Displaying publications 1 - 20 of 131 in total

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  1. Rohela M, Ngui R, Lim YA, Kalaichelvan B, Wan Hafiz WI, Mohd Redzuan AN
    Trop Biomed, 2012 Jun;29(2):224-30.
    PMID: 22735844 MyJurnal
    We report a case of Hymenolepis diminuta infection in a 2-year-old Malaysian child. This case was initially reported as 'normal' after the examination of proglottids shed from the anus of the child at a private laboratory on two occasions. The putative proglottids shed was then referred to the Parasite Southeast Asia Diagnostic (Para:SEAD) Laboratory, Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya for further examination. Microscopic examination confirmed that the child was infected with H. diminuta based on the characteristic eggs found in the proglottids. She was treated with a single dose praziquantel (20 mg/kg of body weight) and recovered well.
  2. Lau SM, Chua TH, Sulaiman WY, Joanne S, Lim YA, Sekaran SD, et al.
    Parasit Vectors, 2017 Mar 21;10(1):151.
    PMID: 28327173 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-017-2091-y
    BACKGROUND: Dengue remains a serious public health problem in Southeast Asia and has increased 37-fold in Malaysia compared to decades ago. New strategies are urgently needed for early detection and control of dengue epidemics.

    METHODS: We conducted a two year study in a high human density dengue-endemic urban area in Selangor, where Gravid Ovipositing Sticky (GOS) traps were set up to capture adult Aedes spp. mosquitoes. All Aedes mosquitoes were tested using the NS1 dengue antigen test kit. All dengue cases from the study site notified to the State Health Department were recorded. Weekly microclimatic temperature, relative humidity (RH) and rainfall were monitored.

    RESULTS: Aedes aegypti was the predominant mosquito (95.6%) caught in GOS traps and 23% (43/187 pools of 5 mosquitoes each) were found to be positive for dengue using the NS1 antigen kit. Confirmed cases of dengue were observed with a lag of one week after positive Ae. aegypti were detected. Aedes aegypti density as analysed by distributed lag non-linear models, will increase lag of 2-3 weeks for temperature increase from 28 to 30 °C; and lag of three weeks for increased rainfall.

    CONCLUSION: Proactive strategy is needed for dengue vector surveillance programme. One method would be to use the GOS trap which is simple to setup, cost effective (below USD 1 per trap) and environmental friendly (i.e. use recyclable plastic materials) to capture Ae. aegypti followed by a rapid method of detecting of dengue virus using the NS1 dengue antigen kit. Control measures should be initiated when positive mosquitoes are detected.

  3. Al-Mekhlafi MS, Atiya AS, Lim YA, Mahdy AK, Ariffin WA, Abdullah HC, et al.
    PMID: 18613540
    Despite great development in socioeconomic status throughout 50 years of independence, Malaysia is still plagued with soil-transmitted helminthiases (STH). STH continue to have a significant impact on public health particularly in rural communities. In order to determine the prevalence of STH among rural Orang Asli children and to investigate the possible risk factors affecting the pattern of this prevalence, fecal samples were collected from 292 Orang Asli primary schoolchildren (145 males and 147 females) age 7-12 years, from Pos Betau, Kuala Lipis, Pahang. The samples were examined by Kato-Katz and Harada Mori techniques. Socioeconomic data were collected using pre-tested questionnaires. The overall prevalence of ascariasis, trichuriasis, and hookworm infections were 67.8, 95.5 and 13.4%, respectively. Twenty-nine point eight percent of the children had heavy trichuriasis, while 22.3% had heavy ascariasis. Sixty-seven point seven percent of the children had mixed infections. Age > 10 years (p = 0.016), no toilet in the house (p = 0.012), working mother (p = 0.040), low household income (p = 0.033), and large family size (p = 0.028) were identified as risk factors for ascariasis. Logistic regression confirmed low income, no toilet in the house and working mother as significant risk factors for ascariasis. The prevalence of STH is still very high in rural Malaysian communities. STH may also contribute to other health problems such as micronutrient deficiencies, protein-energy malnutrition and poor educational achievement. Public health personnel need to reassess current control measures and identify innovative and integrated ways in order to reduce STH significantly in rural communities.
