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Saisie conservatoire and the Admiralty action in rem: estranged cousins: a comparative analysis between South African and French Admiralty law
Get PDFThroughout centuries of conquest, trade and new horizons discovered, sea-going. vessels have always been the most important device in every maritime voyage. The specific statute of vessels within maritime ventures justifies the fact that they have always been coveted by maritime investors or creditors, as they have been considered the symbol of riches. The covetous attitude towards vessels in maritime law forces seamen to be very protective towards their property: they give them affectionate names, personalities (in English grammar, 'ship' is the only word having a gender), a statute, an object needing protection: She becomes the apple of their eye. Even if today, the dimension of our world, the Globalisation of our trade, our new consumption habits have drastically modified the mission of ships and vessels at seas, one element still links our contemporary world to our maritime past: the economic value of the ship
A research report to meet the requirements of the master of medicine in psychiatry at the University of Cape Town
Get PDFBackground: Cannabis is the most widely used substance worldwide and its use is much higher amongst adolescents. However, adolescents are at higher risk of negative sequelae secondary to this use, including poorer developmental outcomes and the possible development of mental disorders. On 31 March 2017, the South African High Court ruled that cannabis use by an adult in a private dwelling should be decriminalized. Aim: The aim of this study is to determine the clinical profile of adolescents who use cannabis, that present to a tertiary hospital in Cape Town, South Africa, before and after the high court ruling in 2017. Setting The study was conducted reviewing folders of adolescents admitted at Groote Schuur Hospital (GSH) in the Emergency Psychiatric Unit, Ward C23 in Cape Town, South Africa. Methods: This study was a retrospective folder review of adolescents admitted from April 2015 to March 2019. Results:The study included 266 participants and the total number of adolescents using cannabis admitted during the study period was 116. Cannabis use was the most commonly used substance in the study, with increased use seen post-ruling (n = 75; 65%). The most common frequency of cannabis use reported was daily use (n = 43; 57%). When comparing psychiatric diagnoses between cannabis users and non-cannabis users, a significantly higher proportion of patients who used cannabis pre-ruling had psychotic disorder (p < 0.001) and substance use disorder (p = 0.01). Post–ruling, the significance was p < 0.001 for psychotic and substance use disorders. The most common DSM-5 diagnoses in cannabis users pre-ruling were psychotic disorders (n = 27; 65.9%); post-ruling, it was psychotic disorders (n =36; 48%) and trauma and stressor-related disorders (n = 31; 41.3%). Conclusion: The study showed an increasing prevalence of cannabis use in adolescents admitted with mental illness after the high court ruling in 2017. This study also demonstrates that adolescents remain a vulnerable population to the effects of cannabis. This highlights the need for more focused adolescent interventions and services
Comparative analysis of BNP Paribas' approaches to energy sustainability, security, and costs in France and South Africa
Get PDFThis thesis investigates BNP Paribas' approaches to sustainability, security, and energy costs in France and South Africa, comparing the bank's strategies in response to energy challenges. The research problem focuses on banks' challenges in creating consistent energy sustainability strategies across different regulatory and socio-economic contexts. The study aims to understand how BNP Paribas balances sustainability and profitability in these regions. The research employs a qualitative methodology, using a comparative case study approach. Data was collected through interviews with key stakeholders and content analysis on secondary data, focusing on the bank's energy investment strategies, regulatory interactions, and responses to local challenges. The data was analysed thematically to identify patterns and differences in the bank's approaches in the two countries. The study concludes that regional contexts influence the effectiveness of bank's energy sustainability projects. In France, BNP Paribas has taken advantage of a stable regulatory environment to promote renewable energies. They target 90% renewables in their portfolio by 2030, supported by policies like the European Green Deal. In South Africa, challenges such as coal dependency, regulatory inconsistencies and socio-economic complexities limit the bank's efforts. As a result, direct energy investments were reduced and its Johannesburg branch closed in 2024. Instead, BNP Paribas has focused on stable African regions such as Morocco, aligning itself with its sustainability goals. These findings contribute to the field of sustainable finance by providing insights into the complexities banks face in balancing sustainability and profitability. The study underscores the importance of context-specific strategies and the role of banks in promoting global energy transitions
