Hevea brasiliensis is a natural source of rubber and an important plantation tree species in Malaysia. Leaf blight disease caused by Fusicoccum substantially reduces the growth and performance of H. brasiliensis. The aim of this study was to use a combination of both morphological characteristics and molecular data to clarify the taxonomic position of the fungus associated with leaf blight dise...

Stray cats collected from Georgetown, Penang from 2008 to 2010 were screened for ectoparasites via fine-tooth combing. Two cats from a total 102 examined were infested with the dog louse, Heterodoxus spiniger. Both cats, a juvenile male and female were found in close contact with each other prior to capture. The number of lice ranged from 5 and 14 in the male and female cat respectively...

Three new megophryid species, Leptolalax melanoleucus, L. fuliginosus, and L. solus, are described from southwestern and southern Thailand on the bases of acoustic and morphological characteristics. Leptolalax melanoleucus and L. fuliginosus are similar to L. pelodytoides from northern Thailand, but differ from it completely in advertisement call characteristics and ventral color. Leptolalax so...

My major purpose in this article is to make a plea for a more firmly rooted historical perspective on Malaysia's rapidly burgeoning ecological problems. Let me make it quite clear, however,·. that my objective is not to trace men's role in changing the face of nature in Peninsular Malaysia, but rather to offer a modest introduction to the history of ideas associated with the natural environment...

It has been noted that many drug addicts relapse to drug use after discharged from successful treatment and rehabilitation programs. Thus it is imperative and timely to address the issues that prompt relapsed addiction. 400 drug addicts on relapse cases were selected from eight drug rehabilitation centres throughout Peninsular Malaysia to examine factors influences the relapsed addiction to dru...

Realizing that family planning is not making a sufficient impact on the rural people as it is on the urban population, it was decided that the authors would study the attitude and knowledge of a rural community towards family planning. The study sample consisted of 200 Malay married women--100 acceptors and 100 nonacceptors from the Kuala Pilah District. The study went from December 4-22, 197...

Pregnancy among unmarried women may have negative social and health implications in Malaysia. The number of pregnancies among unmarried women has increased in Malaysia, but the socio-demographic profile of these women is unclear. This study aims to evaluate the characteristics of unmarried pregnant women and the factors associated with unmarried pregnancies among young women in Malaysia. We con...

BACKGROUND Over the past 50 years, Southeast Asia has suffered the greatest losses of biodiversity of any tropical region in the world. Malaysia is a biodiversity hotspot in the heart of Southeast Asia with roughly the same number of mammal species, three times the number of butterfly species, but only 4% of the land area of Australia. Consequently, in Malaysia, there is an urgent need for biod...

Studies were conducted in selected areas in three states namely Johor (n=117, male=55, female=62), Negeri Sembilan (n=130, male=52, female=78) and Malacca (n=97, male=33, female=64) involving free living elderly (age range from 60 to 93 years old). Respondents were divided into three age cohort groups that is 60 to 69 years, 70 to 79 years and above 80 years old. Assessment of macro and micronu...