UWCScholar
This repository serves as a digital archive for the preservation of research / scholarly output / publications from the University of the western Cape.
Communities in UWCScholar
Select a community to browse its collections.
Recent Submissions
Immunomodulatory nanoparticles induce autophagy in macrophages and reduce mycobacterium tuberculosis burden in the lungs of mice
(American Chemical Society, 2025)
Tuberculosis (TB) is the leading cause of death frominfectious disease. Macrophages are the primary immune respondersand become the primary host cells for the causative agentMycobacterium tuberculosis. Following the uptake of M. tuberculosis,the inherent antimicrobial action of macrophages is dampened,enabling the bacterium to reside within these cells and multiply.Rising resistance of M. tuberculosis to antibiotics has led to theinvestigation of novel approaches for the treatment of TB. Here, wereport a host-directed approach, employing biomimetic Curdlanpoly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (C-PLGA) nanoparticles (NPs), andexamine autophagy induction in infected macrophages, eradication ofM. tuberculosis and immune modulation in a mouse model. Wedemonstrate that the NPs induce autophagy in M. tuberculosis-infectedmacrophages. Treatment of H37Rv infected C57BL/6 mice with these NPs reduced M. tuberculosis burden in the lungs of mice andmodulated cytokines and chemokines and this work demonstrates that these immunomodulatory NPs are a potential treatmentapproach for TB
An analysis of factors that impacts electricity security in South Africa. The case of city of Johannesburg municipality
(University of the Western Cape, 2024)
Post-apartheid South Africa placed priority on the transformation of society to address the apartheid inherited social economic imbalances. A key priority was to ensure electricity provision for all in promoting economic and social transformation. This research focussed on the challenges and obstacles that impacted on electricity security within South Africa with a particular focus on the City of Johannesburg. The aim of the study were to examine the root causes of power supply challenges in South Africa using the Johannesburg municipality as the locus of study. A number of objectives were set amongst these to determine the effects of power outages on the lives of people of Johannesburg municipality and to analyse the initiatives undertaken in order to minimise power supply challenges in Johannesburg municipality. The study was qualitative in nature and a non-probability method of purposive sampling was used to select a sample of 20 participants from Johannesburg municipality workers and residents. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data which was thematically analysed. The study found that various factors such as illegal power connections, lack of political will, and constant breakdowns due to old equipment, obsolete power generation, institutional financial problems, increasing population, and exorbitant electricity prices caused inefficient power supply.
Beyond legislation: A case study of Transformation in a South African higher education institution
(University of the Western Cape, 2024)
This research is about transformation in the Higher Education (HE) context with focus on a Higher Education Institution (HEI), the University of the Western Cape, officially labelled as a Historically Disadvantaged Institution (HDI) in Cape Town, Western Cape in South Africa. The researcher employs a Decoloniality lens to investigate the transformation of the UWC. The researcher first investigates a range of interviewees' lived experiences and then engages a small group of selected UWC participants in Participatory Learning Activities (PLA) to understand the participants' perceptions regarding transformation and to provide a platform for exploring transformation at UWC. The current approaches in the literature about transformation lean towards an intellectual discourse that offers many definitions of transformation which means that transformation in South African HEIs is whatever each HEI decides. This compounds the question of why HEIs are failing in their transformation approaches. The literature further critiques HEIs for failing to implement appropriate visionary and impactful transformation strategies and debates the merits of the dominant foundation of legislative compliance, specifically regarding the Employment Equity Act of South Africa.
Digital ageing: How ageism and technology influence the ageing experience of older adults
(University of the Western Cape, 2024)
The ubiquitous presence of digital technology means that the ageing experience has become entangled with technology. Older adults’ digital technology engagement is diverse and ranges from proficient and frequent users to non-users. However, there remains a generational difference in the acceptance of digital technology between the young and the old. An under-researched cause of this vulnerability to digital disengagement is discrimination based on age or ageism. There is an urgent need to examine how ageism and digital technology influence the ageing experience of older adults. Therefore, the aim of this PhD was to answer the question: what role do ageism and digital technology play within the ageing experience of older adults? This PhD addressed three key areas. Firstly, the PhD investigated how older adults are portrayed within the media discourse on digital inclusion. This analysis involved studying two decades' worth of Dutch language newspaper articles from The Netherlands and Flanders to comprehend how older adults are portrayed in these publications. The research scrutinized encountered stereotypes and the capacity for self-representation within the digital inclusion discourse. Concluding that older adults are prevalently depicted as incapable of digital inclusion, often a victim of digitalisation efforts, and presented in reductive ageist stereotypes.
An analysis of the administrative and regulatory framework of non-profit organizations in post-apartheid South Africa
(University of the Western Cape, 2024)
The study analyzes the current legislative framework and administrative regulatory framework in order to assess how it has assisted non-profit organizations (NPOs) to flourish. The research findings reflect that significant work has been done by NPOs both in terms of complying with the law, regulatory framework, as well as being strategic service delivery partners in contemporary South Africa. Despite the significant strides NPOs have made on governance and accountability functions, there is still some work that needs to be done with regards to enforcement, recourse, and consequences. The primary objectives of the study are as follows: To examine the provision of the Fund-Raising Act of 1978 legislation as a background to policy attempts at regulating the activities of non-profit organizations. To examine the provisions of the Non-Profit Organisations Act of 1997 with the view to highlighting its strengths and weaknesses. To discuss the theoretical perspective, the research findings of the study and the role that can be played by NPOs in post-apartheid South Africa. To suggest ways in which the legislation might be improved in order to enhance the activities of non-profit organizations in local economic development in contemporary South Africa.