UWC researchers find crystal meth harms male fertility
Researchers at the department of medical bioscience conducted a study that focused on Sertoli cells, which play a critical role in nurturing sperm in the testicles.
They found that even short-term use of the drug can harm male fertility.
One of the discoveries is how tik weakens the blood-testis barrier. The barrier is vital for keeping harmful substances away from sperm during development.
After crystal meth exposure, this barrier weakens and may allow toxins to reach developing sperm cells, creating further harm.
Head of the study Professor David Fisher said while the country continues to battle tik addiction, the research provides more reasons to avoid the drug.
'Our research shows that it has an effect right up within 24 hours, and we see some long-term effects over 96 hours. So, there's two parts to the study - the one is an acute study then we looked at our chronic study.'
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Eyewitness News
2 days ago
- Eyewitness News
UWC researchers find crystal meth harms male fertility
CAPE TOWN - Researchers from the University of the Western Cape (UWC) have found that the drug crystal meth or tik harms male fertility, even after short term use. Researchers at the department of medical bioscience conducted a study that focused on Sertoli cells, which play a critical role in nurturing sperm in the testicles. They found that even short-term use of the drug can harm male fertility. One of the discoveries is how tik weakens the blood-testis barrier. The barrier is vital for keeping harmful substances away from sperm during development. After crystal meth exposure, this barrier weakens and may allow toxins to reach developing sperm cells, creating further harm. Head of the study Professor David Fisher said while the country continues to battle tik addiction, the research provides more reasons to avoid the drug. 'Our research shows that it has an effect right up within 24 hours, and we see some long-term effects over 96 hours. So, there's two parts to the study - the one is an acute study then we looked at our chronic study.'
IOL News
7 days ago
- IOL News
Exploring Paarl-Kaaps: a linguistic study on extraposition and identity
Lawren Hayley Smith Image: UWC A groundbreaking study by Lawren Hayley Smith from the University of the Western Cape (UWC) for her Master's thesis sheds light on the under-documented linguistic system of Paarl-Kaaps, a colloquial variety of Kaaps spoken primarily by coloured communities in the Western Cape. The research, titled Extraposition and Optionality: An Investigation of Information Packaging in Paarl-Kaaps, explores the syntactic phenomenon of extraposition - which involves the displacement of constituents from the middle to the end of the clause - and its role in shaping social identity. Paarl-Kaaps is a West Germanic language with unique grammatical features. Despite its historical roots in Cape Dutch, Kaaps has evolved independently within marginalised communities, distinguishing itself from the standardised languages promoted in formal education and media.. Smith's study highlights how extraposition, a common feature in West Germanic languages, operates in Paarl-Kaaps, offering insights into its grammatical flexibility and sociolinguistic functions. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading Director of the Centre for Multilingualism and Diversities Research (CMDR) and Professor of Linguistics in the Linguistics Department at the University of the Western Cape (UWC), Quentin Williams, said Kaaps, also known as Afrikaaps, is, and remains, a historically marginalised language. 'It has become that, or forged into that, because of colonialism, apartheid nationalism in the past, but also linguistic knowledge that has been formed within colonial history and apartheid, which has sustained the marginalisation," said Prof Williams. He stated that colonial and apartheid linguists significantly contributed to the stigmatisation of Afrikaaps through the knowledge they produced for the apartheid state and the colonial franchise governing the Cape. 'Today, linguists challenge us to create new forms of knowledge. Not only in terms of who the speakers are, but in terms of their bilingualism and multilingualism, especially when we describe the language practice of Afrikaaps speakers,' said Prof Williams. He added that Afrikaaps speakers use language in a very creative and intelligent way in which they practise their form of bilingualism and multilingualism, and this gives meaning to their identities, emphasising that these speakers were not a homogeneous group. Smith's study reveals that extraposition in Paarl-Kaaps is not random, but influenced by grammatical, pragmatic and social factors. Key findings include: Extraposition frequently involves adverbial modifiers, particularly prepositional phrases such as *in die verkeerde straat* → "in the wrong street". Surprisingly, direct objects, which typically resist extraposition in other West Germanic languages, also show displacement in Paarl-Kaaps, albeit less frequently. Extraposition often highlights new or focused information, aligning with principles of "end-weight" and "end-focus," where heavier or more salient constituents appear at the end of clauses for clarity. The study suggests that speakers use extraposition variably to construct identity, adapting their speech based on interlocutors. For instance, younger speakers may restructure their grammar more dynamically than older generations. Smith's research analysed 760 clauses from spoken conversations among four Paarl-Kaaps speakers, divided by age (18–25 and 60+) and language background (Afrikaans-dominant vs bilingual). The corpus revealed that 13.03% of clauses exhibited extraposition, with higher rates in main clauses (12.52%) than in dependent clauses (14.59%). The study underscores how linguistic variation reflects social dynamics. Older speakers with Afrikaans-only backgrounds exhibited different extraposition patterns compared to younger, bilingual speakers. A significant finding of her thesis was that speakers adjusted their use of extraposition based on their conversation partners, suggesting a performative aspect to syntactic choices. Smith acknowledged limitations, such as the small sample size and the need for broader comparative studies with other Kaaps varieties. Future research could explore how extraposition interacts with other linguistic features, such as negation or verb-particle constructions, to paint a fuller picture of Paarl-Kaaps grammar. Prof Williams said Smith's thesis is extremely important because it adds to the growing body of knowledge, which has in recent years increased significantly, in terms of general linguistic theory and broadening the grammatical study of Kaaps. 'In the sense of Paarl-Kaaps, we get to understand that Kaaps is not a phenomenon only isolated to the Cape Flats; in fact, there are Kaaps speakers in Paarl, and in Swartland, Boland. There are Kaaps speakers in Ceres. There are Kaaps speakers all the way to Namibia, Pretoria and Joburg and across South Africa,' said Prof Williams. He said if the study of Kaaps as a linguistic system was taken seriously, then scholars would have a better understanding of how speakers organised meanings, words, sounds and thoughts.