‘Tax exceptionalism': a South African tax law perspective
Get PDFThis study examines the manner in which South African courts approach the interpretation of fiscal legislation – by asking whether, courts are developing some sort of exceptional approach in statutory interpretation when it comes to tax law? This is the crux of the concept ‘tax exceptionalism', the misconception that tax law is fundamentally different and therefore should not be governed by the same rule of statutory interpretation that generally apply in the interpretation of all other legislation. For the first time this study examines this concept from South African perspective. In the discussion, the study makes an analysis to the recent court decisions namely Pienaar Bros, NWK and Brummeria cases, and looks at the approaches employed in the interpretation of these cases as tax matters. It further asks whether the same conclusions would have been reached if the above cases were not tax cases. Having considered the above decisions, the conclusion reached is that even after more than two decades of the Constitutional dispensation ‘tax exceptionalism' still exists in South Africa, and evidenced by the constant creation of new rules that apply exceptionally in the interpretation of fiscal legislation and not in all other legislations
Marguerite Poland and the Shades Archive: The Use of the Author s Archive in Close Analysis
Get PDFMarguerite Poland's Shades combines the histories of South Africa's Eastern Cape and her own missionary ancestors to create a novel which utilises fictionality for postcolonial criticism and a search for identity. Shades is therefore deeply situated within the historical archive on which the text leans heavily to provide credibility to the semi-fictional historical narrative. However, a closer examination of Poland's research points towards the existence of a cache of information which informed the writing of her text. This thesis has consequently termed this concept the ‘author's archive'. When the author's archive is examined in conjunction with Shades, a deeper understanding and far stronger analysis emerges – resulting in authoritative conclusions rather than speculation. The purpose of this thesis is ultimately to introduce the theoretical concept of an author removing and manipulating material from the archive with the intention of constructing their own archive of sources. Because of the focus on the creation of a theoretical framework, a theoretical rather than methodological approach is most suited. This thesis has therefore sought to construct and define a theory to examine the relationship between the auctorial and the archival rather than create and apply a method of analysis. Poland's Shades presents itself as an ideal case study due to Poland's intentional and obvious employment of the archive. Firstly, her adaptation and subsequent utilisation of intermingled archival fact and original fiction prompts an investigation of what led Poland to select specific material from the archive. Secondly, Poland's characters are predominantly based on fact. Many were inspired by the oral and written history of her missionary ancestors, which she in turn adapts and subverts through fictionalisation to suit her narrative. An analysis of these characters provides an opportunity to examine Poland's interweaving of historical versus imaginative due to their varying range of fictionality. The reconstruction and examination of the archive Poland created for Shades has undoubtedly led to a substantial analysis of Shades and Poland's creation of the text. However, a conclusion has also been reached that analysing the author's archive reveals how fiction can be supported by fact rather than fact simply supported by fiction, and how this can lead to the emergence of an accreditable historical narrative
Green finance under the microscope: analysing South Africa's climate finance tracking capabilities at the sub-national level
Get PDFThe increasing global commitment to climate finance, particularly in the context of various international agreements, underscores the growing importance of greater transparency in tracking its allocation and impact. However, challenges persist in accurately assessing the allocation and impact of climate finance, particularly at the local and provincial (“Subnational”) levels in South Africa. Tools such as climate budget tagging have been developed to measure and mainstream the tracking of climate related expenditure into government systems and processes. However, challenges persist in accurately assessing the allocation and impact of climate finance, particularly at the local and provincial (“Subnational”). This thesis explores the feasibility of implementing Climate Budget Tagging (CBT) to track climate finance in South Africa's local government structures. The country's subnational governments have a particularly important role to play in tracking climate finance due to the ability they have to direct strategy, enhance transparency and boost accountability to their constituents. However, implementing this tool at the subnational level is not straightforward, due to systemic challenges that exist such as municipal governance, climate awareness