A phytoremediation approach for the restoration of coal fly ash polluted sites: A review.

Coal fly ash (CFA) is a predominant waste by-product of coal combustion which is disposed of in open ash dams that utilize large pieces of land. This waste material is classified as a hazardous substance in South Africa as well as in other countries due to its fine particles that are easily blown to the atmosphere and the unacceptable levels of heavy metals and persistent organic pollutants. Contaminants in CFA can pollute surface and ground water, agricultural sites, soil and therefore pose risks to the health of humans and the environment.

Impact of a Nutrition Knowledge Intervention on Knowledge and Food Behaviour of Women Within a Rural Community.

Introduction: The influence of women in shaping household dietary habits is undeniable, with their maternal nutritional knowledge significantly impacting the overall well-being of their families. The study objective was to evaluate the impact of maternal nutritional knowledge on household dietary habits, emphasising the improvement in women's nutrition knowledge and food-related behaviours.

Purpose: This study aimed to assess the immediate and long-term effects of a nutrition education intervention on the nutrition knowledge and food-related behaviours of women.

Evaluation of the Potential Hypoglycaemic Properties of Sond. and A.Berger, Two Plants Used by Traditional Healers in South Africa.

Sond. And A.Berger are used traditionally in South Africa to manage many diseases, including diabetes mellitus.

South African indigenous chickens' genetic diversity, and the adoption of ecological niche modelling and landscape genomics as strategic conservation techniques.

Selection pressures found in the prevailing production environments have shaped the genetic structure of indigenous chickens we see today. Indigenous chickens, raised in villages, provide essential genetic resources and income for poverty alleviation by providing affordable protein. However, they are threatened by predators, emerging diseases, and market demand for ideal breeds and fast production which causes loss of their valuable traits.

The duality of hope and challenges: a phenomenological study of first-year university students' experiences in South Africa.

Introduction: In South Africa, access to higher education is viewed as a pathway to improved life chances. However, the transition from school to university is a stressful experience for students, marked by significant challenges. Although literature acknowledges these challenges, limited research has focused specifically on the role of hope during this period.

Three-Dimensional Instance Segmentation Using the Generalized Hough Transform and the Adaptive n-Shifted Shuffle Attention.

The progress of 3D instance segmentation techniques has made it essential for several applications, such as augmented reality, autonomous driving, and robotics. Traditional methods usually have challenges with complex indoor scenes made of multiple objects with different occlusions and orientations. In this work, the authors present an innovative model that integrates a new adaptive n-shifted shuffle (ANSS) attention mechanism with the Generalized Hough Transform (GHT) for robust 3D instance segmentation of indoor scenes.

Phytochemical Screening and Characterization of Volatile Compounds from Three Medicinal Plants with Reported Anticancer Properties Using GC-MS.

, (L.), and (L.) are abundant plants and widely distributed in the Limpopo, Gauteng, Kwazulu-Natal, North West and Mpumalanga provinces in South Africa.

Microbes in Agriculture: Prospects and Constraints to Their Wider Adoption and Utilization in Nutrient-Poor Environments.

Microbes such as bacteria and fungi play important roles in nutrient cycling in soils, often leading to the bioavailability of metabolically important mineral elements such as nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), iron (Fe), and zinc (Zn). Examples of microbes with beneficial traits for plant growth promotion include mycorrhizal fungi, associative diazotrophs, and the N-fixing rhizobia belonging to the α, β and γ class of Proteobacteria. Mycorrhizal fungi generally contribute to increasing the surface area of soil-root interface for optimum nutrient uptake by plants.

The Cardiometabolic Multimorbidity Risk Profile of Females Living in Glendale, ILembe District of Kwa-Zulu Natal.

Background: Empirical studies have indicated that cardiometabolic multimorbidity risk profiles are upsurging among the South African population. However, there is a limited number of studies that have been conducted to validate these findings in rural communities.

Aim: To study the prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors of females residing in rural Glendale in the ILembe District, South Africa.

Impact of Drying on Phytonutritional Compounds, In Vitro Antioxidant Activity and Cytotoxicity of Spiny Saltbush ().

The Spiny saltbush () is a halophyte species with the potential to provide natural ingredients used in food and pharmaceutical industries. In food and pharmaceutical applications, drying is necessary to maintain shelf-life, which reduces phytonutrient content. In this study, changes in the nutritional composition, phenolic and carotenoid profiles of radical antioxidant scavenging activity [(2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid)(ABTS)], antioxidant power [ferric reducing antioxidant ability assay (FRAP)], and cytotoxicity of freeze- and oven-dried (55 °C for 24 h) spiny saltbush were determined.