Daily Maverick
22-07-2025
- Daily Maverick
How harnessing AI could transform SA's food systems for sustainable growth and reduced waste
Reducing waste, adding nutrients to food staples, or even coming up with new recipes — computer scientists share some of the AI-powered innovations already taking shape in the Global South that could benefit African food systems. Artificial intelligence has come into the spotlight over the past decade and even more in the past five years with people getting more access to generative chatbot AI platforms such as ChatGPT. Researchers said there were different kinds of AI being used by countries in the Global South to help make their farming practices more efficient, from reducing food waste in the food system to fleet efficiency and making sense of food labels for consumers. The seventh annual Food Indaba explored topics under the theme 'Artificial Intelligence and the Food System'. The Indaba ran from 7 to 20 July. Looking at how AI technologies are shaping African food systems, the director of the eResearch Office at the University of the Western Cape (UWC), Dr Clement Nyirenda, and research scientist and science communicator Frederic Isingizwe presented some of the top applications driven by AI that are being used in the food system. Their presentation was part of multiple discussions and panels hosted at Makers Landing, Cape Town, on Friday, 18 July 2025. In their predictive analysis, Nyirenda said AI would be used for 'forecasting yields, market demand, improved planning, reduced waste and supply chain optimisation'. Their presentation stated that the technology could also assist with tracing and managing inventory, optimising transport routes and food safety monitoring. Nyirenda explained that AI could help implement 'real-time monitoring of food quality and safety standards; climate resilience and climate modelling to adapt farming practices to changing weather patterns'. AI in food systems A number of AI innovations aimed at improving food systems are already being used to achieve sustainable and accessible food, especially for lower-income households. In Malawi, Tanzania and Rwanda there is Sanku's Project Healthy Children, an AI tool for nutrient-rich food processing. It works with small-scale flour mills and aims to combat malnutrition by fortifying flour with essential nutrients. Nyirenda found that the key challenges are 'equipment failures and calibration issues resulting in variable food quality'. He said AI could help 'auto-adjust micronutrient mixes during milling' while 'cloud-based AI analytics track dosing accuracy and machine performance and predictive maintenance alerts that will enable timely servicing and reduce waste'. In East Africa, Ghana, the Caribbean and South East Asia, AgUnity aims to help smallholder farmers with record keeping, coordination to have more organised harvesting, storage and distribution. This could help reduce 'significant food spoilage and waste in rural farming systems', said Nyirenda. 'AgUninty is a low-cost smartphone that uses a blockchain-powered transaction platform built to digitally empower remote farmers and address financial and reduce digital exclusion,' Nyirenda said to delegates. Koko is mainstreaming liquid bioethanol cooking fuel as a fast, safe and affordable alternative to dirty cooking fuels such as charcoal. They partner with the downstream fuels industry to 'drop in' this new fuel, and offer a suite of distribution, dispensing and end-use technologies that ensure customers can safely access clean fuel at prices that undercut dirty fuels. It has software-integrated bioethanol cookers that measure carbon impact. Nyirenda said he was surprised at some of the innovations already taking shape in the Global South. 'I chose these specifically because they are used in countries with a similar socioeconomic state to South Africa,' he said. He added that despite his tech science background, he had found himself roped into the work of food security and food systems through interdisciplinary collaboration with his colleagues at UWC's the Centre for Excellence in Food Security. 'AI can prevent the big food losses that happen in the food system. It can also help with quality control and other things such as helping to create recipes and new menus. People are coming up with cool ideas using these tools,' says Nyirenda. Obstacles to implementation Isingizwe shared the hindrances to rapid development of these technologies in the South African context, such as a distrust of the technology, especially in rural and farming communities. 'Obstacles in South Africa's agricultural sector can be a lack of reliable data for training AI models that are locally relevant, high costs associated with adopting AI technologies, particularly for smallholder farmers, a lack of training and expertise in AI among farmers and agricultural workers, and inadequate technological infrastructure in rural farming areas may limit access to technology and internet connectivity,' said Isingizwe. He pointed out that not having clear policies or frameworks governing AI for integrating it in food systems was a challenge and showed a resistance to change. 'Traditional farming practices may hinder the adoption of innovative technologies,' said Isingizwe. In his research he predicted that AI could help reduce post-harvest losses by 70%; increase farmer income by 20-40%; while retailer networks could reach more informal vendors with fewer vehicles. One of the delegates, a small-scale farmer from Langa, said he was not aware there was so much use of AI-powered technologies in agriculture already. 'I am older so I feel like this AI stuff has already left me. We are still dealing with simple issues like accessing markets and pulling together as smallholder farmers in the community.' Kurt Ackermann, the CEO of the South African Urban Food and Farming Trust, said that 'as the focus shifts toward the role of cities, and city planning, in addressing food security, AI could play a significant role in how the cities of the future — and by extension the food systems of the future — might better serve the needs of human beings. 'Conventional thinking about AI puts the technology at the centre of the discussion, whereas the creation of a more humane world — and how AI could help — is at the heart of Food Indaba 2025.' Ackerman also noted that although the discussion of the day was about the practical implementation of the technology, he wanted the discussion to keep in mind the question: How do we get food on people's tables? The South African Urban Food and Farming Trust has done immense work to help realise food security in urban spaces and has collaborated with multiple organisations for more than a decade, and even across South Africa's borders. DM
