No abstract

Mentha spicata is a well-known spice that has a variety of biological properties and is abundantly available throughout the world. This study was designed to investigate the superoxide radical scavenging and antibacterial properties of different fractions (hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate, and aqueous) of the ethanol extract of Mentha spicata. In addition, xanthine oxidase generated uric acid inhibition, reducing potential and iron chelating activity, also was investigated. Ethyl acetate fraction exhibited the highest (B84%) superoxide radical scavenging and inhibition of uric acid formation at 40 lg/ml compared with the standard quercetin (B81%) at 30 lg/ml. The highest reducing potential also is observed in ethyl acetate and aqueous fractions, which were comparable to the reducing potential of quercetin and ascorbic acid. Iron chelating activity of solvent fractions was found to be better than standard of EDTA (79% at 3 mg/ml). In addition, all fractions showed effective antibacterial activity against five human pathogenic bacteria among the ten samples used. However, aqueous fraction showed maximum growth inhibition zone (B36 mm diameter at 6 lg/per disc) against Shigella boydii. Hence, we conclude that the ethyl acetate and aqueous fractions of ethanol extract of Mentha spicata exhibited higher superoxide radical scavenging and antibacterial activities.

No abstract

The inadequate participation of youth in business activities is disturbing in the light of the high rate of unemployment together with an education system that is not aligned to the needs of the economy. As a result, the majority of the youth prefer seeking employment and earning a salary rather than embarking on a business career which could be financially more beneficial to the individual, his/her family and the wider community The study aims to determine how entrepreneurship education coupled with the necessary coaching and mentoring can fulfil the primary role of preparing young South Africans to contribute towards the economic growth of the country and the prosperity of its people by engaging in entrepreneurial activities. This study leverages my entrepreneurial experience to mentor nascent entrepreneurs to collaborate in knowledge gathering, information sharing and business networking using ICT. Using the autoethnographic approach, the study explores my experiences in entrepreneurship from my early childhood as an observer in the family business and later as an entrepreneur highlighting my successes and failures. To ensure that my business experiences could make a difference in society, I have undertaken to mentor a group of aspiring youth entrepreneurs to add to their knowledge and experience. This could help ensure that they are sustainable in business, contributing to the growth of the economy through job creation amongst the unemployed and generating wealth for the alleviation of poverty in the community. A mixed methods approach guides the direction, collection and analysis of a mixture of qualitative and quantitative data in this study. The main premise for the use of quantitative and qualitative approaches in combination is that it provides a better understanding of research problems than either approach alone would have achieved. Here autoethnography becomes a powerful tool in feeling and practically putting one’s self in the other’s shoes, which otherwise would be logically analysed and clinically reviewed. The results suggest that youth entrepreneurship in South Africa is compromised by high levels of bureaucracy thereby limiting access to finance, a shortage of skills and a general lack of innovative thinking making the country less competitive on the international stage. The youth should be exposed to entrepreneurship education from primary and secondary school so that entrepreneurial orientation and intention are developed early, thereby ensuring that the aspiring entrepreneur is psychologically competent for a career in business.