Science.gov (United States)

Steyn, G. M.

2013-01-01

This study investigates a South African principal's view of implementing invitational education (IE) as an example of a professional development programme (PD) within a particular school setting. Two types of literature inform this study: leadership supportive of school development and the invitational education approach to teaching and learning.…

Genetic structure of the gentle Africanized honey bee population (gAHB) in Puerto Rico.

Science.gov (United States)

Galindo-Cardona, Alberto; Acevedo-Gonzalez, Jenny P; Rivera-Marchand, Bert; Giray, Tugrul

2013-08-06

The Africanized honey bee is one of the most spectacular invasions in the Americas. African bees escaped from apiaries in Brazil in 1956, spread over Americas and by 1994 they were reported in Puerto Rico. In contrast to other places, the oceanic island conditions in Puerto Rico may mean a single introduction and different dynamics of the resident European and new-coming Africanized bees.To examine the genetic variation of honey bee feral populations and colonies from different locations in Puerto Rico, we used eight known polymorphic microsatellite loci. In Puerto Rico, gAHB population does not show any genetic structure (Fst = 0.0783), and is best described as one honey bee population, product of hybridization of AHB and EHB. The genetic variability in this Africanized population was similar to that reported in studies from Texas. We observed that European private allele frequencies are high in all but one locus. This contrasts with mainland Africanized populations, where European allele frequencies are diminished. Two loci with European private alleles, one on Linkage Group 7, known to carry two known defensiveness Quantitative Trait Loci (QTLs), and the other on Linkage Group 1, known to carry three functionally studied genes and 11 candidate genes associated with Varroa resistance mechanisms were respectively, significantly greater or lower in European allele frequency than the other loci with European private alleles. Genetic structure of Puerto Rico gAHB differs from mainland AHB populations, probably representing evolutionary processes on the island.

Shadow of Imana: Travels in the Heart of Rwanda by Véronique Tadjo as the First Travelogue in the Francophone African Literatures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nina D. Lyakhovskaya

2017-12-01

Full Text Available This essay focuses on the genre of travelogue that was new to the African Francophone literatures. The analysis of the novel In the Shadow of Imana: Travels in the Heart of Rwanda (2000 by the Ivorian writer Véronique Tadjo is a standpoint of my polemics with the con- cept of travelogue and its distinctive features defined by Maiga Abubakarom Abdulvakhidu in his PhD dissertation Africa in French and Russian Travelogues (A. Gide and N. Gumilev (2016. The author of the dissertation considers travelogues to be a “composite” form. One part is documentary-biographical with the obligatory chronotope of the way, stops, and personal impressions of the travelers (Gide’s travel notes about his travels to Tunisia, Sahara, Congo, lake Chad, Egyptian Diaries, etc.; Gumilev’s travel notes about Abyssinia, African Diaries, and letters. The second part is fictional (Gide’s prose poem “The Fruits of the Earth” and his novel Immoralist; Gumilev’s tales and poems from his turn-of-the-century collections such as The Tent, The Quiver, and The Fire. Tadjo’s book, in contrast to these travelogues, represents a solid form that combines documentary and biographical prose (containing the chronotope of the way and stops in the places of the tragic death of tutsi, the victims of the hutu genocide in 1994 with fiction (mini-novellas with fictional characters. Maiga claims that the latter is never neutral and is usually structured as a comparison of “one’s own” and the “other” culture. Moreover, the representative of “one’s own” culture is usually also the representative of the normal strand. In Maiga’s concept, however, an essential property of travelogues such as personal motivation of the travelogue author is marginalized. This property defines a motif that gives its solid form to the travelogue. In Tadjo’s travelogue, this is compassion for the genocide victims in Rwanda and the author’s indignation with the indifference of the

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

It has also been difficult for African researchers to access the work of other African academics. ... search for an article by title, author/s or keywords,; and find other information ... Southern African Business Review; Project Work by Students for First ... The Basis of Distinction Between Qualitative and Quantitative Research in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

It has also been difficult for African researchers to access the work of other African ... search for an article by title, author/s or keywords,; and find other information ... Southern African Business Review; Effect of Globalization on Sovereignty of States ... The Basis of Distinction Between Qualitative and Quantitative Research in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

It has also been difficult for African researchers to access the work of other African ... search for an article by title, author/s or keywords,; and find other information sources ... Southern African Business Review; Conflicts in Africa: Meaning, Causes, ... The Basis of Distinction Between Qualitative and Quantitative Research in ...

