Stellenbosch University

Presenting Jesus through Direct Speech: Vergegenwärtigung in the Gospel according to Mark

Scholars of the New Testament are, first and foremost, textual and literary scholars – philologists of religious texts charged with the hermeneutical task of interpreting documents from a distant ancient world. 2 At its core, our task is to engage these texts in full length, in t...

Centering equity, diversity and inclusion in environmental evidence synthesis: from awareness to action

Abstract Knowledge generated through evidence synthesis is an approach that decision-makers can take to inform policy and management decisions. Evidence syntheses, such as systematic reviews, provide quantitative and qualitative summaries of this evidence, using structured method...

Applying convolutional neural networks to X-ray images to improve postharvest detection of fruit fly infestation

Early detection of fruit fly (Diptera: Tephritidae) infestation in traded fruit is important for maintaining phytosanitary security, particularly for quarantine pests. This study evaluated the integration of micro-focus X-ray computed tomography (µCT) and deep learning as a non-d...

International Travel for Organ Transplantation: 2024 Multinational Survey of Routes, Organs, and Donor Types

BACKGROUND: International travel for organ transplantation (ITOT) reportedly affects ≥2% of global solid organ transplant activity, yet detailed information about ITOT participants, organ types, travel configurations, and clinical settings remains scarce. Previous research has fo...

Correlates of Selective Mutism in Young Children: A Preliminary Investigation of Social Anxiety, Autistic Traits, Extreme Demand Avoidance, and Sensory Processing Sensitivity

Selective mutism (SM) is an infrequent pediatric condition defined by a sustained inability to speak in specific social contexts, despite demonstrating age-appropriate verbal communication in settings perceived as safe or familiar, such as the home environment. This parent-report...

Health beliefs and health seeking behaviour among families of children with a respiratory illness in Cape Town, South Africa: lessons learnt from the COVID-19 pandemic

Globally, acute respiratory infections(ARIs)are one of the leading causes of mortality and morbidity in children and the most common causes of visits of children to health facilities. Pandemics can unintentionally negatively impact on health beliefs and health-seeking behaviour,...

Impact of guidewire caliber on biliary cannulation outcomes: a prospective randomized comparison of 0.025-inch and 0.035-inch guidewires

Background and aim Guidewire-assisted biliary cannulation is the standard technique for endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP). Whether guidewire caliber influences cannulation success or post-ERCP pancreatitis (PEP) remains uncertain. We evaluated whether the 0.02...

PRO4RS - Developing, aligning, and implementing policies on research software for research performing organisations

Research software is essential to modern science, yet many research-performing organisations lack coherent policies to support its development, sustainability, and recognition. Despite its central role in research outcomes, research software and its personnel are often excluded f...

Co-development of a Mental Health Data Discovery Platform and Harmonisation of Mental Health Measures for Young People in South Africa (PAMHoYA) - A research protocol

Africa’s mental health information landscape is widely recognised as fragmented, limiting planning, budgeting, and service delivery. In South Africa, this fragmentation is reflected in the collection of depression and anxiety data across multiple institutions and studies, using d...

Endogenous and exogenous control of tree architectural and hydraulic traits of European beech growing in natural populations

Abstract Key message Genetic components explain a moderate, yet statistically significant proportion of the phenotypic variation in tree architecture and hydraulic traits of beech trees growing in naturally regenerated monospecific stands. Abstract Drought tolerance of European b...

Beyond generation rent: Tenure restructuring and intergenerational housing inequality in Ghana

Intergenerational housing inequality is commonly framed in terms of delayed homeownership and prolonged renting; however, this framing derives largely from high-income, mortgage-based systems. This paper examines changes in young adults' household position, tenure and housing con...

TIS subsystems and modes of innovation: the case of hydrogen-powered aviation

Recent technological advancements in hydrogen-powered aviation are significantly influenced by start-up companies, despite substantial market entry barriers. To investigate the role of these emerging actors in the sustainability transition of the aviation sector, we compare the i...

Workflow management systems and reproducible pipelines for Plasmodium falciparum genomic surveillance: tools, design principles and infrastructure challenges

Genomic data are increasingly leveraged to enable malaria genomic surveillance, with many teams now generating Plasmodium falciparum sequence data for routine analysis. However, downstream analysis remains dependent on ad-hoc scripts and local infrastructure. This reliance limits...

Faster Quantum Simulation Of Markovian Open Quantum Systems Via Randomisation

When simulating the dynamics of open quantum systems with quantum computers, it is essential to accurately approximate the system's behaviour while preserving the physicality of its evolution. Traditionally, for Markovian open quantum systems, this has been achieved using first a...

Farm Input Subsidies and Energy Poverty: Evidence From Malawi

ABSTRACT Farm input subsidies in sub‐Saharan Africa are widely recognised for their role in reducing income poverty by improving household incomes. However, their spillover effects to non income‐based poverty receives comparatively less attention, despite the potential. Using dat...

Investigating strategies to enhance access to HIV services among children in Malawi: A multifaceted research approach, study protocol

Background Despite major progress in HIV epidemic control, children in sub-Saharan Africa, particularly in Malawi, continue to experience poorer HIV outcomes than adults. While Malawi has made substantial progress toward the UNAIDS 95-95-95 targets, only 55% of children living wi...

Non-standard proteins in the lens of AlphaFold 3: a case study of amyloids

Abstract While three-dimensional structures of globular and transmembrane forms are available for many amyloid proteins, structures of their amyloid forms are scarce in the PDB. Amyloids pose major challenges for both experimental structure determination and computational modelli...

A dynamic, physics-driven life cycle model for citrus supply chain: Evidence from a South Africa–Netherlands maritime trade route

Agri-food chains, especially fruit, produce about 10% of global GHG emissions, with more than half arising after harvest. Yet current methods, such as life cycle assessment (LCA), lack the spatial, temporal and physiological detail needed to resolve stage-specific drivers of envi...

Post-tuberculosis lung disease in children and adolescents: Myth or reality – A narrative review

Childhood tuberculosis (TB) remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality in high-burden settings, with Africa carrying a disproportionate share of incident and undiagnosed disease. A longstanding cure-centered paradigm has reinforced the notion that post-TB lung disease (PTLD...

Management of Saline–Sodic Soils Using Compost and Gypsum to Improve Maize and Sorghum Production in Northeastern Ethiopia

ABSTRACT Background Soil salinity and sodicity are major constraints to crop production in the irrigated agro‐pastoral systems of northeastern Ethiopia, particularly in the Asaita district of the Afar region. Aim This study evaluated the effectiveness of integrated organic and in...