and capacity constraints. Climate budget tagging is a relatively new concept in literature, with very little information on the impact of its implementation globally and in South Africa. Even though standardised structures have been created by major development partners such as the World Bank and UNDP, the idea is still being tested in several countries with different political and financial structures. Through a pragmatic research approach, combining desk reviews, interviews, and empirical data from the South African CBT pilot project led by OneWorld Sustainable Investments and Mokoro Consulting, this study identifies the pathways and challenges for successfully integrating CBT in local government systems. The research provides an analysis of South Africa's policy landscape and the institutional structures influencing climate finance, alongside international experiences with CBT. Using mixed methods, including data from the South African CBT pilot project, this study uncovers key challenges, such as capacity deficits, siloed governance, and resource constraints. It further identifies opportunities for integrating CBT into municipal systems, with a focus on strengthening accountability, building local expertise, and leveraging existing structures like the District Development Model. The findings emphasise the importance of long-term commitment, investment in education, and coordination across all government levels to ensure sustainable CBT implementation. The insights outlined by this research have key implications for policymakers and practitioners involved in climate finance and budgeting, offering practical guidance for integrating climate considerations into government budgets and enhancing transparency around the management of climate finance at the local level. This study contributes to a growing body of knowledge on tracking climate finance and offers practical guidance to developing CBT models in other regions
Barriers to MSMEs growth and performance in the Free State Province: a focus on DFI funded enterprises
Get PDFMicro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) are vital for economic development, but they face a number of challenges, including financial exclusion, limited entrepreneurial skills, and regulatory burdens. While financial inclusion is a policy priority, its linkage with the performance of MSMEs remains ambiguous. Development Financial Institutions (DFIs) have shown mixed results, with high loan impairments and insufficient focus on micro and small businesses. This dissertation explores issues of access to finance, managerial skills, and institutional support, among others, as some of the major factors influencing the performance of MSMEs funded by the Free State provincial DFI. This dissertation collected primary data through structured questionnaire from 50 MSME owners to analyse the effect of financial literacy, digital literacy, human capital, post-funding support and MSMEs financial performance. The findings from the regression analysis reveals that, this dissertation identified managerial skills, digital literacy, and human capital are positive determinants for MSME performance, which indicates the importance of leadership, technology adoption, and skilled labour. However, training programmes demonstrate a negative relationship, indicating the gap between training content and practical needs. Post-funding support has turned out to enhance success significantly, emphasising the role of mentorship, advisory services, and capacity building for sustainable growth. Policies can enable the provincial government, banking institutions, and DFIsto improve access to low-cost capital. When used in conjunction with financial literacy courses, they have the potential to help reduce MSME's underperformance and create an enabling business climate. Policies have to target strengthening the capacity, transparency and accountability of finance institutions that extend finance to MSME's. Simplifying process and reducing bureaucracy can enhance the efficiency of institutions. Provincial government needs to launch support schemes that addresses money, management, and market challenges in a holistic way. Literacy programmes have to incorporate field applications and interactive tips to foster skills
Leveraging gene/subnetwork meta-analysis to recover signal and deconvolute the interactions between genes in the risk of genetic disorders
No full textGenome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified numerous loci associated with diverse human traits. While these discoveries offer valuable insights into disease biology and inform patient care, key challenges remain. These include the disconnect between identified variants and biological mechanisms, the difficulty in detecting low-frequency or moderate-effect variants, and the inherent complexity of most human phenotypes. To address these limitations and enhance discovery power, large sample sizes are increasingly employed through individual study expansion or meta-analysis. However, the classical single-variant approach, analyzing individual genes or variants in isolation, may not fully capture the intricate genetic architecture of complex diseases. This can be due to genetic heterogeneity or limitations associated with