A protocol and training guidelines for mosquito sampling in remote areas with limited power supply.

Mosquito-borne diseases pose a significant threat in many Southeast Asian countries, particularly through the sylvatic cycle, which has a wildlife reservoir in forests and rural areas. Studying the composition and diversity of vectors and pathogen transmission is especially challenging in forests and rural areas due to their remoteness, limited accessibility, lack of power, and underdeveloped infrastructure. This study is based on the WHO mosquito sampling protocol, modifies technical details to support mosquito collection in difficult-to-access and resource-limited areas. Specifically, we describe the procedure for using rechargeable lithium batteries and solar panels to power the mosquito traps, demonstrate a workflow for processing and storing the mosquitoes in a -20 °C freezer, data management tools including microclimate data, and quality assurance processes to ensure the validity and reliability of the results. A pre- and post-test was utilized to measure participant knowledge levels. Additional research is needed to validate this protocol for monitoring vector-borne diseases in hard-to-reach areas within other countries and settings.

Exploring the role of gut microbiota in advancing personalized medicine.

Ongoing extensive research in the field of gut microbiota (GM) has highlighted the crucial role of gut-dwelling microbes in human health. These microbes possess 100 times more genes than the human genome and offer significant biochemical advantages to the host in nutrient and drug absorption, metabolism, and excretion. It is increasingly clear that GM modulates the efficacy and toxicity of drugs, especially those taken orally. In addition, intra-individual variability of GM has been shown to contribute to drug response biases for certain therapeutics. For instance, the efficacy of cyclophosphamide depends on the presence of Enterococcus hirae and Barnesiella intestinihominis in the host intestine. Conversely, the presence of inappropriate or unwanted gut bacteria can inactivate a drug. For example, dehydroxylase of Enterococcus faecalis and Eggerthella lenta A2 can metabolize L-dopa before it converts into the active form (dopamine) and crosses the blood-brain barrier to treat Parkinson's disease patients. Moreover, GM is emerging as a new player in personalized medicine, and various methods are being developed to treat diseases by remodeling patients' GM composition, such as prebiotic and probiotic interventions, microbiota transplants, and the introduction of synthetic GM. This review aims to highlight how the host's GM can improve drug efficacy and discuss how an unwanted bug can cause the inactivation of medicine.

An In Silico Design of Peptides Targeting the S1/S2 Cleavage Site of the SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein.

SARS-CoV-2, responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic, invades host cells via its spike protein, which includes critical binding regions, such as the receptor-binding domain (RBD), the S1/S2 cleavage site, the S2 cleavage site, and heptad-repeat (HR) sections. Peptides targeting the RBD and HR1 inhibit binding to host ACE2 receptors and the formation of the fusion core. Other peptides target proteases, such as TMPRSS2 and cathepsin L, to prevent the cleavage of the S protein. However, research has largely ignored peptides targeting the S1/S2 cleavage site. In this study, bioinformatics was used to investigate the binding of the S1/S2 cleavage site to host proteases, including furin, trypsin, TMPRSS2, matriptase, cathepsin B, and cathepsin L. Peptides targeting the S1/S2 site were designed by identifying binding residues. Peptides were docked to the S1/S2 site using HADDOCK (High-Ambiguity-Driven protein-protein DOCKing). Nine peptides with the lowest HADDOCK scores and strong binding affinities were selected, which was followed by molecular dynamics simulations (MDSs) for further investigation. Among these peptides, BR582 and BR599 stand out. They exhibited relatively high interaction energies with the S protein at -1004.769 ± 21.2 kJ/mol and -1040.334 ± 24.1 kJ/mol, respectively. It is noteworthy that the binding of these peptides to the S protein remained stable during the MDSs. In conclusion, this research highlights the potential of peptides targeting the S1/S2 cleavage site as a means to prevent SARS-CoV-2 from entering cells, and contributes to the development of therapeutic interventions against COVID-19.