Impact of Fermentation of Pumpkin Leaves and Melon Varieties with Lactobacillus Strains on Physicochemical Properties, Antioxidant Activity, and Carotenoid Compounds.

This study examined the impact of fermentation using () and () on the total soluble solids (TSS), pH, TA, LAB survival, color properties, ascorbic acid content, total phenolic content (TPC), carotenoid components, and antioxidant properties of smoothies made from melon varieties (Cantaloupe, Honeydew, and Watermelon) separately with pumpkin leaves ( and ). For all smoothies, pH (r = -0.74) and TSS (r = -0.

Water provisioning shapes carnivore community structure.

Water provisioning is common in arid and semi-arid African ecosystems, but its effects on carnivore communities are not understood. Recently, Morin et al. documented the unexpectedly contrasting space-use patterns of dominant and subordinate carnivores around water sources, with dominant carnivores facilitating subordinate carnivores.

Antecedents and consequences of South African female athletes' trust in the coach.

The purpose of this study was to investigate female South African school athletes' trust in their coaches in relation to their perceptions of the coaches' justice, benevolence, integrity, competence, commitment to coach, willingness to cooperate, and performance. A quantitative cross-sectional research design was used in this study. The results showed that there was a large correlation between trust in the coach and the following factors: perceived justice ( = .

Validating enzyme immunoassays for non-invasive reproductive hormone monitoring in Temminck's pangolin.

Gonadal hormones play a central role in reproductive function and success. As such, quantifying reproductive hormones non-invasively in threatened, vulnerable and endangered wildlife species offers an ideal tool for assessing general and individual reproductive patterns . Whilst the use of faeces as a hormone matrix is often preferred in these cases, the required enzyme immunoassays (EIAs) for measuring faecal androgen (fAM), oestrogen (fEM) and progestagen metabolite (fPM) concentrations must first be validated if a species gets investigated for the first time to ensure biologically relevant patterns can be observed.

Unravelling the effect of crystal lattice compression on the supercapacitive performance of hydrothermally grown nanostructured hollandite α-MnO induced by incremental growth time.

Manganese oxide (α-MnO) nanoparticles are highly recognised for their use in supercapacitor applications. This study demonstrates the successful synthesis of flower-like and nanorods hollandite α-MnO by a simple one-pot hydrothermal technique at various reaction times. The synthesised nanoparticles were characterised by various physicochemical and electrochemical characterisation techniques.

Tailoring a hierarchical porous carbon electrode from carbon black 3D diatomite morphology control for enhanced electrochemical performance.

Carbon black, a nano-porous material usually derived from the pyrolysis of waste tyres possesses varied particle sizes and morphology making it a viable material for several engineering applications. However, the high tendency for CB to agglomerate remains a challenge. To address this, bio-templating has been employed to produce a nanostructured porous carbon electrode material for supercapacitor applications using diatomite as a template.

Diversity and Host Specificity of Avian Haemosporidians in an Afrotropical Conservation Region.

Afrotropical regions have high bird diversity, yet few studies have attempted to unravel the prevalence of avian haemosporidia in conservation areas. The diversity and host specificity of parasites in biodiversity hotspots is crucial to understanding parasite distribution and potential disease emergence. We test the hypothesis that biodiverse regions are associated with highly diverse parasites.

A Snapshot of the Global Trade of South African Native Vertebrate Species Not Listed on CITES.

The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) aims to prevent the overexploitation of species by controlling their trade. However, there is currently no international regulatory framework to protect the trade of non-CITES species. We examined the LEMIS database, online trade, and scientific literature with the aim of identifying and compiling a list of South African native species traded as pets and wildlife products.

Effects of Titanium Dioxide (TiO) on Physico-Chemical Properties of Low-Density Polyethylene.

Hazardous chemicals are transported on rail and road networks. In the case of accidental spillage or terror attack, civilian and military first responders must approach the scene equipped with appropriate personal protective equipment. The plausible manufacturing of chemical protective polymer material, from photocatalyst anatase titanium dioxide (TiO) doped low-density polyethylene (LDPE), for cost-effective durable lightweight protective garments against toxic chemicals such as 2-chloroethyl ethyl sulphide (CEES) was investigated.

A dual-stage high-gain converter with dual inputs and dual outputs for electric vehicle charging.

The DC-DC converter is an essential subsystem in electric vehicle (EV) chargers, and most converters depend on a single-input single-output structure, which can be costly when multiple charging units are needed. Additionally, these converters offer limited voltage gain, restricting charging configurations. This paper proposed a dual-stage high-gain converter that operates in a boost mode with reduced components, using an inductor, capacitor, and 2-diodes (LC2D) to provide high-gain output.