Market surveys and social media provide confirmation of the endangered giant freshwater whipray Urogymnus polylepis in Myanmar

The giant freshwater whipray Urogymnus polylepis is a threatened species that is vulnerable to riverine and coastal marine pressures. Despite its threatened status, the range of U. polylepis is still being determined. In this study, photographic evidence of U. polylepis in Myanmar was provided through market surveys (2017-2018) and social media (Sharks and Rays of Rakhine Facebook page, 2021). Urogymnus polylepis is exposed to fisheries and habitat degradation pressures in Myanmar; therefore, conservation management is likely needed to ensure populations persist into the future

Reproductive Biology of Splendid Ponyfish Leiognathus Splendens (Cuvier, 1829) in Myeik Coastal Waters, Myanmar

Reproductive biology of Leiognathus splendens was studied by using the samples collected from the catches of trawl fisheries in Myeik coastal waters during January to December 2014. Spawning takes place throughout the year, with a peak during April-May and September-December. The observed length at first maturity was 9.0 cm total length in males and 8.4 cm in females. The mean gonadosomatic index was more prominently in females (2.5) than males (1.5). Sex ratio (1 male: 1.1 females) also indicates the general dominant of females over males  Fecundity varied from 6120 to 58412 eggs. Relationship of fecundity to fish length, fish weight and ovary weight showed that fecundity is more related to the gonad weight (r=0.9) than length (r=0.8) and weight of fish (r=0.7

Asymptomatic and sub-microscopic malaria infection in Kayah State, eastern Myanmar

Myanmar has the heaviest burden of malaria in the Greater Mekong Sub-region. Asymptomatic Plasmodium spp. infections are common in this region and may represent an important reservoir of transmission that must be targeted for malaria elimination.; A mass blood survey was conducted among 485 individuals from six villages in Kayah State, an area of endemic but low transmission malaria in eastern Myanmar. Malaria infection was screened by rapid diagnostic test (RDT), light microscopy and real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and its association with demographic factors was explored.; The prevalence of asymptomatic Plasmodium spp. infection was 2.3% (11/485) by real-time PCR. Plasmodium vivax accounted for 72.7% (8/11) and Plasmodium falciparum for 27.3% (3/11) of infections. Men were at greater risk of infection by Plasmodium spp. than women. Individuals who worked as farmers or wood and bamboo cutters had an increased risk of infection.; A combination of RDT, light microscopy and PCR diagnostics were used to identify asymptomatic malaria infection, providing additional information on asymptomatic cases in addition to the routine statistics on symptomatic cases, so as to determine the true burden of disease in the area. Such information and risk factors can improve malaria risk stratification and guide decision-makers towards better design and delivery of targeted interventions in small villages, representative of Kayah State

Effect of point-of-care C-reactive protein testing on antibiotic prescription in febrile patients attending primary care in Thailand and Myanmar : an open-label, randomised, controlled trial

Background In southeast Asia, antibiotic prescription in febrile patients attending primary care is common, and a probable contributor to the high burden of antimicrobial resistance. The objective of this trial was to explore whether C-reactive protein (CRP) testing at point of care could rationalise antibiotic prescription in primary care, comparing two proposed thresholds to classify CRP concentrations as low or high to guide antibiotic treatment. Methods We did a multicentre, open-label, randomised, controlled trial in participants aged at least 1 year with a documented fever or a chief complaint of fever (regardless of previous antibiotic intake and comorbidities other than malignancies) recruited from six public primary care units in Thailand and three primary care clinics and one outpatient department in Myanmar. Individuals were randomly assigned using a computer-based randomisation system at a ratio of 1:1:1 to either the control group or one of two CRP testing groups, which used thresholds of 20 mg/L (group A) or 40 mg/L CRP (group B) to guide antibiotic prescription. Health-care providers were masked to allocation between the two intervention groups but not to the control group. The primary outcome was the prescription of any antibiotic from day 0 to day 5 and the proportion of patients who were prescribed an antibiotic when CRP concentrations were above and below the 20 mg/L or 40 mg/L thresholds. The primary outcome was analysed in the intention-to-treat and per-protocol populations. The trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02758821, and is now completed. Findings Between June 8, 2016, and Aug 25, 2017, we recruited 2410 patients, of whom 803 patients were randomly assigned to CRP group A, 800 to CRP group B, and 807 to the control group. 598 patients in CRP group A, 593 in CRP group B, and 767 in the control group had follow-up data for both day 5 and day 14 and had been prescribed antibiotics (or not) in accordance with test results (per-protocol population). During the trial, 318 (39%) of 807 patients in the control group were prescribed an antibiotic by day 5, compared with 290 (36%) of 803 patients in CRP group A and 275 (34%) of 800 in CRP group B. The adjusted odds ratio (aOR) of 0·80 (95% CI 0·65–0·98) and risk difference of −5·0 percentage points (95% CI −9·7 to −0·3) between group B and the control group were significant, although lower than anticipated, whereas the reduction in prescribing in group A compared with the control group was not significant (aOR 0·86 [0·70–1·06]; risk difference −3·3 percentage points [–8·0 to 1·4]). Patients with high CRP concentrations in both intervention groups were more likely to be prescribed an antibiotic than in the control group (CRP ≥20 mg/L: group A vs control group, p<0·0001; CRP ≥40 mg/L: group B vs control group, p<0·0001), and those with low CRP concentrations were more likely to have an antibiotic withheld (CRP <20 mg/L: group A vs control group, p<0·0001; CRP <40 mg/L: group B vs control group, p<0·0001). 24 serious adverse events were recorded, consisting of 23 hospital admissions and one death, which occurred in CRP group A. Only one serious adverse event was thought to be possibly related to the study (a hospital admission in CRP group A). Interpretation In febrile patients attending primary care, testing for CRP at point of care with a threshold of 40 mg/L resulted in a modest but significant reduction in antibiotic prescribing, with patients with high CRP being more likely to be prescribed an antibiotic, and no evidence of a difference in clinical outcomes. This study extends the evidence base from lower-income settings supporting the use of CRP tests to rationalise antibiotic use in primary care patients with an acute febrile illness. A key limitation of this study is the individual rather than cluster randomised study design which might have resulted in contamination between the study groups, reducing the effect size of the intervention