Timeline of SARS-CoV-2 Transmission in Sabah, Malaysia: Tracking the Molecular Evolution.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic poses an unprecedented public health challenge in Malaysia. The impact of COVID-19 varies between countries, including geographically divided states within a country. The deadly transmission of COVID-19 has taken a heavy toll in Sabah, Malaysia's third most populous state, contributing nearly 10% to the recorded national death toll as of 31 December 2022. Although several SARS-CoV-2 genome sequences have been analysed in Malaysia, molecular epidemiology data from Sabah focusing on the diversity and evolution of SARS-CoV-2 variants are still lacking. This study examines the major SARS-CoV-2 variants and emerging mutations from Sabah, the Malaysian Borneo, which is geographically divided from West Malaysia by the South China Sea. METHODS: A total of 583 COVID-19 samples were subjected to whole genome sequencing and analysed with an additional 1123 Sabah COVID-19 sequences retrieved from the GISAID EpiCoV consortium. Nextclade and Pangolin were used to classify these sequences according to the clades and lineages. To determine the molecular evolutionary characteristics, Bayesian time-scaled phylogenetic analysis employing the maximum likelihood algorithm was performed on selected SARS-CoV-2 genome sequences, using the Wuhan-Hu-1 sequence as a reference. RESULTS: Sabah was affected starting from the second COVID-19 wave in Malaysia, and the early sequences were classified under the O clade. The clade was gradually replaced during subsequent waves by G, GH, GK and GRA, with the latter being dominant as of December 2022. Phylogenetically, the Delta isolates in this study belong to the three main subclades 21A, 21J and 21I, while Omicron isolates belong to 21M, 21L and 22B. The time-scaled phylogeny suggested that SARS-CoV-2 introduced into Sabah originated from Peninsular Malaysia in early March 2020, and phylodynamic analysis indicated that increased viral spread was observed in early March and declined in late April, followed by an evolutionary stationary phase in June 2020. CONCLUSION: Continuous molecular epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 in Sabah will provide a deeper understanding of the emergence and dominance of each variant in the locality, thus facilitating public health intervention measures.

Dataset of the complete genome of Streptomyces cavourensis strain 2BA6PGT isolated from sediment from the bottom of the salt lake Verkhnee Beloe (Buryatia, Russia).

The Streptomyces cavourensis strain 2BA6PGT was isolated from sediment from the bottom of the salt lake Verkhnee Beloe (Buryatia, Russia). This strain's 7,651,223 bp complete genome has a high G + C content of 72.1% and consists of 7,069 coding sequences and 315 subsystems. The 16S ribosomal RNA of isolate 2BA6PGT was most closely related to Streptomyces cavourensis strain NBRC 13026T (98.91% identity), followed by Streptomyces bacillaris strain ATCC 15855T (95.36%), Streptomyces rhizosphaericola strain 1AS2cT (94.68%), and Streptomyces pluricolorescens strain JCM 4602T (86.75%). These comparisons were supported by pairwise comparisons using average nucleotide identity (ANI) and DNA-DNA hybridization analysis. This is the first complete genome reported on Streptomyces cavourensis isolated from sediment from the bottom of the salt lake Verkhnee Beloe. The complete genome sequence has been deposited at the NCBI GenBank with an accession number CP101140.

Bacterial polysaccharides-A big source for prebiotics and therapeutics.

Bacterial polysaccharides are unique due to their higher purity, hydrophilic nature, and a finer three-dimensional fibrous structure. Primarily, these polymers provide protection, support, and energy to the microorganism, however, more recently several auxiliary properties of these biopolymers have been unmasked. Microbial polysaccharides have shown therapeutic abilities against various illnesses, augmented the healing abilities of the herbal and Western medicines, improved overall health of the host, and have exerted positive impact on the growth of gut dwelling beneficial bacteria. Specifically, the review is discussing the mechanism through which bacterial polysaccharides exert anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-cancer, and anti-microbial properties. In addition, they are holding promising application in the 3D printing. The review is also discussing a perspective about the metagenome-based screening of polysaccharides, their integration with other cutting-edge tools, and synthetic microbiome base intervention of polysaccharides as a strategy for prebiotic intervention. This review has collected interesting information about the bacterial polysaccharides from Google Scholar, PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science databases. Up to our knowledge, this is the first of its kind review article that is summarizing therapeutic, prebiotics, and commercial application of bacterial polysaccharides.

Bacteriocins as Potential Therapeutic Approaches in the Treatment of Various Cancers: A Review of In Vitro Studies.

Cancer is regarded as one of the most common and leading causes of death. Despite the availability of conventional treatments against cancer cells, current treatments are not the optimal treatment for cancer as they possess the possibility of causing various unwanted side effects to the body. As a result, this prompts a search for an alternative treatment without exhibiting any additional side effects. One of the promising novel therapeutic candidates against cancer is an antimicrobial peptide produced by bacteria called bacteriocin. It is a non-toxic peptide that is reported to exhibit potency against cancer cell lines. Experimental studies have outlined the therapeutic potential of bacteriocin against various cancer cell lines. In this review article, the paper focuses on the various bacteriocins and their cytotoxic effects, mode of action and efficacies as therapeutic agents against various cancer cell lines.