  4. Amir A, Ngui R, Ismail WH, Wong KT, Ong JS, Lim YA, et al.
    Am J Trop Med Hyg, 2016 Aug 03;95(2):410-2.
    PMID: 27325803 DOI: 10.4269/ajtmh.16-0007
    Human anisakiasis is a zoonosis acquired by eating raw or undercooked infected seafood. Herein, we report a case of acute dysentery caused by anisakiasis in a 64-year-old man in Malaysia. A colonoscopy was performed and a nematode larva was found penetrating the mucosa of the ascending colon. Bleeding was observed at the site of penetration. Y-shaped lateral epidermal cords were seen from the cross section of the worm, which is a prominent feature of Anisakis larva. Molecular analysis using polymerase chain reaction of cytochrome oxidase 2 (cox2) gene confirmed the specimen to be larva of Anisakis simplex.
  5. Tay ST, Mohamed Zan HA, Lim YA, Ngui R
    PLoS Negl Trop Dis, 2013;7(8):e2341.
    PMID: 23936576 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0002341
    Limited data is available on the current status of scrub typhus infection in the aboriginal population in Malaysia. This study was aimed to provide recent data on the degree of exposure of 280 individuals from seven aboriginal subgroups to Orientia tsutsugamushi (causative agent of scrub typhus) in West Malaysia. The environment, socioeconomic and behavioural risk factors associated with the disease were also investigated.
  6. Lee SC, Ngui R, Tan TK, Roslan MA, Ithoi I, Lim YA
    Environ Sci Pollut Res Int, 2014 Jan;21(1):445-53.
    PMID: 23794081 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-013-1925-1
    An aquatic biomonitoring of Giardia cysts and Cryptosporidium oocysts in river water corresponding to five villages situated in three states in peninsular Malaysia was determined. There were 51.3% (20/39) and 23.1% (9/39) samples positive for Giardia and Cryptosporidium (oo)cysts, respectively. Overall mean concentration between villages for Giardia cysts ranged from 0.10 to 25.80 cysts/l whilst Cryptosporidium oocysts ranged from 0.10 to 0.90 oocysts/l. Detailed results of the river samples from five villages indicated that Kuala Pangsun 100% (9/9), Kemensah 77.8% (7/9), Pos Piah 33.3% (3/9) and Paya Lebar 33.3% (1/3) were contaminated with Giardia cysts whilst Cryptosporidium (oo)cysts were only detected in Kemensah (100 %; 9/9) and Kuala Pangsun (66.6%; 6/9). However, the water samples from Bentong were all negative for these waterborne parasites. Samples were collected from lower point, midpoint and upper point. Midpoint refers to the section of the river where the studied communities are highly populated. Meanwhile, the position of the lower point is at least 2 km southward of the midpoint and upper point is at least 2 km northward of the midpoint. The highest mean concentration for (oo)cysts was found at the lower points [3.15 ± 6.09 (oo)cysts/l], followed by midpoints [0.66 ± 1.10 (oo)cysts/l] and upper points [0.66 ± 0.92 (oo)cysts/l]. The mean concentration of Giardia cysts was highest at Kuala Pangsun (i.e. 5.97 ± 7.0 cysts/l), followed by Kemensah (0.83 ± 0.81 cysts/l), Pos Piah (0.20 ± 0.35 cysts/l) and Paya Lebar (0.10 ± 0.19 cysts/l). On the other hand, the mean concentration of Cryptosporidium oocysts was higher at Kemensah (0.31 ± 0.19 cysts/l) compared to Kuala Pangsun (0.03 ± 0.03cysts/l). All the physical and chemical parameters did not show significant correlation with both protozoa. In future, viability status and molecular characterisation of Giardia and Cryptosporidium should be applied to identify species and genotypes/subgenotypes for better understanding of the epidemiology of these waterborne parasites.
  7. Ngui R, Lim YA, Chong Kin L, Sek Chuen C, Jaffar S
    PLoS Negl Trop Dis, 2012;6(3):e1550.
