High prevalence of Taenia saginata taeniasis and status of Taenia solium cysticercosis in Bali, Indonesia, 2002-2004.

An epidemiological survey of taeniasis/cysticercosis was carried out in one semi-urban and two urban villages in three districts of Bali, Indonesia in 2002 and 2004. In total, 398 local people from 247 families were diagnosed by anamnesis and clinical examinations, and 60 residents were suspected to be taeniasis carriers. Among 60 suspected carriers, 56 persons expelled a total of 61 taeniid adult worms after praziquantel treatment. From 398 residents, 252 stool samples were available for analysis of taeniid eggs, coproantigens or copro-DNA for identification of taeniid species, and 311 serum samples were available for detection of antibodies against Taenia solium cysticercosis. Taeniasis prevalences were highly variable among three villages (1.1-27.5%), and only one case of cysticercosis due to T. solium infection was detected. All expelled tapeworms were confirmed to be Taenia saginata by mtDNA analysis. There was no Taenia asiatica human case in Bali. Case control analysis of 106 families chosen at random from 179 families in 2004 and another 106 families from non-endemic areas revealed that risk factors of T. saginata taeniasis for families were: level of education (P<0.01); consumption of beef lawar (P<0.01); and the source of lawar (P<0.01).

Resurgence of cases of epileptic seizures and burns associated with cysticercosis in Assologaima, Jayawijaya, Irian Jaya, Indonesia, 1991-95.

Historically, neurocysticercosis (NCC) caused by the larval stage, cysticercus or cysticerci, of the pork tapeworm Taenia solium was recognized in Paniai District, western Irian Jaya Province, Indonesia, in the early 1970s. In the 1990s, we observed a rapid increase in the number of cases of epileptic seizures and burns in Assologaima Sub-District, Jayawijaya District, eastern Irian Jaya. There were totals of 1120 new cases of burns and 293 new cases of epileptic seizures during 1991-95 in Assologaima where the number of inhabitants was 15,939. Histopathological examination of resected cysts from patients and a pig revealed that they were cysticerci of T. solium. DNA analysis of these cysts revealed that the nucleotide sequences of 391 base-pair fragments of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 gene were exactly the same in those from patients and the pig. Although 3 of 391 base-pair fragments might differ from that of T. solium reported previously, there were no differences in the amino-acid sequences. Approximately 67% and 65% of persons with epileptic seizures and with subcutaneous nodules, respectively, showed antibody responses highly specific to cysticercosis. Therefore, most cases of epileptic seizures and burns were considered to be associated with cysticercosis in Irian Jaya.

Studies on Japanese encephalitis vectors in Indonesia.

Entomologic surveys indicated that JE vectors in Indonesia are Cx. tritaeniorhyncus and Cx. gelidus. In most study areas, the former were predominant among all the culicine mosquitoes. The seasonal abundance of the two JE vector species was correlated significantly with the rainfall. The virus activity was parallel to the seasonal fluctuation of the vectors suggesting that the transmission of the disease would depend on the population dynamics of the vectors.

The risk of dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) outbreak based on vector density in Kurau, Riau province, Indonesia.

It is known that in Padang, Rantau, Rangsang, Merbau and Bengkalis islands, Riau Province, the deposit of oil was found in a huge quantity. The drilling concession belongs to Kondur Petroleum Company. To operate an exploitation, hundreds of workers not only Indonesian but also the workers from foreign countries come and go to that area. It was recorded that the workers from foreign countries come from Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, The Philippines, Taiwan, Japan, Korea. United States of America and from France, Britain, Australia and Germany. These workers have a close interaction with about 50,00 local population distributed with a high concentration in some places. The high risk of DHF was determined since the significant density of Aedes aregypti larvae, the main vector of DHF, were found in Lukit, Mengkikip and Melibur, three locations of survey. Of 104 (53.3%) of 195 houses in these three survey locations were found positive for the larvae. Even though there were no positive of larvae in 65 houses in Lukit, in Melibur and Mengkikip, the House Index (HI) was 61.7% and 95.7%. Outside the houses 521 containers were examined in three locations of survey and 329 (63.1%) were positive for Ae. aegypti larvae. The highest number of containers positive for Ae. aegypti larvae were 213 (94.7%) out of 225 and found in Mengkikip. In Melibur, 114 (68.3%) out of 167 of containers were positive and in Lukit only 2 (1.56%) out of 129 containers were positive of Ae. aegypti larvae. These larvae density constitute a high risk of DHF outbreak, and unfortunately is supported by the rainfall situation recorded in Kurau and BZ Climatology Stations. It was recorded that all along the year, at least one day in a month there was the rain which the rainfall volume was 30 ml.

Recent advances in basic and applied science for the control of taeniasis/cysticercosis in Asia.

Detection of seven specific bands by immunoblot (IB) using glycoproteins (GPs) purified by lentil-lectin affinity chromatography has been the gold-standard for neurocysticercosis (NCC) serodiagnosis since 1989. However, due to the presence of contaminants, it was impossible to apply the GPs to ELISA. Our group at Asahikawa Medical College (AMC) succeeded in purifying the GPs by preparative isoelectric focusing; these higher quality GPs were suitable for ELISA. Based on the results of both IB and ELISA testing, developed at AMC for a field survey in Irian Jaya, it became evident that that area had pandemic NCC. We found many NCC patients, pigs full of cysts, and one dog infected with two cysts: these findings were based on serology. Recently, we conducted another survey to detect of the worm carriers of T. solium. Three of the 38 local people were positive by copro-antigen specific to Taenia species; these three patients expelled segments of Taenia spp and these were confirmed as those of T. solium by mitochondrial DNA analysis. When viable eggs of any taeniid species could be obtained, they can be developed into metacestodes in NOD-scid mice; it then becomes possible to analyze morphological dynamics, metacestode antigenicity, the efficacy of new metacestocidal drugs, and mitochondrial DNA. Mitochondrial DNA analysis of the specimens obtained in Irian Jaya was compared with that of other isolates worldwide. T. solium is now divided into two genotypes: the Asian type, and the Africa-American type. Some aspects of the pathological differences between the Asian and Africa-American types and the antigenic components of these two types are discussed.

The activity of chloroquine against plasmodium falciparum in Bandar Abbas, Southern Iran, 1976.

Study to monitor the susceptibility of P. falciparum to chloroquine in south Iran was conducted in Bandar Abbas. Forty-five falciparum malaria subjects who had received 25mg. chloroquine base per kg. body weight over 3 days were followed up for 4 weeks, while three other patients for a period of 1-3 weeks. No recrudescence could be confirmed among the subjects during the follow up of the study. The mean time of asexual parasites clearance was 2.15 days. The action of chloroquine against the asexual form of P. falciparum in the present study was suspected to be slower as compared with those observed in the previous studies. However, both in vivo and limited study using the in vitro technique showed that the response of P. falciparum asexual parasites to chloroquine was still satisfactory. The study supports previous findings in Ethiopia that acquired immunity malaria had no significant effect on the asexual parasite clearance time.

Taenia solium taeniasis/cysticercosis in Papua, Indonesia in 2001: detection of human worm carriers.

A preliminary study to detect human worm carriers of Taenia solium in Papua (Irian Jaya), Indonesia was carried out using stool examinations for the detection of copro-antigens and adult proglottids after chemotherapy, and confirmation by mitochondrial DNA analysis using expelled proglottids and metacestodes developed in NOD/Shi-scid mice from eggs of expelled proglottids. Approximately 8.6% of the local population in Kama (5/58), 1 km from the local capital city centre, Wamena, were confirmed to harbour adult T. solium using these techniques.