How student teachers understand African philosophy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matsephe M. Letseka

2012-10-01

Full Text Available The question ‘What constitutes African philosophy?’ was first raised with the publication of Placide Tempels’s seminal work Bantu philosophy in 1959. Tempels’s book inevitably elicited considerable critical response from African philosophers, which culminated in a wide range of publications such as Wiredu’s (1980 Philosophy and an African culture, Hountondji’s (1983 African philosophy: Myth and reality, Oruka’s (1990 Sage philosophy: Indigenous thinkers and modern debate on African philosophy, Shutte’s (1993 Philosophy for Africa, Masolo’s (1994 African philosophy in search of identity and Gyekye’s (1995 An essay of African philosophical thought: The Akan conceptual scheme. It has been over 60 years since the publication of Temples’s book and there continues to be serious debate about African philosophy. This article sought to contribute to the debate on the various conceptions of African philosophy, but with a focus on the challenges of teaching African philosophy to Philosophy of Education students at an open distance learning institution in South Africa. This article discussed the tendency amongst undergraduate Philosophy of Education students to conflate and reduce African philosophy to African cultures and traditions, and to the notion of ubuntu, and sought to understand the reasons for students’ inclination to treat African philosophy in this way. It examined students’ background knowledge of African philosophy, their critical thinking skills and whether their official study materials are selected and packaged in a manner that, in fact, adds to the challenges they face. Finally, the article explored the ways in which Philosophy of Education lecturers can adapt their pedagogy to provide students with a better understanding of African philosophy.

A Systematic Literature Review of the Average IQ of Sub-Saharan Africans

Science.gov (United States)

Wicherts, Jelte M.; Dolan, Conor V.; van der Maas, Han L. J.

2010-01-01

On the basis of several reviews of the literature, Lynn [Lynn, R., (2006). Race differences in intelligence: An evolutionary analysis. Augusta, GA: Washington Summit Publishers.] and Lynn and Vanhanen [Lynn, R., & Vanhanen, T., (2006). IQ and global inequality. Augusta, GA: Washington Summit Publishers.] concluded that the average IQ of the…

Informed consent comprehension in African research settings.

Science.gov (United States)

Afolabi, Muhammed O; Okebe, Joseph U; McGrath, Nuala; Larson, Heidi J; Bojang, Kalifa; Chandramohan, Daniel

2014-06-01

Previous reviews on participants' comprehension of informed consent information have focused on developed countries. Experience has shown that ethical standards developed on Western values may not be appropriate for African settings where research concepts are unfamiliar. We undertook this review to describe how informed consent comprehension is defined and measured in African research settings. We conducted a comprehensive search involving five electronic databases: Medline, Embase, Global Health, EthxWeb and Bioethics Literature Database (BELIT). We also examined African Index Medicus and Google Scholar for relevant publications on informed consent comprehension in clinical studies conducted in sub-Saharan Africa. 29 studies satisfied the inclusion criteria; meta-analysis was possible in 21 studies. We further conducted a direct comparison of participants' comprehension on domains of informed consent in all eligible studies. Comprehension of key concepts of informed consent varies considerably from country to country and depends on the nature and complexity of the study. Meta-analysis showed that 47% of a total of 1633 participants across four studies demonstrated comprehension about randomisation (95% CI 13.9-80.9%). Similarly, 48% of 3946 participants in six studies had understanding about placebo (95% CI 19.0-77.5%), while only 30% of 753 participants in five studies understood the concept of therapeutic misconception (95% CI 4.6-66.7%). Measurement tools for informed consent comprehension were developed with little or no validation. Assessment of comprehension was carried out at variable times after disclosure of study information. No uniform definition of informed consent comprehension exists to form the basis for development of an appropriate tool to measure comprehension in African participants. Comprehension of key concepts of informed consent is poor among study participants across Africa. There is a vital need to develop a uniform definition for

African Traditional Religion and the African Cinema: The Case of Nollywood

OpenAIRE

Akua Agyeiwaa Manieson

2014-01-01

This study aims at a discussion of the portrayal of African Traditional Religion in some selected Nollywood films. It is herein argued that Nollywood is deliberately bent on denigrating the African traditional religion. Three main religious groups are represented in Nigeria. These are Muslims forming about 50.4%, followed by Christians 48.2% while followers of other religions especially African Traditional religion, comprises 1.4% 1. This statistic has earned for Nigeria an accolade: a multi-...