    PMID: 22413027 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0001550
    BACKGROUND: Given that micronutrient deficiency, neglected intestinal parasitic infections (IPIs) and poor socioeconomic status are closely linked, we conducted a cross-sectional study to assess the relationship between IPIs and nutritional status of children living in remote and rural areas in West Malaysia.

    METHODS/FINDINGS: A total of 550 children participated, comprising 520 (94.5%) school children aged 7 to 12 years old, 30 (5.5%) young children aged 1 to 6 years old, 254 (46.2%) boys and 296 (53.8%) girls. Of the 550 children, 26.2% were anaemic, 54.9% iron deficient and 16.9% had iron deficiency anaemia (IDA). The overall prevalence of helminths was 76.5% comprising Trichuris trichiura (71.5%), Ascaris lumbricoides (41.6%) and hookworm infection (13.5%). It was observed that iron deficiency was significantly higher in girls (p = 0.032) compared to boys. Univariate analysis demonstrated that low level of mother's education (OR = 2.52; 95% CI = 1.38-4.60; p = 0.002), non working parents (OR = 2.18; 95% CI = 2.06-2.31; p = 0.013), low household income (OR = 2.02; 95% CI = 1.14-3.59; p = 0.015), T. trichiura (OR = 2.15; 95% CI = 1.21-3.81; p = 0.008) and A. lumbricoides infections (OR = 1.63; 95% CI = 1.04-2.55; p = 0.032) were significantly associated with the high prevalence of IDA. Multivariate analysis confirmed that low level of mother's education (OR = 1.48; 95 CI% = 1.33-2.58; p<0.001) was a significant predictor for IDA in these children.

    CONCLUSION: It is crucial that a comprehensive primary health care programme for these communities that includes periodic de-worming, nutrition supplement, improved household economy, education, sanitation status and personal hygiene are taken into consideration to improve the nutritional status of these children.

  8. Lim YA, Ilankoon IMSK, Khong NMH, Priyawardana SD, Ooi KR, Chong MN, et al.
    Bioresour Technol, 2024 Feb;393:129898.
    PMID: 37890731 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2023.129898
    Microalgae's exceptional photosynthetic prowess, CO2 adaptation, and high-value bioproduct accumulation make them prime candidates for microorganism-based biorefineries. However, most microalgae research emphasizes downstream processes and applications rather than fundamental biomass and biochemical balances and kinetic under the influence of greenhouse gases such as CO2. Therefore, three distinctly different microalgae species were cultivated under 0% to 20% CO2 treatments to examine their biochemical responses, biomass production and metabolite accumulations. Using a machine learning approach, it was found that Chlorella sorokiniana showed a positive relationship between biomass and chl a, chl b, carotenoids, and carbohydrates under increasing CO2 treatments, while Chlamydomonas angulosa too displayed positive relationships between biomass and all studied biochemical contents, with minimal trade-offs. Meanwhile, Nostoc sp. exhibited a negative correlation between biomass and lipid contents under increasing CO2 treatment. The study showed the potential of Chlorella, Chlamydomonas and Nostoc for commercialization in biorefineries and carbon capture systems where their trade-offs were identified for different CO2 treatments and could be prioritized based on commercial objectives. This study highlighted the importance of understanding trade-offs between biomass production and biochemical yields for informed decision-making in microalgae cultivation, in the direction of mass carbon capture for climate change mitigation.
  9. Al-Mekhlafi HM, Al-Maktari MT, Jani R, Ahmed A, Anuar TS, Moktar N, et al.
    PLoS Negl Trop Dis, 2013;7(10):e2516.
    PMID: 24205426 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0002516
    Giardia duodenalis infection and malnutrition are still considered as public health problems in many developing countries especially among children in rural communities. This study was carried out among Aboriginal (Orang Asli) primary schoolchildren in rural peninsular Malaysia to investigate the burden and the effects of Giardia infection on growth (weight and height) of the children.
  10. Zhang L, Wong LR, Wong P, Shen W, Yang S, Huang L, et al.
    Brain Behav Immun Health, 2023 Mar;28:100599.
