The newspaper Mail & Guardian (M&G) is running a six-month project called Science Voices, which aims to help postgraduate science students to present their academic writing in a language that is understandable and enjoyable for the general public to read. Postgraduate students submitted their articles to M&G and top articles were selected and published. Two PhD candidates and one MSc candidate from UP’s Institutional Research Theme (IRT) on Food, Nutrition and Well-being were selected for this prestigious profile supplement published by M&G.

Nokuthula Vilakati holds a PhD bursary through the IRT while Nicolette Hall and Petrie Jansen van Vuuren are working on projects financially supported by the IRT’s strategic funding. Their selection by M&G is evidence of the achievement of the IRT in setting out to increase UP’s engagement in excellent research to address national priorities related to food security and well-being.

Ms Nokuthula Vilakati 

 Ms Nicolette Hall  

Mr Petrie Jansen van Vuuren

Doing her PhD through the Department of Animal and Wildlife Sciences, Nicolette Hall’s study on South Africa’s livestock challenges common perceptions that eating a lot of meat has many negative health implications and that high meat consumption is responsible for climate change. Hall’s study also highlights livestock’s favourable role in the South African economy.

Because South African farmers focus on breeds adapted to South African conditions, like the Nguni, Afrikaner and Bonsmara, the environmental impact is lower because of better feed efficiency. Hall’s study also proves red meat products are much lower in fat than initially thought. A red meat diet also reduces nutritional and mineral deficiencies, such as an iron deficiency, because red meat is high in iron, vitamin A and protein.

Apart from the nutritional benefits, Hall’s study also assessed the contribution of livestock production to the economy, highlighting its role in job creation and its contribution to food supply and economic growth in the region.

Nokuthula Vilakati’s study also focused on food, addressing the global issue of food shortages and a lack of dietary diversity which results in protein energy malnutrition among many young children across the developing nations.

Vilakati tackled this problem by formulating a low cost ready-to-eat composite blend meal using plant-based foods from locally available indigenous grains, such as sorghum and cowpea. The nutritional value of the meal is similiar to that of foreign convenience foods such as maize and soya based instant meals. Vilakati’s instant meal contains 60% more protein than ordinary sorghum and cowpea and with about 15 grams of protein per 100 grams of meal, adheres to the World Health Organisation’s guidelines for pre-packaged food formulations.

When mixed with hot milk or water, this tan-coloured flour in a single-serving packet offers children between the ages of two and five the energy and nutrients to meet their recommended dietary allowances. Vilakati is confident that because the meal is the same colour as the original sorghum and cowpea, it stands a good chance of being accepted by communities.

The use of indigenous grains in producing ready-to-eat foods ensures easy accessibility for people living in rural communities. The nutritious value of these foods also matches that of food manufactured and consumed in developed communities. In addition, rural people will be more likely to consume a product that they already know. Future studies will look at how these technologies can be developed at an affordable price for small-scale rural farmers. Vilakati is a beneficiary of the IFNuW fund, which enables her to complete her studies.

Showcasing the diversity of science, another article, published by UP postgraduate candidate Petrie Jansen van Vuuren, touched on a completely different theme. His novel study investigates the effects of the drug Zolpidem on brain damaged patients, using a method of brain scanning known as SPECT (Single photon emission computed tomography), which is a unique way of imaging brain function by measuring blood flow.

Zolpidem, Jansen van Vuuren explains, was originally developed as a sleeping pill for healthy individuals. If this pill is given to a brain damaged individual, “…in 5% to 6% of cases something miraculous happens. Often it’s a small change, an improvement in speech, reduced muscle spasms, improved gait. In drastic cases, patients are roused from vegetative states, returning to consciousness after many months, even years, of being completely unresponsive.”

This study aims to ascertain the changes in blood flow in the brain in both responders and non-responders pre- and post-Zolpidem administration. As a unique contribution to science it tries to quantify the effect of Zolpidem on blood flow with post-SPECT processing. The study is the first of its kind, as the effect of Zolpidem on blood flow through the brain has never before been quantified in humans. Its findings could have huge benefits for neurological science.

In subsequent research Jansen van Vuuren’s study will search for links between changes in blood flow and magnitude of clinically observable response. It will also use patient logs to determine which types of brain damage are the most likely to be improved by Zolpidem.

These articles, published in M&G, can be accessed via the internet:

Nicolette Hall’s article, “Meatless Mondays might be harmful in SA”: http:/mg.co.za/article/2014-08-18-meatless-mondays-might-be-harmful-in-sa

Nokuthula Vilakati’s article, “A new ready-to-eat twist on old grains”: http:/mg.co.za/article/2014-08-15-a-new-ready-to-eat-twist-on-old-grains

Petrie Jansen van Vuuren’s article, “The sleeping pill that wakes up damaged brains”: http:/mg.co.za/article/2014-08-18-the-sleeping-pill-that-wakes-up-damaged-brains