African Journals Online: Health

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Items 1 - 50 of 167 ... African Journal of AIDS Research (AJAR) is a peer-reviewed ... The African Journal of Drug & Alcohol Studies is an international ... The Journal has been produced through the efforts of Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) and the African .... in basic and clinical medical sciences as well as dentistry.

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

In partnership with hundreds of journals from all over the continent, AJOL works to change this, so that African-origin research output is available to Africans and to ... African Journal of AIDS Research. Vol 35, No 2 (2017). Zimbabwe Veterinary Journal. Vol 34, No 1 (2018). Eastern Africa Social Science Research Review.

Social media marketing and business competitiveness: evidence from South African tourism SMMEs

OpenAIRE

Patient Rambe

2017-01-01

The increasing prominence of social media marketing in advancing the global reach and visibility of products and services is ideal for the South African tourism industry, which depends on local and international visitors for leveraging its business activities and competitiveness. However, what remains under-explored in tourism literature is the depth of integration of social media marketing into the competitive strategies of emerging tourism small, micro and medium enterprises (SMMEs). To add...

Resisting Dominant Discourses: Implications of Indigenous, African Feminist Theory and Methods for Gender and Education Research

Science.gov (United States)

Chilisa, Bagele; Ntseane, Gabo

2010-01-01

In this paper we explore tensions between Western gender theory and research, and post-colonial and indigenous feminist standpoints, which challenge us to re-define our roles as feminist-activist educators and researchers working with formerly colonised and historically marginalised communities. We discuss how African and Black feminist approaches…

On being African and Reformed? Towards an African Reformed ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Here, the notions of being African and Reformed are interrogated. The research notes that these notions are rarely used in the same vein. It is admitted that notions tend to pick up different meanings as they evolve, so these notions are especially seen in that light. The theological hegemony, which in the South African ...

Testing three pathways to substance use and delinquency among low-income African American adolescents☆

Science.gov (United States)

Marotta, Phillip L.; Voisin, Dexter R.

2017-01-01

Objective Mounting literature suggests that parental monitoring, risky peer norms, and future orientation correlate with illicit drug use and delinquency. However, few studies have investigated these constructs simultaneously in a single statistical model with low income African American youth. This study examined parental monitoring, peer norms and future orientation as primary pathways to drug use and delinquent behaviors in a large sample of African American urban adolescents. Methods A path model tested direct paths from peer norms, parental monitoring, and future orientation to drug use and delinquency outcomes after adjusting for potential confounders such as age, socioeconomic, and sexual orientation in a sample of 541 African American youth. Results Greater scores on measures of risky peer norms were associated with heightened risk of delinquency with an effect size that was twice in magnitude compared to the protective effects of future orientation. Regarding substance use, greater perceived risky peer norms correlated with the increased likelihood of substance use with a standardized effect size 3.33 times in magnitude compared to the protective effects of parental monitoring. Conclusions Findings from this study suggest that interventions targeting risky peer norms among adolescent African American youth may correlate with a greater impact on reductions in substance use and delinquency than exclusively targeting parental monitoring or future orientation. PMID:28974824

Wastewater as a Source of Carbapenem Resistant Escherichia coli

Science.gov (United States)

Clinical studies have reported that the occurrence of carbapenem resistant E. coli is on the rise. This is of concern because carbapenem antibiotics are typically reserved for treating infections caused by bacteria resistant to other classes of antibiotics. Current literature st...

Estimated annual incomes of South African traditional healers as generated by their practices and sales of their pre-modern traditional health products for 2015/2016

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gabriel Louw

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Background In South Africa, it is an accepted fact that the main role players in the manufacturing and selling of so called traditional medicine (TAM are traditional healers. The Traditional Health Practitioners Act No 22 not only strengthened this perception in 2007 by giving statutory recognition to traditional healers as traditional health practitioners, but also with its various definitions as they are reflected in the Act. There is an estimation that South African research on traditional healing that TAM, specifically under the guardianship of the traditional healers, generates in excess of R2 billion (R2,000 million annually. The idea also exists that the traditional healers offer a widespread indispensable medical service, specifically through their medical and health products, which contributes to a further R1 billion (R1,000 million or more in income. Aims The study aims to estimate the annual income generated by South African traditional healers in their practices and with the manufacturing, prescription and selling of their traditional health products for the period 2015/2016. Methods This is an exploratory and descriptive study that makes use of an historical approach by means of investigation and a literature review. The emphasis is on using current documentation like articles, books and newspapers as primary sources to reflect on the South African traditional healers’ estimated annual incomes as generated by their practices and the manufacturing, prescription and selling of their health and medical products for the period 2015/2016. The findings are offered in narrative form. Results Over the years, it seems that a misconception was established in South Africa about what traditional medicines really are and who the specific manufacturers and sellers are. There is no differentiation between the traditional medicines offered and marketed in the South African retail and commercial market, and those prepared by traditional healers