    PMID: 36817510 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbih.2023.100599
    Baicalein (BE) has both antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. It has also been reported able to improve cerebral blood circulation in brain ischemic injury. However, its chronic efficacy and metabolomics in Alzheimer's disease (AD) remain unknown. In this study, BE at 80 mg/kg was administrated through the oral route in J20 AD transgenic mice aged from aged 4 months to aged 10 months. Metabolic- and neurobehavioural phenotyping was done before and after 6 months' treatment to evaluate the drug efficacy and the relevant mechanisms. Meanwhile, molecular docking was used to study the binding affinity of BE and poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase-1 (PARP-1) which is related to neuronal injury. The open field test showed that BE could suppress hyperactivity in J20 mice and increase the frequency of the target quadrant crossing in the Morris Water Maze test. More importantly, BE restored cerebral blood flow back to the normal level after the chronic treatment. A 1H NMR-based metabolomics study showed that BE treatment could restore the tricarboxylic acid cycle in plasma. And such a treatment could suppress oxidative stress, inhibit neuroinflammation, alleviate mitochondrial dysfunction, improve neurotransmission, and restore amino homeostasis via starch and sucrose metabolism and glycolipid metabolism in the cortex and hippocampus, which could affect the behavioural and cerebral blood flow. These findings showed that BE is a potential therapeutic agent for AD.
  11. Tan TK, Panchadcharam C, Low VL, Lee SC, Ngui R, Sharma RS, et al.
    BMC Vet Res, 2014;10:38.
    PMID: 24502557 DOI: 10.1186/1746-6148-10-38
    Haemonchus contortus and Trichostrongylus spp. are reported to be the most prevalent and highly pathogenic parasites in livestock, particularly in small ruminants. However, the routine conventional tool used in Malaysia could not differentiate the species accurately and therefore limiting the understanding of the co-infections between these two genera among livestock in Malaysia. This study is the first attempt to identify the strongylids of veterinary importance in Malaysia (i.e., H. contortus and Trichostrongylus spp.) by amplification and sequencing of the Internal Transcribed Spacer II DNA region.
  12. Kumar T, Onichandran S, Lim YA, Sawangjaroen N, Ithoi I, Andiappan H, et al.
    Am J Trop Med Hyg, 2014 Apr;90(4):682-9.
    PMID: 24567315 DOI: 10.4269/ajtmh.13-0266
    This study investigated the distribution of parasites as main contaminants in water environments of peninsular Malaysia (October 2011-December 2011) and the southeastern coast of Thailand (June 2012). Sixty-four water samples, 33 from Malaysia and 31 from Thailand, of various water types were examined according to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency guidelines. Drinking or household water types from both countries were free from parasitic contamination. The recreational/environmental (except a swimming pool in Malaysia) and effluent water types from these two countries were contaminated with waterborne parasites: Giardia (0.04-4 cysts/L), Cryptosporidium (0.06-2.33 oocysts/L), hookworm (6.67-350 ova/L), Ascaris (0.33-33.33 ova/L), and Schistosoma (9.25-13.33 ova/L). The most contaminated sites were recreational lake garden 3 in Malaysia and river 2 in Thailand. Higher concentrations of Giardia, Cryptosporidium, and hookworm were found in samples from Malaysia than in samples from Thailand. The presence of Giardia cysts showed a significant association with the presence of Cryptosporidium oocysts (P < 0.005).
  13. Farizawati S, Lim YA, Ahmad RA, Fatimah CT, Siti-Nor Y
    Trop Biomed, 2005 Dec;22(2):89-98.
