•This article reviews the species of soft ticks (Acari: Argasidae) and their associated hosts and pathogens in the island nations of Southeast Asia, which consist of Malaysia (both Peninsula and ...Borneo), Singapore, Brunei, Indonesia, Timor-Leste, and the Philippines.•The most prevalent soft tick genus in the island nations of Southeast Asia is the Carios genus, and the host species most associated with findings of soft ticks in this region are bats, particularly of the genera Eonycteris, Pipistrellus, Scotophilus, and Rousettus.•The only known pathogens originating from soft ticks in the island nations of Southeast Asia was the Keterah virus, which was isolated from the Argas pusillus tick in Malaysia.•We provide a list of soft tick species and a pictorial summary of the geographical distribution of soft ticks in the island nations of Southeast Asia.
Soft ticks (Acari: Argasidae) are the second major family of the blood feeding metastriates and vectors of a number of viral and bacterial pathogens for both humans and animals. Despite the growing effort on tick surveillance and studies worldwide, there is still limited information on the soft tick distribution in the island nations of Southeast Asia, especially species that are medically and veterinarily important. With the aim to provide an overview of the current status of knowledge on soft tick distribution in the island nations of Southeast Asia (Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Indonesia, the Philippines and Timor-Leste), this article reviews the species of soft ticks (Acari: Argasidae) and their associated hosts and pathogens, with the addition of a pictorial summary and list of tick species discovered in this region. The most prevalent soft tick genus is Carios, and the host species most associated with findings of soft ticks in this region are bats, particularly of the Pteropodidae and Vespertilionidae families. Furthermore, the only known pathogen originating from soft ticks in the island nations of Southeast Asia was the Keterah virus, which was isolated from Argas pusillus tick in Malaysia.
The taxonomy of ticks of the subgenus
Boophilus
has been extensively debated and is often complicated by the high intraspecific variation of morphological features between species. Notably, the ...cattle tick
Rhipicephalus microplus
is a species complex consisting of
Rhipicephalus annulatus
,
Rhipicephalus australis
and the three mitochondrial clades (A-C) of
R. microplus.
To gain insight into the taxonomic status of this species complex, we performed morphological and molecular analyses on these cattle ticks across four states in peninsular Malaysia. We morphologically identified 60 males and 104 females of
R. microplus
, 298 males and 374 females of
R. australis
, and one
R. annulatus
male in our field collection, of which the latter two species have never been recorded in Malaysia. However, all three morphologically identified species were molecularly assigned as
R. microplus
clade A based on the barcoding cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) analysis. The discrepancy between morphological and genetic data highlights an urgent need for further exploration and in-depth research into the taxonomic status of these sympatric tick species.
We report the presence of a male Haemaphysalis semermis collected from the domestic cat, Felis catus in an aboriginal village located in Pahang, Malaysia. This paper constitutes a new host record of ...this tick species, and also the first documentation of the infestation of companion animals other than domestic dogs (Canis lupus) by H. semermis in Malaysia. Additionally, we have included an updated host index of the tick species in Southeast Asia.
In order to evaluate the salinization in the western coastal area of South Korea, we performed a regional hydrochemical study on a total of 356 shallow groundwaters sampled within 10
km from the ...coastline. About 13, 5, and 37% of the samples exceed the drinking water standards for total dissolved solids, chloride, and nitrate, respectively, indicating significant deterioration and salinization of groundwaters. The concentrations of analyzed solutes are very wide in range, suggesting that the hydrochemistry is controlled by several intermixed processes such as seawater mixing, anthropogenic contamination, and water–rock interaction. Based on the interpretation of cumulative probability curves for Cl
− and NO
3
− concentrations, groundwaters are grouped into four types, as follows: (1) type 1 waters (37.6%) that are relatively poor in Cl
− and NO
3
−, which indicates little contamination due to seawater mixing and/or anthropogenic pollution; (2) type 2 waters (2.8%) enriched in Cl
−, indicating considerable effects of seawater mixing; (3) NO
3
−-rich, type 3 waters (58.1%) which show significant anthropogenic pollution; and (4) type 4 waters (1.4%) enriched in both Cl
− and NO
3
−, demonstrating the effects of both seawater mixing and anthropogenic contamination. The results of water-type classification are well confirmed by statistical analyses of hydrochemical data. As an effective tool for evaluating the relative degree of seawater mixing, we propose the ‘Seawater Mixing Index’ (SMI) based on the concentrations of Na, Mg, Cl, and SO
4. Most type 2 and type 4 waters have SMI values greater than 1. At least about 5 and 60% of well groundwaters are considered to be affected by salinization due to seawater mixing and anthropogenic contamination, respectively.