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

West African Journal of Applied Ecology. Vol 6, No 2 (2017). Filosofia Theoretica: Journal of African Philosophy, Culture and Religions. AJOL African Journals Online. HOW TO USE AJOL... for Researchers · for Librarians · for Authors · FAQ's · More about AJOL · AJOL's Partners · Terms and Conditions of Use · Contact AJOL ...

Getting African climate change research recognised

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Denton, Fatima; Anderson, Simon; Ayers, Jessica

2011-11-15

Across Africa, programmes such as the Climate Change Adaptation in Africa initiative are investigating what it means for countries and communities to effectively adapt to climate change, and how this can be achieved in practice. But research results are not always recognised by policymakers or the global research community — in part because they are not visible within the traditional hallmark of scientific scholarship and credibility, peer-reviewed literature. Greater efforts are required to encourage African scientists to engage in the peer-review process and give their research the credibility it needs to convince decision makers that robust scientific findings support the solutions offered. At the same time, decision makers themselves must find ways of assessing and making use of robust research outside the peer-review arena.

Stereotype or reality: another look at alcohol and drug use among African American children.

Science.gov (United States)

Bass, L E; Kane-Williams, E

1993-01-01

The Center for Substance Abuse Prevention's Division of Communications Programs launched its Urban Youth Public Education Campaign in late 1990 to target African American youth in 14 cities with prevention messages about alcohol and other drugs. During the market research phase of the campaign, the Center sought to determine the extent inner city African American children are impacted by alcohol and other drugs and how widespread the use of these substances is among younger children. Is it rampant and universal, as some press accounts have it, or are the images portrayed by the news media, by popular movies, and by other communication outlets fueling harmful stereotypes? The campaign's market research consisted of in-depth reviews of the literature, of personal communications, conference proceedings, grant and contract reports, monographs, newspaper and magazine articles, and of national survey results, and the analysis of findings from focus groups conducted with 143 African American children living in several urban environments. Although information and conclusions gleaned from the market research revealed a longstanding trend of comparatively lower rates of alcohol and drug use by African American youth, also disclosed was a need for an expanded framework to address the problems of substance abuse within the African American community. An expanded framework acknowledges the dimension of substance use and abuse but also addresses three other dimensions--involvement, exposure, and victimization--that unfold as having major significance for this population of youth who live in urban, high-risk environments.

Tensions in Teaching Adolescence/ts: Analyzing Resistances in a Young Adult Literature Course

Science.gov (United States)

Sarigianides, Sophia Tatiana

2012-01-01

Identifying English Education courses focused on young adult literature as apposite sites for exploring teacher conceptions of youth and the texts aimed for youths' consumptions, this article addresses the multiple sources of tension--and pedagogical potential--of teaching a young adult literature course centrally framed around controversial…

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

South African Journal for Research in Sport, Physical Education and Recreation. Vol 17, No 4 (2017). African Health Sciences. Vol 6, No 1 (2015). Nigeria Journal of Pure and Applied Physics. Vol 5, No 2 (2017). Journal of Student Affairs in Africa. Vol 14, No 1 (2017). Annals of African Surgery. Vol 63, No 7-9 (2018).

Environmental and Public Health Implications of Water Reuse: Antibiotics, Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria, and Antibiotic Resistance Genes

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, Pei-Ying; Al-Jassim, Nada; Ansari, Mohd Ikram; Mackie, Roderick I.