    PMID: 16883273 MyJurnal
    A study to determine the contribution of Giardia cysts and Cryptosporidium oocysts from cattle farms was carried out at the Langat Basin. This study investigated the contribution of cattle farms, located near Sungai Langat and Sungai Semenyih, towards river contamination with these cysts and oocysts. The findings showed that out of 24 samples of water taken from Sungai Semenyih, 4.2% was positive for Giardia cysts with a concentration of 1.3 cysts/L and 20.8% were positive with Cryptosporidium oocysts with a range of 0.7 - 2.7 oocysts/L. At Sungai Langat, from the 43 samples taken, 23.3% were positive for Giardia cysts with a range of 1.5 - 9 cysts/L whereas 11.6% were positive with Cryptosporidium oocysts with a range of 2.5 - 240 oocysts/L. Isolation of cysts and oocysts in bovine faecal materials revealed that 14.6% of faecal samples were positive for Giardia cysts which had a range of 75 - 1.3x104 cysts/g and 25% were positive for Cryptosporidium oocysts with a range of 50 - 3.9x105 oocysts/g. From the cattle wastewater, 98% were positive with oocysts and 6.7% with cysts. The concentrations were between 20 - 3.1x103 oocysts/mL for Cryptosporidium and 4 - 75 cysts/mL for Giardia. Given that the prevalence of Cryptosporidium and Giardia are high amongst the cattle and the positive findings of the (oo)cysts in the river samples, it could be deduced that there is a very high possibility of the cattle farms contaminating the river with Giardia cysts and Cryptosporidium oocysts. Viability study of Cryptosporidium oocysts in the surrounding soil and pond within the cattle farm showed that the viability of Cryptosporidium oocysts decreased with time. It was estimated that it will take 52 days for all the oocysts from both environment to be non-viable. With a viability rate of approximately 2 months in a cattle farm setup, river water contaminated with Cryptosporidium oocysts has a high chance of acting as an agent of transmission. As cattle farms are also inhabited by the owners and their families, this problem may pose a threat to humans (e.g. children) especially if they are dependent on the river water as their source of water for their daily activities.
  14. Lim YA, Ahmad RA, Smith HV
    J Water Health, 2008 Jun;6(2):239-54.
    PMID: 18209286 DOI: 10.2166/wh.2008.023
    Cryptosporidium and Giardia are major causes of diarrhoeal diseases of humans worldwide, and are included in the World Health Organisation's 'Neglected Diseases Initiative'. Cryptosporidium and Giardia occur commonly in Malaysian human and non-human populations, but their impact on disease, morbidity and cost of illness is not known. The commonness of contributions from human (STW effluents, indiscriminate defaecation) and non-human (calving, lambing, muck spreading, slurry spraying, pasturing/grazing of domestic animals, infected wild animals) hosts indicate that many Malaysian environments, particularly water and soil, are sufficiently contaminated to act as potential vehicles for the transmission of disease. To gain insight into the morbidity and mortality caused by human cryptosporidiosis and giardiasis, they should be included into differential diagnoses, and routine laboratory testing should be performed and (as for many infectious diseases) reported to a centralised public health agency. To understand transmission routes and the significance of environmental contamination better will require further multidisciplinary approaches and shared resources, including raising national perceptions of the parasitological quality of drinking water. Here, the detection of Cryptosporidium and Giardia should be an integral part of the water quality requirement. A multidisciplinary approach among public health professionals in the water industry and other relevant health- and environment-associated agencies is also required in order to determine the significance of Cryptosporidium and Giardia contamination of Malaysian drinking water. Lastly, adoption of validated methods to determine the species, genotype and subgenotype of Cryptosporidium and Giardia present in Malaysia will assist in developing effective risk assessment, management and communication models.
  15. Ahmad AF, Ngui R, Muhammad Aidil R, Lim YA, Rohela M
    Trop Biomed, 2014 Dec;31(4):836-43.
    PMID: 25776610 MyJurnal
    Limited data is available on the prevalence of parasitic infections among the island communities in Malaysia with most studies performed between 1960s-1980s. This study was conducted to determine the current prevalence status of parasitic infections among communities living in Pangkor Island Peninsular Malaysia. A total of 131 stool and 298 serum samples were collected and subjected to microscopic examination for intestinal protozoa and helminths and detection of Toxoplasma gondii antibodies using commercial ELISA kits respectively. In addition, thin and thick peripheral blood films were microscopically screened for the presence of Plasmodium spp. and microfilariae respectively. The overall prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections among Pangkor Island community was 9.9% (13/131) with T. trichiura (5.3%) being the most common intestinal parasite detected. Toxoplasmosis was reported in almost 60% of the community with the seroprevalence being significantly high among females (64.7%) compared to males (52.8%) (p=0.038). None of those examined samples were infected with intestinal sarcocystosis, malaria and filariasis. This study revealed that the prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections among Pangkor Island community has been greatly reduced compared to that reported 35 years ago. Massive improvements in the socioeconomic status, personal hygiene, water facilities and sanitation may have contributed to the low prevalence of parasitic infections in this community. Nevertheless, further studies still need to be performed to determine the possible risk factors for the high prevalence of toxoplasmosis in this community.