gene-based analysis, where power is lost due to non-effect variants within a gene or low-frequency causal variants. Consequently, traditional GWAS often lack robust mechanistic insights into the functional underpinnings of complex traits. This thesis proposes a novel framework that integrates GWAS signals across multiple studies, leveraging summary statistics to improve association mapping and detect weak signals missed in single GWAS. The method aggregates SNP-level signals to the gene level and incorporates protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks for association mapping at gene and pathway/subnetwork levels. We applied this framework to GWAS summary statistics from seven European bipolar disorder cohorts. The analysis identified seven genes, including a highly significant effect at the gene level for AGT. Additionally, a significant subnetwork was identified with Estrogen Receptor 1 (ESR1) as the central hub. Furthermore, the method was employed to explore the genetic overlap between suicide and psychiatric disorders in the FinnGen database. This analysis revealed disease-specific traits sharing common risk factors with suicide. Notably, several genes with small effects were identified at both the gene and subnetwork levels, highlighting the involvement of overlapping genes, pathways, and subnetworks in the underlying molecular mechanisms. Functional enrichment analysis of hub genes based on annotations from Reactome and KEGG databases revealed significant pathways, with top significant involved in signaling, nervous system development, and the immune system. Finally, the framework was applied to investigate the genetic overlap between suicidality and subcortical brain volume. This analysis identified potentially significant genes, hub genes with small effects, along with a network of interacting genes. Enrichment analysis of the network genes revealed pathways with top significance associated with signaling, immune function, and nervous system development. In conclusion, the method presented in this thesis provides new insights into functional and molecular mechanisms issued from a gene/subnetwork-centric approach and exhibits candidate genes for drug targets and drug re-purposing. Altogether, these findings point to important pathways and possible regulatory mechanisms that may be involved in the emergence of disorders, as well as the multi- and co-morbidities associated with them. Clinical research and an integrated strategy of additional modalities will advance individualized mechanistic understandings of these complex illnesses
Developing novel SNAP tag-based antibody fusion proteins directionally conjugated to fluorophores for immunophenotyping of acute myeloid leukemia
Get PDFAcute Leukemia comprising of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), represents a clonal malignant transformation of hematopoietic cells originating in the bone marrow or lymphoid organs. This is often associated with fundamental genetic abnormalities, and these malignancies are also characterised by persistent proliferation of hematopoietic progenitor cells or maturation arrest at a particular developmental stage, which is specific to each subtype of leukemia. The treatment strategies for acute myeloid leukemia include chemotherapy, bone marrow transplantation, radiotherapy, and immunotherapy, with current research focusing on antibody-based immunotherapy because of its advantages including higher tumour selectivity and increase of drug tolerability. Acute leukemia is diagnosed by combining information from the patient's past medical records, clinical presentations and laboratory results from the studies performed by a pathologist. Pathologist-led studies include haematological investigations like the total blood count, meticulous peripheral blood film review and bone marrow aspiration smear examination. Specific genetic abnormalities linked to AML can be identified through molecular genetic tests, including chromosomal analysis, next-generation sequencing, real-time polymerase chain reaction and cytogenetic analysis. Immunophenotyping by flow cytometry and immunohistochemistry can be used to identify specific proteins or antigens upregulated in AML. In low and middle-income countries, particularly Africa, AML diagnosis is primarily based on leukemic cells or blast morphology, which has significant drawbacks in terms of providing accurate and timely diagnosis. This method utilizes the identification of myeloid blasts primarily through their visual characteristics under the microscope and counting them in bone marrow aspirate samples stained with a suitable Romanowsky stain, such as the Wright-Giemsa stain. Additionally, molecular genetic testing, mostly (RT) polymerase chain reaction (PCR), is also being utilized for AML diagnosis. Using advanced technologies like flow-cytometric immunophenotyping and immunohistochemistry is limited due to the current costs of antibody-based diagnostics in these already strained developing countries' economies Utilizing immunophenotyping by flow cytometry and immunohistochemistry would allow clinicians to clearly define each subtype of acute leukemia, timely diagnose the disease, and initiate therapy on time. These methods utilise monoclonal antibodies targeting