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A new species of Rock Gecko genus Cnemaspis (Squamata: Gekkonidae) from Western Sarawak, Malaysia

Kurita T, Nishikawa K, Matsui M, Hikida T

Zootaxa, 2017 05 03;4258(6):525-538.
PMID: 28609895 DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4258.6.2

A new species of Asian rock gecko, genus Cnemaspis, is described from Padawan, western Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo. The new species forms a clade with C. paripari and C. nigridia of the C. nigridia group in a mitochondrial DNA phylogeny and is similar to them morphologically in some characters such as caudal scalation. It differs from the other Asian Cnemaspis species in its unique combination of snout-vent length (up to 62.7 mm), 4-9 precloacal pores in males, keeled subcaudals with an enlarged, smooth, median row, presence of ventrolateral caudal tubercles, and coloration (head and upper flanks dark-yellow; anterior portion of tail black; posterior portion of tail white with black, paravertebral blob). Phylogenetic relationships within the C. nigridia group and the distributional ranges of species within the group suggest allopatric speciation by geographic isolation.
Fulltext Mandibular sawing in a snail-eating snake

Kojima Y, Fukuyama I, Kurita T, Hossman MYB, Nishikawa K

Sci Rep, 2020 07 29;10(1):12670.
PMID: 32728121 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-69436-7

The jaws of vertebrates display a striking diversity in form and function, but they typically open and close like a trapdoor rather than sliding like a saw. Here, we report unique feeding behaviour in the blunt-headed snail-eating snake, Aplopeltura boa (family Pareidae), where the snake cuts off and circumvents the indigestible part (the operculum) of its prey in the mouth using long sliding excursions of one side of the mandible, while the upper jaws and the mandible on the other side maintain a stable grasp on the prey. This behaviour, which we call 'mandibular sawing', is made possible by extraordinarily independent movements of the jaw elements and is a surprising departure from usual feeding behaviour in vertebrates.
Description of a new sandstone-dwelling species of genus Cnemaspis (Sauria: Gekkonidae) from Gunung Santubong National Park, southwestern Sarawak, Malaysia

Kurita T, Nishikawa K, Hossman MY, Mizuno T, Sato H, Gumal M

Zootaxa, 2024 Jun 12;5468(2):361-378.
PMID: 39646172 DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5468.2.7

A newly discovered sandstone-dwelling species of the rock gecko, genus Cnemaspis, is described from Santubong National Park, 25 km north of Kuching, southwestern Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo. Molecular phylogenetic analysis confirmed that Cnemaspis puterisantubongae sp. nov. is closely related to other Cnemaspis species in southwestern Sarawak, except for C. kendallii, although these relationships remain unclear. The new species differs from closely related species in having a moderate snout-vent length of up to 66.7 mm; 10-14 precloacal pores in males; 9-14 obviously-convex precloacal pore-bearing scales in females; enlarged, smooth, flat median subcaudal scales; sharp-edged, broad black markings on the trunk dorsum; and a black-gray banding pattern on the posterior part of the original tail, with white median subcaudal scales in males. This discovery of this new species from Santubong National Park, which is highly accessible due to its proximity to Kuching, highlights the need for extensive inventory surveys throughout the national parks of Sarawak.
Fulltext Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and β-blocker treatment in Asian patients with heart failure

Kubota Y, Tay WT, Asai K, Murai K, Nakajima I, Hagiwara N, et al.

ESC Heart Fail, 2018 04;5(2):297-305.
PMID: 29055972 DOI: 10.1002/ehf2.12228

AIMS: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and heart failure (HF) are increasingly frequent in Asia and commonly coexist in patients. However, the prevalence of COPD among Asian patients with HF and its impact on HF treatment are unclear.
METHODS AND RESULTS: We compared clinical characteristics and treatment approaches between patients with or without a history of COPD, before and after 1:2 propensity matching (for age, sex, geographical region, income level, and ethnic group) in 5232 prospectively recruited patients with HF and reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF, <40%) from 11 Asian regions (Northeast Asia: South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and China; South Asia: India; Southeast Asia: Thailand, Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia, and Singapore). Among the 5232 patients with HFrEF, a history of COPD was present in 8.3% (n = 434), with significant variation in geography (11.0% in Northeast Asia vs. 4.7% in South Asia), regional income level (9.7% in high income vs. 5.8% in low income), and ethnicity (17.0% in Filipinos vs. 5.2% in Indians) (all P