Tarsubulura perarmata (Ratzel, 1868) is described from a primate Tarsius bancanus and from Tupaidae: Tupaia glis and T. minor in Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur). Its biological cycle is done by the experimental infestation of crickets belonging to the genera Valanga and Oxya. The infective larvae are obtained after three weeks of development of 28 degrees C in the intermediate host. They differ from third stage larvae obtained from Subulurinae by the development of cuticular pharyngeal lobes. The early apparition of this ontogenetic character confirms the isolation of the genus Tarsubulura as compared to the general evolution of the Subuluridae.
Hidrotic ectodermaldysplasia was found, to our knowledge, for the first time in a Chinese family in Malaysia, and it affected 15 members in five generations. The disease, which is transmitted as a non-sex-linked autosomal dominant trait, presumably originated from southern China. All 15 members had the typical nail, hair, and skin lesions, and we observed three different types of nail defects. Scalp alopeica was more extensive in the female members while keratoderma of the palms and soles was more notable in the male members. The nail and skin lesions also became severer with age. Except for the infectious eczematoid dermatitis present in the propositus, none had other skin or systemic disorders. All were relatively healthy and had normal life expectancies;
MeSH terms: Dental Health Surveys; Developing Countries*; Health Services/supply & distribution*; Malaysia; Pacific Islands; World Health Organization*
The authors present evidence of an indigenous diagnostic system by which Malay culture defines Amok, and of the disparate relations between individual conceptualization, behavior, and tradition which contributes to the labeling process. Amok is viewed as a cultural prescription for violent behavior in response to a given set of conditions. It is not a disease but rather a behavioral sequence, perceived as illness, that may be precipitated by various etiological factors. Finally, evidence is presented to support the hypothesis that traditional forms of Amok are being replaced by new variants in which psychopathology is increasingly evident.
MeSH terms: Adult; Mental Disorders/psychology*; Commitment of Mentally Ill; Cultural Characteristics; Homicide; Humans; Malaysia; Male; Psychotic Disorders/psychology; Recurrence; Violence*
Cancer of the cervix is exceedingly uncommon in the Malaysian Orang Asli (aborigine), despite the presence of factors associated with an increased risk of developing this malignancy. In only three patients was the diagnosis of carcinoma of the cervix established, out of a total of nearly 18,000 female inpatients, admitted to the Gombak Orang Asli Hospital over a 13-year period. Over this same period, 81 female patients were diagnosed as having cancer. Interviews with female Orang Asli patients show the presence of alleged risk factors for cervical cancer, including early age of first intercourse, multiparity and non-circumcision of husbands. The low incidence of cancer of the cervix in this aborigine community may be due to the strict moral code of the Orang Asli, limiting extramarital sexual activity and associated venereal infection.
MeSH terms: Adolescent; Adult; Age Factors; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms/etiology; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms/epidemiology*; Child; Circumcision, Male; Female; Humans; Malaysia; Male; Marriage; Parity; Pregnancy; Risk; Sexual Behavior; Social Environment; Continental Population Groups
It has been reported that studies of the genetic consequences of inbreeding should adopt a different strategy in populations having a relatively old inbreeding history and where inbreeding levels have varied over time. This contention is tested with a series of 39,495 single-birth records from Bombay, India, collected in a World Health Organization survey on congenital malformations. Our analysis reveals that: 1. the incidence of major malformations is significantly higher among the inbred offspring (1.34%) as compared to that among non-inbred ones (0,81%)--a finding at variance with a previous study in the same area; 2. the inbreeding effect on perinatal mortality (stillbirths and mortality during the first few days of life) is also found to be significant. In view of the above findings, the genetic load as disclosed by inbreeding is computed for perinatal mortality, major malformations and pooling these together. A + B, the measure of the number of lethal equivalents per gamete, is found to be at variance with other reports. Such variability can be ascribed to non-genetic factors. Supporting evidence collected from Brazil and Malaysia in the same survey is also presented.
A rare electrophoretic variant of superoxide dismutase (SOD) was found in one Filipino of 146 Filipinos, 1382 Malaysians and 816 Indonesians examined. The variant consists of two usual bands and two slower migrating bands similar to those reported earlier. Superoxide dismutase variants are common among people of certain localized regions in Europe, however, this is the first report of such a variant occurring in people of non-European origin.