Collaborative Survey and Collection of Brassica Vegetable Genetic Resources in Myanmar in 2018 and 2019

Exploration and collection surveys were conducted from October 25 to November 9, 2018 and from February 10 to 26, 2019, under the collaboration between Tokyo University of Agriculture (TUA), Japan, and the Department of Agriculture Research, Myanmar. The 2018 survey was conducted at Shan State, Mandalay Region, and in a part of the Sagaing Region. In 2019, genetic resources were collected from the Eastern Shan State. Genetic resources were collected from farmlands, farmers’ houses, local markets, and areas surrounding administrative offices of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, and Irrigation. In all, 110 accessions, including 82 of Brassica juncea, 11 of Brassica oleracea L. Alboglabra Group, one of Brassica oleracea L. Capitata Group, and 16 of Raphanus sativus L, were collected. The collected genetic resources were divided between the Myanmar Seed Bank and TUA for the Plant Genetic Resources in Asia Project, and half of the collected resources was imported to Japan and introduced there as per the Standard Material Transfer Agreement. Imported seeds will be multiplied and evaluated in Japan and will become available from the National Agriculture and Food Research Organization Genebank, Japan, for research, breeding, and educational purposes.ミャンマー連邦共和国において，“Mohn Nyin” と呼ばれるカラシナを中心としたアブラナ野菜の遺伝資源探索収集を行った．2018 年 10 月 25 日から 11 月 9 日までシャン州カロー周辺，マンダレー管区およびザガイン管区の一部で収集を行った．また，2019 年 2 月 10 日から 26 日は東部シャン州において収集を行った．その結果，Brassica juncea 82 点，B. oleracea L. Alboglabra Group 11 点，B. oleracea L. Capitata Group 1 点，Raphanus sativus L. 16 点の計 110 点が収集された．調査はミャンマー農業畜産潅漑省農業研究局および東京農業大学の共同で行われた．収集品は 2 分し，一方はミャンマーシードバンクで，他方は SMTA に基づき日本に導入された後，農業研究，育種，教育目的で配布可能な遺伝資源として，農業・食品産業技術総合研究機構遺伝資源センターにて保存される

Myanmar Dengue Outbreak Associated with Displacement of Serotypes 2, 3, and 4 by Dengue 1

In 2001, Myanmar (Burma) had its largest outbreak of dengue—15,361 reported cases of dengue hemorrhagic fever/dengue shock syndrome (DHF/DSS), including 192 deaths. That year, 95% of dengue viruses isolated from patients were serotype 1 viruses belonging to two lineages that had diverged from an earlier, now extinct, lineage sometime before 1998. The ratio of DHF to DSS cases in 2001 was not significantly different from that in 2000, when 1,816 cases of DHF/DSS were reported and dengue 1 also was the most frequently isolated serotype. However, the 2001 ratio was significantly higher than that in 1998 (also an outbreak year) and in 1999, when all four serotypes were detected and serotypes 1, 2, and 3 were recovered in similar numbers. The large number of clinical cases in 2001 may have been due, in part, to a preponderance of infections with dengue 1 viruses

Investigation of Japanese Encephalitis Virus Infection in Bogalay Township, Myanmar in 1999

An investigation was in Nyi-naung-wa village, Bogalay township for Japanese encephalitis (JE) virus infection and the possibility of a JE outbreak. JE virus antibody was determined among the pigs and the people living near the pig farms in that village and at an adjacent village as a control. The known JE virus vector Culex mosquito species were also identified in both villages. Haemagglutination inhibition (HAI) methods were used for the detectioon of JE and dengue antibodies. Homotypic or monotypic JE antibodies were detected in 33% of the pigs tested. No homotypic nor monotypic JE antibodis was detected among the villagers. Although there was no JE virus infection among the people, because of the presence of JE virus infection among the pigs and the presence of Culex mosquito vector in that area, the possibility of a JE outbreak in humans in that area, if the number of pig breeding per household increase and the mosquito density become higher is discussed

Late prehistoric and early historic chronology of Myanmar: a four-millennia sequence from Halin

Myanmar is located within an important geographic corridor of prehistoric demographic and technological exchange, yet relatively few archaeological sites have been securely dated. Here, the authors present a new radiocarbon chronology for Halin, a UNESCO-listed complex in the north-central Sagaing Division of Myanmar, which contributes to the generation of nuanced regional chronologies and to improving the temporal resolution of Southeast Asia more generally. Discussion of 94 radiocarbon determinates, together with site stratigraphy and pottery traditions, provides a chronological sequence from the early third millennium BC to the early second millennium AD. Corroboration of the beginning of this sequence would place Halin as the oldest currently dated Neolithic site in Mainland Southeast Asia and would provide support for the two-layer model of Neolithic migration