2013-01-01

Water scarcity is a global problem, and is particularly acute in certain regions like Africa, the Middle East, as well as the western states of America. A breakdown on water usage revealed that 70% of freshwater supplies are used for agricultural irrigation. The use of reclaimed water as an alternative water source for agricultural irrigation would greatly alleviate the demand on freshwater sources. This paradigm shift is gaining momentum in several water scarce countries like Saudi Arabia. However, microbial problems associated with reclaimed water may hinder the use of reclaimed water for agricultural irrigation. Of particular concern is that the occurrence of antibiotic residues in the reclaimed water can select for antibiotic resistance genes among the microbial community. Antibiotic resistance genes can be associated with mobile genetic elements, which in turn allow a promiscuous transfer of resistance traits from one bacterium to another. Together with the pathogens that are present in the reclaimed water, antibiotic resistant bacteria can potentially exchange mobile genetic elements to create the “perfect microbial storm”. Given the significance of this issue, a deeper understanding of the occurrence of antibiotics in reclaimed water, and their potential influence on the selection of resistant microorganisms would be essential. In this review paper, we collated literature over the past two decades to determine the occurrence of antibiotics in municipal wastewater and livestock manure. We then discuss how these antibiotic resistant bacteria may impose a potential microbial risk to the environment and public health, and the knowledge gaps that would have to be addressed in future studies. Overall, the collation of the literature in wastewater treatment and agriculture serves to frame and identify potential concerns with respect to antibiotics, antibiotic resistant bacteria, and antibiotic resistance genes in reclaimed water. PMID:27029309

Environmental and Public Health Implications of Water Reuse: Antibiotics, Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria, and Antibiotic Resistance Genes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roderick I. Mackie

2013-07-01

Full Text Available Water scarcity is a global problem, and is particularly acute in certain regions like Africa, the Middle East, as well as the western states of America. A breakdown on water usage revealed that 70% of freshwater supplies are used for agricultural irrigation. The use of reclaimed water as an alternative water source for agricultural irrigation would greatly alleviate the demand on freshwater sources. This paradigm shift is gaining momentum in several water scarce countries like Saudi Arabia. However, microbial problems associated with reclaimed water may hinder the use of reclaimed water for agricultural irrigation. Of particular concern is that the occurrence of antibiotic residues in the reclaimed water can select for antibiotic resistance genes among the microbial community. Antibiotic resistance genes can be associated with mobile genetic elements, which in turn allow a promiscuous transfer of resistance traits from one bacterium to another. Together with the pathogens that are present in the reclaimed water, antibiotic resistant bacteria can potentially exchange mobile genetic elements to create the “perfect microbial storm”. Given the significance of this issue, a deeper understanding of the occurrence of antibiotics in reclaimed water, and their potential influence on the selection of resistant microorganisms would be essential. In this review paper, we collated literature over the past two decades to determine the occurrence of antibiotics in municipal wastewater and livestock manure. We then discuss how these antibiotic resistant bacteria may impose a potential microbial risk to the environment and public health, and the knowledge gaps that would have to be addressed in future studies. Overall, the collation of the literature in wastewater treatment and agriculture serves to frame and identify potential concerns with respect to antibiotics, antibiotic resistant bacteria, and antibiotic resistance genes in reclaimed water.

Environmental and Public Health Implications of Water Reuse: Antibiotics, Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria, and Antibiotic Resistance Genes

KAUST Repository

Hong, Pei-Ying; Aljassim, Nada I.; Ansari, Mohd Ikram; Mackie, Roderick

2013-01-01

Water scarcity is a global problem, and is particularly acute in certain regions like Africa, the Middle East, as well as the western states of America. A breakdown on water usage revealed that 70% of freshwater supplies are used for agricultural irrigation. The use of reclaimed water as an alternative water source for agricultural irrigation would greatly alleviate the demand on freshwater sources. This paradigm shift is gaining momentum in several water scarce countries like Saudi Arabia. However, microbial problems associated with reclaimed water may hinder the use of reclaimed water for agricultural irrigation. Of particular concern is that the occurrence of antibiotic residues in the reclaimed water can select for antibiotic resistance genes among the microbial community. Antibiotic resistance genes can be associated with mobile genetic elements, which in turn allow a promiscuous transfer of resistance traits from one bacterium to another. Together with the pathogens that are present in the reclaimed water, antibiotic resistant bacteria can potentially exchange mobile genetic elements to create the “perfect microbial storm”. Given the significance of this issue, a deeper understanding of the occurrence of antibiotics in reclaimed water, and their potential influence on the selection of resistant microorganisms would be essential. In this review paper, we collated literature over the past two decades to determine the occurrence of antibiotics in municipal wastewater and livestock manure. We then discuss how these antibiotic resistant bacteria may impose a potential microbial risk to the environment and public health, and the knowledge gaps that would have to be addressed in future studies. Overall, the collation of the literature in wastewater treatment and agriculture serves to frame and identify potential concerns with respect to antibiotics, antibiotic resistant bacteria, and antibiotic resistance genes in reclaimed water.