MeSH terms: California; Erythrocytes/enzymology*; Humans; Malaysia; Philippines/ethnology; Superoxide Dismutase/blood*; Genetic Variation*; Asian Continental Ancestry Group
Several medical schools in Southeast Asia have identified deficiencies in their undergraduate medical education that result in inappropriate training of students for the health-care problems that exist in their respective countries. Curriculum changes have been made that take students out of the laboratory and the subspecialty-oriented university hospital and place them in extramural programs in the community. Both the deficiencies identified and the solutions developed merit study by North American medical educators, especially those teaching primary care in family practice.
MeSH terms: Community Health Services; Community Medicine/education*; Curriculum*; Education, Medical, Undergraduate*; Humans; Malaysia; Philippines; Rural Health; Students, Medical; Thailand
Clinacanthus nutans Burm, a herb reputed in Thailand and Malaysia to be "snakebite antidote" has been tested in vitro and in vivo for antivenin activity. The aqueous extract of C. nutans leaves has been found to have no effect on the inhibition of neuromuscular transmission produced by purified Naja naja siamensis neurotoxin in isolated rat phrenic-nerve diaphragm preparations. The extract of C. nutans, when given orally or intraperitoneally, are ineffective in prolonging the survival time of experimental mice receiving lethal doses of N.n. siamensis crude venom. Oral administrations of the herb extracts pretreated with alpha-amylase or beta-amylase also fail to protect the animal. It is concluded that the extract of C. nutans can not antagonize the action of cobra venom.
Leptotrombidium (Leptotrombidium) arenicola Traub, a vector of scrub typhus, had previously been found to occur in the coastal vegetation behind the edge of open sand along the beaches of Peninsular Malaysia. Surveys of the west coast beaches of Sabah and Sarawak were conducted to determine if this species occurs in similar habitat in East Malaysia on the island of Borneo. Leptotrombidium (L.) arenicola was not collected from the eighteen sites studied. Of the 11,982 mite larvae collected, 55 per cent were L.(L.) deliense (Walch), a well-known, widespread vector of scrub typhus.
Numbers of L. (L.) deliense larvae were determined in adjacent habitats over a 16 month period. Both R. argentiventer and R. tiomanicus were highly efficient hosts for L. (L.) deliense. R. argentiventer was host to significantly greater numbers of chiggers per rat than was R. tiomanicus. The 2 habitats were similar in numbers of chiggers collected. No consistent correlation was apparent between numbers of chiggers and any single weather factor, but the chigger population seemed to be adversely affected by a 2 month period during which total evaporation greatly exceeded total rainfall. Direct fluorescent antibody examination of tissues from unfed L. (L.) deliense showed that 2 of 420 larvae (0.5%) contained organisms morphologically resembling R. tsutsugamushi. Considering the vector load and numbers of chiggers being returned to the ground by a given host, a rate of 0.5% appeared adequate to account for the prevalence rate of R. tsutsugamushi observed in the 2 host species.
MeSH terms: Animals; Arachnid Vectors*; Ecology; Malaysia; Mites*; Population Density; Species Specificity; Weather; Rats/microbiology; Rats/parasitology
The life cycle of 5 generations of Leptotrombidium (L.) fletcheri infected with Rickettsia tsutsugamushi and reared under ambient temperatures in Malaysia was presented and compared with a colony reared at a constant 27 degrees C (Neal and Barnett, 1961). In general our colony had a longer generation time (average of 54 days from engorged larvae to adult compared with 37 days) and produced fewer eggs (average of 127.9 compared with 900.0) than the comparison colony. Possible factors causing these differences are discussed.
Dog sera, collected from different communities throughout Selangor, Peninsular Malaysia, were investigated for the presence of antibodies to R. tsutsugamushi and R. typhi. Scrub typhus antibodies were present in animals from the rural areas only, whereas murine typhus antibodies were observed in equal numbers of dogs from both rural and metropolitan areas. Greater percentage of dogs from suburban areas had demonstrable antibody titers to murine typhus than from the urban area.