  16. Uni S, Mat Udin AS, Tan PE, Rodrigues J, Martin C, Junker K, et al.
    PMID: 36589876 DOI: 10.1016/j.crpvbd.2022.100078
    Species of the genus Pelecitus Railliet & Henry, 1910 the most widely distributed avian filariae in Africa and South America. Zoonotic cases in humans were reported in South America. While investigating the filarial fauna of wild animals in Malaysia, we discovered an undescribed filaria from the swollen footpad of the left leg of Copsychus malabaricus (Scopoli) in Pahang, Peninsular Malaysia. Adults of both sexes have a corkscrew-shaped body. Based on comparison of their morphological characteristics (i.e. pre-oesophageal cuticular ring distinct, oesophagus divided, vulva protuberant and situated at the level of anterior half of oesophagus, spicules strongly sclerotized and left spicule with broad blade) with other Pelecitus species, they are here described as Pelecitus copsychi Uni, Mat Udin & Martin n. sp. Multi-locus sequence analyses based on seven genes (12S rDNA, cox1, 18S rDNA, 28S rDNA, MyoHC, rbp1 and hsp70) were performed to determine the phylogenetic position of the new species. The calculated p-distance between the cox1 gene sequences for P. copsychi n. sp. and Pelecitus fulicaeatrae (Diesing, 1861) was 14.1%. Intraspecific genetic variation between two individuals of the new species was 0.4%. In both the Bayesian inference and maximum-likelihood trees, P. copsychi n. sp. was positioned in the second clade of ONC5, containing three genera of the subfamily Dirofilariinae (Foleyella Seurat, 1917, Pelecitus and Loa Stiles, 1905). Immunostaining and molecular analyses remained negative for the presence of Wolbachia endosymbionts. Our findings corroborate the division of the subfamily Dirofilariinae into ONC3 with Dirofilaria Railliet & Henry, 1911 and ONC5 with Pelecitus.
  17. Uni S, Mat Udin AS, Agatsuma T, Junker K, Saijuntha W, Bunchom N, et al.
    Parasit Vectors, 2020 Feb 06;13(1):50.
    PMID: 32028994 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-020-3907-8
    BACKGROUND: The genus Onchocerca Diesing, 1841 includes species of medical importance, such as O. volvulus (Leuckart, 1893), which causes river blindness in the tropics. Recently, zoonotic onchocercosis has been reported in humans worldwide. In Japan, O. dewittei japonica Uni, Bain & Takaoka, 2001 from wild boars is a causative agent for this zoonosis. Many filarioid nematodes are infected with Wolbachia endosymbionts which exhibit various evolutionary relationships with their hosts. While investigating the filarial fauna of Borneo, we discovered an undescribed Onchocerca species in the bearded pig Sus barbatus Müller (Cetartiodactyla: Suidae).

    METHODS: We isolated Onchocerca specimens from bearded pigs and examined their morphology. For comparative material, we collected fresh specimens of O. d. dewittei Bain, Ramachandran, Petter & Mak, 1977 from banded pigs (S. scrofa vittatus Boie) in Peninsular Malaysia. Partial sequences of three different genes (two mitochondrial genes, cox1 and 12S rRNA, and one nuclear ITS region) of these filarioids were analysed. By multi-locus sequence analyses based on six genes (16S rDNA, ftsZ, dnaA, coxA, fbpA and gatB) of Wolbachia, we determined the supergroups in the specimens from bearded pigs and those of O. d. dewittei.