Antimicrobial activities and phytochemical properties of Blumea balsamifera against pathogenic microorganisms.

Medicinal plants have been widely used in healthcare based on traditional knowledge. We investigated the antimicrobial activities and phytochemical contents of a plant known as Blumea balsamifera (B. balsamifera), which Sabah native people have used for health benefits. Methanolic extracts and fractions of the leaves of B. balsamifera were tested for their phytochemical contents and their antimicrobial activities against four Gram-negative and five Gram-positive strains of bacteria. The extracts of B. balsamifera showed antimicrobial activities against three Gram-positive, and one Gram-negative bacteria, with the zone of inhibition ranging from 7.8 mm±0.41 to 10.5 mm±0.71. Fraction CE.F7 exerted the broadest antimicrobial activity towards four Gram-positive or Gram-negative bacteria. The phytochemical constituents identified in the extracts were alkaloid, flavonoid, steroid, and cardiac glycosides. The plant extract demonstrated antimicrobial activities and contained multiple phytochemical constituents. Further investigations into potential antimicrobial agents containing promising fractions would validate the medicinal properties of B. balsamifera used in Sabah.

COVID-19 Treatment-Current Status, Advances, and Gap.

COVID-19, which emerged in December 2019, was declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) in March 2020. The disease was caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). It has caused millions of deaths worldwide and caused social and economic disruption. While clinical trials on therapeutic drugs are going on in an Accelerating COVID-19 Therapeutic Interventions and Vaccines (ACTIV) public-private partnership collaboration, current therapeutic approaches and options to counter COVID-19 remain few. Therapeutic drugs include the FDA-approved antiviral drugs, Remdesivir, and an immune modulator, Baricitinib. Hence, therapeutic approaches and alternatives for COVID-19 treatment need to be broadened. This paper discusses efforts in approaches to find treatment for COVID-19, such as inhibiting viral entry and disrupting the virus life cycle, and highlights the gap that needs to be filled in these approaches.

Risk Association, Linkage Disequilibrium, and Haplotype Analyses of ß-Like Globin Gene Polymorphisms with Malaria Risk in the Sabah Population of Malaysian Borneo.

Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the ß-like globin gene of the human hosts to the risk of malaria are unclear. Therefore, this study investigates these associations in the Sabah population, with a high incidence of malaria cases. In brief, DNA was extracted from 188 post-diagnostic blood samples infected with Plasmodium parasites and 170 healthy controls without a history of malaria. Genotyping of the ß-like globin C-158T, G79A, C16G, and C-551T SNPs was performed using a polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism approach. Risk association, linkage disequilibrium (LD), and haplotype analyses of these SNPs were assessed. This study found that the variant allele in the C-158T and C16G SNPs were protective against malaria infections by 0.5-fold, while the variant allele in the G79A SNP had a 6-fold increased risk of malaria infection. No SNP combination was in perfect LD, but several haplotypes (CGCC, CGCT, and CGGC) were identified to link with different correlation levels of malaria risk in the population. In conclusion, the C-158T, G79A, and C16G SNPs in the ß-like globin gene are associated with the risk of malaria. The haplotypes (CGCC, CGCT, and CGGC) identified in this study could serve as biomarkers to estimate malaria risk in the population. This study provides essential data for the design of malaria control and management strategies.

Catalytic Properties of Caseinolytic Protease Subunit of Plasmodium knowlesi and Its Inhibition by a Member of δ-Lactone, Hyptolide.

