Growing up among the “green lands” of Limpopo sparked a curiosity about nature and its healing powers in Murendeni Nethengwe.
This spark culminated in a Doctor of Philosophy: Biomedical Science for Nethengwe, who graduated during this morning’s ceremony for the Faculty of Health and Wellness Sciences.
Her research is titled: An Evaluation of antioxidant potential, anti-inflammatory effect and the mechanisms of action of phenolic compounds from South African indigenous plants used in the management of diabetes-related male infertility.
Nethengwe, who is one of the recipients of the Vice-Chancellor’s Prestigious Achievers Awards, said that although her decision to explore this topic was influenced by personal interest and scientific curiosity, it was mainly based on the urgent need to address the rising prevalence of diabetes-related male infertility.
“I grew up in the green lands of Limpopo, Venda, and what I have always known is that nature gives and takes. Adding on to that, my mother, who has always prepared and sold herbal products, ignited my interest in translating traditional medicine into a tested and trusted alternative therapeutic solution that is safe and easily accessible by all. I figured that this topic would address both the health concern, promote sustainability through cherishing nature, and feed my passion.”
Her objectives were to identify medicinal plants used in Limpopo to treat diabetes and male infertility and select the most reported plants to conduct a study on the extracts.
“After that, to screen for phenolic compounds, treat hyperglycaemic sperm cells, and assess the amelioration of sperm parameters before and after treatment. Another objective of the study was to assess the link between diabetes and male infertility.
“The findings of this study confirmed the association of diabetes to male infertility and revealed that the administration of both tested plant extracts led to the improvement of sperm parameters such as total motility, vitality, DNA fragmentation, capacitation, oxidative status, and mitochondrial membrane potential. It was also deduced from the study that the effect of the plant extracts was concentration dependent.”
She was supervised by Prof OO Oguntibeju, Dr K Okaiyeto and Dr CS Opuwari.
Nethengwe is a postdoctoral researcher with the South African Medical Research Council/University of Pretoria (SAMRC/UP).
She said being a recipient of the Vice-Chancellor’s Prestigious Award made her believe that her dreams are valid.
“The VC Prestigious Achievers Award was never just about money to me. Financial strain is the biggest concern for every unemployed student. I am so grateful for an opportunity to reach for my dreams without having to worry about food, shelter, tuition fee or even having a nice time once in a while. But the idea of the whole committee believing that I deserve the award has built confidence in me and the need to pay back the trust by excelling and making[an] impact. This has pushed me to not only achieve my dreams but to exceed my own initial expectations. The fact that the VC recognised me made me wake up randomly at night and solve my research problems. It cut my fun times shorter and kept my brain in research.”
Written by Ilse Fredericks
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