    RESULTS: Onchocerca borneensis Uni, Mat Udin & Takaoka n. sp. is described on the basis of morphological characteristics and its genetic divergence from congeners. Molecular characteristics of the new species revealed its close evolutionary relationship with O. d. dewittei. Calculated p-distance for the cox1 gene sequences between O. borneensis n. sp. and O. d. dewittei was 5.9%, while that between O. d. dewittei and O. d. japonica was 7.6%. No intraspecific genetic variation was found for the new species. Wolbachia strains identified in the new species and O. d. dewittei belonged to supergroup C and are closely related.

    CONCLUSIONS: Our molecular analyses of filarioids from Asian suids indicate that the new species is sister to O. d. dewittei. On the basis of its morphological and molecular characteristics, we propose to elevate O. d. japonica to species level as O. japonica Uni, Bain & Takaoka, 2001. Coevolutionary relationships exist between the Wolbachia strains and their filarial hosts in Borneo and Peninsular Malaysia.

  18. Lim YA, Ramasame SD, Mahdy MA, Sulaiman WY, Smith HV
    Parasitol Res, 2009 Dec;106(1):289-91.
    PMID: 19705155 DOI: 10.1007/s00436-009-1602-y
    Nine 50-l surface water samples from a Malaysian recreational lake were examined microscopically using an immunomagnetisable separation-immunofluorescent method. No Cryptosporidium oocysts were detected, but 77.8% of samples contained low numbers of Giardia cysts (range, 0.17-1.1 cysts/l), which were genetically characterised by SSU rRNA gene sequencing. Genotype analyses indicated the presence of Giardia duodenalis assemblage A suggesting potential risk to public health. The present study represents the first contribution to our knowledge of G. duodenalis assemblages in Malaysian recreational water.
  19. Low VL, Prakash BK, Lim YA, Tan TK, Vinnie-Siow WY, Sofian-Azirun M, et al.
    Exp Appl Acarol, 2018 Aug;75(4):429-435.
    PMID: 30073430 DOI: 10.1007/s10493-018-0280-9
    Anaplasmosis and ehrlichiosis are of serious health concern worldwide for animals and humans. In the present study, we report the occurrence of Anaplasma platys and Ehrlichia canis in dogs and Rhipicephalus sanguineus sensu lato (s.l.) ticks from Peninsular Malaysia using a nested polymerase chain reaction assay based on amplification of the 16S rRNA gene. Anaplasma platys was detected from dogs and ticks with prevalence rates of 3.3% (8/240) and 2.9% (4/140), respectively. On the other hand, 12.9% (31/240) of the dogs and 0.7% (1/140) of the ticks were tested positive for E. canis. Additionally, co-infections of A. platys and E. canis with Babesia or Hepatozoon protozoa were also noted in this study. Double infection (E. canis + B. gibsoni) was observed in tick, whereas triple infections (E. canis + A. platys + B. vogeli and E. canis + A. platys + H. canis) were found in dogs. This study represents the first evidence of A. platys DNA in R. sanguineus s.l. in Malaysia.
  20. Prakash BK, Low VL, Vinnie-Siow WY, Tan TK, Lim YA, Morvarid AR, et al.
    J Med Entomol, 2018 Aug 29;55(5):1337-1340.
    PMID: 29762747 DOI: 10.1093/jme/tjy072
    Canine babesiosis is an emerging tick-borne disease with a worldwide distribution, including Malaysia. While the prevalence of Babesia has been documented from dogs in Malaysia, occurrence of Babesia has been relatively little studied in their tick vectors. Accordingly, a total of 240 dogs and 140 Rhipicephalus sanguineus sensu lato (s.l.) (Acari: Ixodidae) ticks from Malaysia were molecularly screened for the presence of Babesia protozoa in the present study. Babesia gibsoni was only detected in ticks (1.4%), whereas Babesia vogeli was detected in both ticks (1.4%) and dogs (2.1%). This study highlights the detection of B. gibsoni and B. vogeli for the first time, in both adult and nymphal stages of R. sanguineus s.l. in Malaysia, suggesting the potential role of this tick species in transmitting canine babesiosis.
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