The caseinolytic protease (Clp) system plays an essential role in the protein homeostasis of the malaria parasite, particularly at the stage of apicoplast development. The inhibition of this protein is known to have a lethal effect on the parasite and is therefore considered an interesting avenue for antimalaria drugs discovery. The catalytic activity of the Clp system is modulated by its proteolytic subunit (ClpP), which belongs to the serine protease family member and is therefore extensively studied for further inhibitors development. Among many inhibitors, the group of ß-lactone is known to be a specific inhibitor for ClpP. Nevertheless, other groups of lactones have never been studied. This study aims to characterize the catalytic properties of ClpP of Plasmodium knowlesi (Pk-ClpP) and the inhibition properties of a δ-lactone hyptolide against this protein. Accordingly, a codon-optimized synthetic gene encoding Pk-ClpP was expressed in Escherichia coli BL21(DE3) and purified under a single step of Ni2+-affinity chromatography, yielding a 2.20 mg from 1 L culture. Meanwhile, size-exclusion chromatography indicated that Pk-ClpP migrated primarily as homoheptameric with a size of 205 kDa. The specific activity of pure Pk-ClpP was 0.73 U µg-1, with a catalytic efficiency kcat/KM of 0.05 µM-1 s-1, with optimum temperature and pH of 50 °C and 7.0-7.5, respectively. Interestingly, hyptolide, a member of δ-lactone, was shown to inhibit Pk-ClpP with an IC50 value of 17.36 ± 1.44 nM. Structural homology modelling, secondary structure prediction, and far-UV CD spectra revealed that helical structures dominate this protein. In addition, the structural homology modeling showed that this protein forms a barrel-shaped homoheptamer. Docking simulation revealed that the inhibition was found to be a competitive inhibition in which hyptolide was able to dock into the catalytic site and block the substrate. The competitiveness of hyptolide is due to the higher binding affinity of this molecule than the substrate.

Bioactivities and Mode of Actions of Dibutyl Phthalates and Nocardamine from Streptomyces sp. H11809.

Dibutyl phthalate (DBP) produced by Streptomyces sp. H11809 exerted inhibitory activity against human GSK-3ß (Hs GSK-3ß) and Plasmodiumfalciparum 3D7 (Pf 3D7) malaria parasites. The current study aimed to determine DBP's plausible mode of action against Hs GSK-3ß and Pf 3D7. Molecular docking analysis indicated that DBP has a higher binding affinity to the substrate-binding site (pocket 2; -6.9 kcal/mol) than the ATP-binding site (pocket 1; -6.1 kcal/mol) of Hs GSK-3ß. It was suggested that the esters of DBP play a pivotal role in the inhibition of Hs GSK-3ß through the formation of hydrogen bonds with Arg96/Glu97 amino acid residues in pocket 2. Subsequently, an in vitro Hs GSK-3ß enzymatic assay revealed that DBP inhibits the activity of Hs GSK-3ß via mixed inhibition inhibitory mechanisms, with a moderate IC50 of 2.0 µM. Furthermore, the decrease in Km value with an increasing DBP concentration suggested that DBP favors binding on free Hs GSK-3ß over its substrate-bound state. However, the antimalarial mode of action of DBP remains unknown since the generation of a Pf 3D7 DBP-resistant clone was not successful. Thus, the molecular target of DBP might be indispensable for Pf survival. We also identified nocardamine as another active compound from Streptomyces sp. H11809 chloroform extract. It showed potent antimalarial activity with an IC50 of 1.5 µM, which is ~10-fold more potent than DBP, but with no effect on Hs GSK-3ß. The addition of ≥12.5 µM ferric ions into the Pf culture reduced nocardamine antimalarial activity by 90% under in vitro settings. Hence, the iron-chelating ability of nocardamine was shown to starve the parasites from their iron source, eventually inhibiting their growth.

Prevalence of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Different Clinical Stages before the National COVID-19 Vaccination Programme in Malaysia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

More than 1.75 million COVID-19 infections and 16 thousand associated deaths have been reported in Malaysia. A meta-analysis on the prevalence of COVID-19 in different clinical stages before the National COVID-19 Vaccination Program in Malaysia is still lacking. To address this, the disease severity of a total of 215 admitted COVID-19 patients was initially recorded in the early phase of this study, and the data were later pooled into a meta-analysis with the aim of providing insight into the prevalence of COVID-19 in 5 different clinical stages during the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia. We have conducted a systematic literature search using PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, ScienceDirect, and two preprint databases (bioRxiv and medRxiv) for relevant studies with specified inclusion and exclusion criteria. The quality assessment for the included studies was performed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. The heterogeneity was examined with an I2 index and a Q-test. Funnel plots and Egger's tests were performed to determine publication bias in this meta-analysis. Overall, 5 studies with 6375 patients were included, and the pooled prevalence rates in this meta-analysis were calculated using a random-effect model. The highest prevalence of COVID-19 in Malaysia was observed in Stage 2 cases (32.0%), followed by Stage 1 (27.8%), Stage 3 (17.1%), Stage 4 (7.6%), and Stage 5 (3.4%). About two-thirds of the number of cases have at least one morbidity, with the highest percentage of hypertension (66.7%), obesity (55.5%), or diabetes mellitus (33.3%) in Stage 5 patients. In conclusion, this meta-analysis suggested a high prevalence of COVID-19 occurred in Stage 2. The prevalence rate in Stage 5 appeared to be the lowest among COVID-19 patients before implementing the vaccination program in Malaysia. These meta-analysis data are critically useful for designing screening and vaccination programs and improving disease management in the country.