uniquely overexpressed markers on leukemic blasts. To address the challenges posed by the costs and limited availability of antibody-based immunodiagnostics in Africa, an alternative approach would be the use an easy-to-tailor fashion of smaller antibody fragments (single chain variable fragments) coupled with a SNAP tag, which can be readily produced recombinantly under cost-controlling conditions. SNAP-tag is a modified version of the human DNA repair enzyme alkylguanine-DNA alkyltransferase (AGT), which reacts specifically with O6-benzylguanine (BG)-modified molecules via irreversible transfer of an alkyl group to a cysteine residue within its active site. Benzylguanine can be chemically attached to a variety of synthetic labels, such as fluorophores. SNAP-tag can be coupled to scFvs (single chain variable fragments), forming unique SNAP tag antibody fusion proteins which undergo self-labelling covalent conjugation reactions with benzylguanine derivatives, and this provides an innovative alternative approach to develop next-generation recombinant immunodiagnostics targeting different biomarkers upregulated in AML. Therefore, this study aimed to explore SNAP tag-based antibody fusion proteins as supplementary or companion diagnostic tools for acute myeloid leukemia targeting cluster of differentiation 14 (CD14), myeloperoxidase (MPO), and the human leukocyte antigen DR (HLA-DR) which are antigens overexpressed on leukemic cells. The variable gene sequences encoding for scFv antibody fragments were obtained from publicly available resources (patents, journals, and antibody databases) and were fused to SNAP by in-silico expression plasmid design. The SNAP fusion protein encoding open reading frames (ORFs) were then cloned into the pCB plasmid vector backbone, containing all the unique features for protein expression in mammalian systems. Following that, scFv-SNAP fusion proteins were generated by transfecting mammalian HEK 293T cells with the recombinant plasmids containing an Ig Kappa leader, which allowed secretion of the proteins into the cell culture supernatant. After extraction, proteins were purified using immobilised metal affinity chromatography (IMAC) and characterised by SDS-PAGE and western blot before being conjugated to BG Alexa fluorophores. Proof of binding of the generated fluorescently labelled SNAP fusion proteins was demonstrated in vitro using leukemic cell lines for CD14 and MPO, while peripheral blood mononuclear cells were used for HLA-DR through confocal microscopy and flow cytometry. The results of the study demonstrated specific binding of the newly generated SNAP fusion proteins, confirming their suitability for diagnostic applications. The future direction of the study will involve testing the generated fusion proteins on South African leukemia patient samples to determine the disease subtypes and comparing them with already existing tools. Additionally, developing new bivalent formats to increase affinity is a potential avenue for future research. In summary, the use of SNAP fusion proteins promotes local development and invention of next generation immunodiagnostics and therapeutics in Africa, and this could be considered as a cost-containment strategy for cancer remedies which are being priced for the first-world markets
Children admitted to Paediatric Intensive Care at Red Cross War Memorial Children?s Hospital with Non-Accidental injuries (2012-2020): a retrospective descriptive study
Get PDFObjectives: To describe the characteristics and outcomes of patients admitted to the paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) with suspected non-accidental injury (NAI). Methods: A retrospective descriptive study of routinely collected data from all children admitted to the PICU with suspected NAI from 1 January 2012 to 31 December 2020. Results: Of 11345 children admitted to PICU, 42 (0.4%) patients with suspected NAI (median (IQR) age 20.3 (7.9 – 62.6) months; 61.9% male) were included in the data analysis. Most patients sustained physical injury (n=31; 73.8%) from assaults (n=19; 45.2%), and head injuries were the most common injury site (n=24; 57.1%). Of the patients, 37 (88.1%) received invasive mechanical ventilation for median 2.0 (IQR) (1.0 – 3.8) days. PICU mortality was 28.6% (n=12), with a risk adjusted mortality (observed/mean predicted mortality) of 3.2. Of the 30 PICU survivors, 7 (23.3%) were discharged with long-term disability, whilst the functional outcome of 16 (53.3%) survivors is not known. A multivariable binary logistic regression was conducted to determine the effect of inotropes, type of NAI, mechanism of injury, injury site (head, skin – eye injuries removed from the model for reasons of collinearity), and multiple injuries on patient survival. The model was significant (p = 0.001) and a good fit for the data (Nagelkerke R square 0.78) and was able to correctly predict 85.7% of cases. None of the variables in the model were r found to be independently associated with survival (p > 0.1 for all). Conclusions: Children who have sustained NAI represent a small proportion of PICU admissions, with higher-than-expected mortality and considerable morbidity. Patient follow-up is recommended to determine long-term functional and psychosocial outcomes