Mite biodiversity and distribution in Malaysia is currently understudied. Most previous works on Malaysian Acari have focused on pest organisms of medical, veterinary, and agricultural concern, with ...a few recent studies centered on mites in forensic contexts. Previous literatures have targeted collection sites in forest reserves and/or mountains in either Peninsular or Malaysian Borneo, though the state of Sarawak had the least publications related to mite species descriptions despite having the highest number of nature parks of any state in the country. Most publications focused on the three states Selangor, Pahang and Sabah. Most of the mite species reported were from mammals (66.3%), with fewer species from birds (21.7%), arthropods (11.2%), and reptiles (0.8%). We believe that further work on the systematic documentation of mite species throughout Malaysia is necessary as it could generate useful tools, such as the use of mites as biogeographical markers or as forensic indicators. Therefore, this review catalogs mite species that have been documented in or on animal hosts in Malaysia and serves as a foundation for future work.
Aim
To simulate in a laboratory setting longitudinal cracking in root filled premolar teeth, using cyclic mechanical fatigue.
Methodology
Mesial‐occlusal‐distal (MOD) cavities were prepared in twenty ...root filled, single‐rooted, mandibular premolars restored with fibre posts and resin composites. The samples were randomly divided into two groups based on the loading approaches: static loading with a crosshead speed of 0.5 mm/min and step‐stress cyclic loading (1 Hz) with increasing amplitude. The loads and numbers of cycles to failure were recorded. Micro‐CT was also used to identify the fracture modes. Statistical analysis was performed using Student's t‐test. The level of significance was set at 0.05.
Results
The mean fracture loads for the static loading and cyclic loading groups were 769 ± 171 N and 720 ± 92 N, respectively. There was no significant difference between the two groups (P > 0.05). The proportions of longitudinal, cuspal and mixed‐mode fractures under cyclic loading were 50%, 20% and 30%, respectively. Longitudinal fractures occurred with larger numbers of cycles and higher average loads per cycle compared with the other fractures. Static loading produced only cuspal fractures.
Conclusions
Longitudinally cracked premolar teeth with root fillings were successfully produced using the step‐stress cyclic loading method. This provides a more clinically representative methodology for studying cracked teeth in a laboratory setting.
To develop and validate a radiomics-based model for predicting response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) using baseline computed tomography (CT) images in patients with muscle-invasive bladder ...cancer (MIBC).
A radiomics signature for predicting pathological complete response (pCR) was developed using radiomics features selected by a random forest classifier on baseline CT images, and imaging predictors were identified in the training set (87 patients). By incorporating imaging predictors and radiomics signature, an imaging-based model was constructed using multivariate logistic regression analysis and validated in an independent validation set consisting of 48 patients with CT from outside institutions. The performance and clinical usefulness of the imaging-based model for predicting pCR were evaluated using area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) and decision curve analysis. Using a cut-off determined in the training set, the positive likelihood ratios of the imaging-based model were calculated and compared with imaging and histological predictors.
The radiomics signature was developed based on six stable radiomics features. An imaging-based model incorporating radiomics signature, tumour shape, tumour size, and clinical stage showed good performance for predicting pCR in both the training (AUC, 0.85; 95% confidence interval CI, 0.78–0.93) and validation (AUC, 0.75; 95% CI, 0.60–0.86) sets, providing a larger net benefit in decision curve analysis. The imaging-based model showed a higher positive likelihood ratio (1.91) for pCR than imaging and histological predictors (1.33–1.63).
The radiomics-based model using baseline CT images may predict the response of patients with MIBC to NAC.
•Use of radiomics signature may predict pathologic complete response.•Radiomics-based model showed higher net benefit than no model use.•Radiomics-based model provides a tool for optimizing treatment plans.
Abstract The aim of this study was to determine whether elastic properties and apparent density of bone differ in different anatomical regions of the maxilla and mandible. Additional analyses ...assessed how elastic properties and apparent density were related. Four pairs of edentulous maxilla and mandibles were retrieved from fresh human cadavers. Bone samples from four anatomical regions (maxillary anterior, maxillary posterior, mandibular anterior, mandibular posterior) were obtained. Elastic modulus (EM) and hardness (H) were measured using the nano-indentation technique. Bone samples containing cortical and trabecular bone were used to measure composite apparent density (cAD) using Archimedes’ principle. Statistical analyses used repeated measures ANOVA and Pearson correlations. Bone physical properties differed between regions of the maxilla and mandible. Generally, mandible had higher physical property measurements than maxilla. EM and H were higher in posterior than in anterior regions; the reverse was true for cAD. Posterior maxillary cAD was significantly lower than that in the three other regions.
We report two new records of chewing lice from avian pets in Peninsular Malaysia: Colpocephalum apivorus Tendeiro, 1958 from an Oriental honey buzzard (Pernis ptilorhynchus (Temminck, 1821)), and ...Myrsidea splendenticola Klockenhoff, 1973 from an albino house crow (Corvus splendens Vieillot, 1817). The scarcity of louse records from avian pets and wild birds, and the lack of louse research in Malaysia are discussed.
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