An Updated Review on the Role of Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms in COVID-19 Disease Severity: A Global Aspect.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and recently has become a serious global pandemic. Age, gender, and comorbidities are known to be common risk factors for severe COVID-19 but are not enough to fully explain the magnitude of their effect on the risk of severity of the disease. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in several genes have been reported as a genetic factor contributing to COVID-19 severity. This comprehensive review focuses on the association between SNPs in four important genes and COVID-19 severity in a global aspect. We discuss a total of 39 SNPs in this review: five SNPs in the ABO gene, nine SNPs in the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) gene, 19 SNPs in the transmembrane protease serine 2 (TMPRSS2) gene, and six SNPs in the toll-like receptor 7 (TLR7) gene. These SNPs data could assist in monitoring an individual's risk of severe COVID-19 disease, and therefore personalized management and pharmaceutical treatment could be planned in COVID-19 patients.

Biofilm formation of serotype 19 Streptococcus pneumoniae clinical isolates in relation to clinical isolate source, pH and Fe(III) supplementation

Aims@#Streptococcus pneumoniae is one the world’s foremost bacterial pathogens that cause massive global mortality and morbidity in young children and immunocompromised adults especially in developing countries. Biofilms have been increasingly recognized as an important prerequisite to disease. Individual S. pneumoniae strains differ markedly in their virulence phenotypes, but genetic heterogeneity has complicated attempts to identify any association between a given clonal lineage and propensity to cause a particular disease type. This study investigated serotype 19 S. pneumoniae from blood and ear isolates for biofilm formation capacity in relation to isolate source, pH and ferric oxide [Fe(III)] supplementation.@*Methodology and results@#Viable count and density biofilm assays, microscopy and multi locus sequence typing (MLST) were applied to investigate biofilm formation capacity and genetic diversity of serotype 19 S. pneumoniae from blood and ear isolates. Generally, blood isolates were observed to produce more biofilms at both pH 7.4 and 6.8 compared to the ear isolates. The supplementation of Fe(III) was also found to support biofilm growth. Upon MLST typing of the isolates, marked differences in biofilm formation within the same sequence types (ST) of ST199 and ST177 was observed. This strongly indicated that strains within the same sequence type show differences in biofilm formation capacity.@*Conclusion, significance and impact of study@#This study showed that despite belonging to the same serotype, serotype 19, S. pneumoniae blood and ear isolates showed high diversity in biofilm formation ability in relation to pH and Fe(III) supplementation. Additionally, pneumococcal isolates from sequence types ST199 and ST177 also gave rise to differences in biofilm formation ability within the same sequence type (ST). The diversity of biofilm formation within serotype 19 seen in this study is significant to further inform of vaccination strategies against pneumococcal infections, in that due to variations in biofilm formation capacity within the same ST. It is possible that within serotype 19 may show variable vaccination or drug treatment responses. This also indicates that the current treatment strategy which employs specific serotype selection as for PCV14 and PCV7 pneumococcal vaccines may not produce the desired therapeutic results.

Technical data on the inhibition properties of some medicinal plant extracts towards caseinolytic protease proteolytic subunit of Plasmodium knowlesi.

Proteolytic subunit of the caseinolytic protease system of Plasmodium knowlesi (Pk-ClpP; EC 3.4.21.92) is considered a viable target for antimalarial drug development to eradicate P. knowlesi malaria infection in Malaysia and Southeast Asian region. Inhibition of this system leads to a disruption in the protein homeostasis molecular machinery and therefore be lethal for the parasite. While plants are considered excellent sources of bioactive compounds exhibiting inhibition activity towards Pk-ClpP, many local medicinal plants remain unexplored. This article expands the data collected from the inhibition properties of the methanolic extract of Asystasia gangetica (Chinese Violet), Alstonia scholaris (Pulai Tree), Piper retrofractum (Javanese Long Pepper) and Smallanthus sonchifolius (Yacon) towards Pk-ClpP. These plants are widely found in Malaysia and Indonesia and have been traditionally used in various medical treatments. The present dataset showed that the extracts contained phenolic and flavonoid compounds in various concentrations, whereby S. sonchifolius was found to have the lowest content of phenolic and flavonoid contents, while A. gangetica and A. scholaris were statistically comparable, yet higher than P. retrofactum and S. sonchifolus. Further inhibition data assay towards Pk-ClpP revealed that A. gangetica, A. scholaris and P. retrofactum demonstrated remarkable inhibition activity with IC50 values of 39.06 ± 1.98, 48.92 ± 1.52, and 87.63 ± 3.55, respectively. However, the inhibition activity of these extracts was significantly lower than a serine protease inhibitor of phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoridenone (PMSF). Meanwhile, S. sonchifolus did not exhibit significant inhibition activity towards Pk-ClpP. In addition, Pk-ClpP was not inhibited by a cysteine protease inhibitor of E64.

Peptide Conjugate on Multilayer Graphene Oxide Film for the Osteogenic Differentiation of Human Wharton's Jelly-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells.

Graphene oxide (GO) is extensively studied as a template material for mesenchymal stem cell application due to its two-dimensional nature and unique functionalization chemistries. Herein, a new type of peptide-conjugated multilayer graphene oxide (peptide/m-GO film) was fabricated and used as biomaterial for culturing human Wharton's jelly-derived mesenchymal stem cells (WJ-MSCs). The characterization of the peptide/m-GO films was performed, and the biocompatibility of the WJ-MSCs on the peptide/m-GO films was investigated. The results demonstrated that the peptide conjugate on the m-GO film did not hamper the normal growth of WJ-MSCs but supported the growth of WJ-MSCs after the 6-day culture period. In addition, the osteogenic differentiation of WJ-MSCs on the peptide/m-GO films was enhanced as compared with the parent m-GO film. Therefore, such peptide-conjugated m-GO films could provide a highly biocompatible and multifunctional 2D material to tailor the potential application of WJ-MSCs in bone tissue regeneration.

Diversity and natural selection of Merozoite surface Protein-1 in three species of human malaria parasites: Contribution from South-East Asian isolates.

The present study aimed to examine the genetic diversity of human malaria parasites (i.e., P. falciparum, P. vivax and P. knowlesi) in Malaysia and southern Thailand targeting the 19-kDa C-terminal region of Merozoite Surface Protein-1 (MSP-119). This region is essential for the recognition and invasion of erythrocytes and it is considered one of the leading candidates for asexual blood stage vaccines. However, the genetic data of MSP-119 among human malaria parasites in Malaysia is limited and there is also a need to update the current sequence diversity of this gene region among the Thailand isolates. In this study, genomic DNA was extracted from 384 microscopy-positive blood samples collected from patients who attended the hospitals or clinics in Malaysia and malaria clinics in Thailand from the year 2008 to 2016. The MSP-119 was amplified using PCR followed by bidirectional sequencing. DNA sequences identified in the present study were subjected to Median-joining network analysis with sequences of MSP-119 obtained from GenBank. DNA sequence analysis revealed that PfMSP-119 of Malaysian and Thailand isolates was not genetically conserved as high number of haplotypes were detected and positive selection was prevalent in PfMSP-119, hence questioning its suitability to be used as a vaccine candidate. A novel haplotype (Q/TNG/L) was also detected in Thailand P. falciparum isolate. In contrast, PvMSP-119 was highly conserved, however for the first time, a non-synonymous substitution (A1657S) was reported among Malaysian isolates. As for PkMSP-119, the presence of purifying selection and low nucleotide diversity indicated that it might be a potential vaccine target for P. knowlesi.

Draft genome sequence data of Streptomyces sp. FH025.

The genome data of Streptomyces sp. FH025 comprised of 8,381,474 bp with a high GC content of 72.51%. The genome contains 7035 coding sequences spanning 1261 contigs. Streptomyces sp. FH025 contains 57 secondary metabolite gene clusters including polyketide synthase, nonribosomal polyketide synthase and other biosynthetic pathways such as amglyccycl, butyrolactone, terpenes, siderophores, lanthipeptide-class-iv, and ladderane. 16S rRNA analysis of Streptomyces sp. FH025 is similar to the Streptomyces genus. This whole genome project has been deposited at NCBI under the accession JAFLNG000000000.

Draft Genome Sequence of Flavobacterium sp. Strain PL002, Isolated from Antarctic Porphyra Algae.

Here, we report the draft genome sequence of Flavobacterium sp. strain PL002, isolated from Antarctic Porphyra algae. The 4,299,965-bp genome sequence is assembled into 170 contigs, has 32.92% GC content, and 3,734 predicted genes.