A study was carried out to detect and identify the presence of coccidia oocysts in the faeces of village chicken from the district of Pasir Putih, Kelantan, West Malaysia. A total of 135 fecal samples were collected from 15 areas in the Pasir PutihDistrict. The faecal samples were examined by direct smear method (qualitative study). A pinch of the faeces was put onto the glassslide with 1-2 drops of normal saline and cover slip, which was then observed under the compound microscope to detect thecoccidia oocysts. The presence of coccidia oocyst was then identified by its size and shape. Results showed that ten out of 135 samples were positive for coccidia oocysts, and classified as Eimeria maxima and Eimeria mitis, both of which are from two locations at Kampung Chap Banir, Pasir Putih, Kelantan. The remaining 125 samples were observed to be negative. This may suggest that the chickens reared in the backyard (extensive)are less susceptible to the coccidia infection due to their environment with lower stocking density (mostly free ranging chicken), and no damp/wet litter as bedding which canfacilitate sporulation of the coccicia oocyst thereby spreading the infection. Further studies need to be done to elucididate other factors which may affect coccidial infections in free range chicken such as the availability of medications in feed or genetic hardiness and tolerance to field infections. The localvillage chicken industry is an up and coming facet of the poultry industry and needs concerted efforts to boost it.

A survey of 95 wild rats which were captured from various locations was conducted to determine the diversity and distribution of ectoparasites and endoparasites infesting wild rat population around the city of Ipoh and Kuala Lumpur. The rodents captured were Rat tus norvegicus and post mortem was carried out immediately after capture, with skin and organs examined for parasite infection. Ectoparasites recovered were blood sucking louse (Polyplax spinulosa) and mites (Myocoptes musculinus). Endoparasites recovered were nematodes (Aspiculuris tetraptera, Trichuris sp., and two strongyles, one of which is Strongyloides sp.) And three intestinal protozoan parasites (Blastocystis sp., Trichomonas sp., and a coccidia). Low diversity of ecto- and endoparasites were observed infecting wild rat population caught in Ipoh as compared to Kuala Lumpur.

Toxoplasma gondii is a protozoan parasite that causes toxoplasmosis in humans and animals. It belongs to the phylum Apicomplexa, subclass Coccidiasina and family Sarcocystidae. The Felidae family is thedefinitive host for this disease where the parasites undergo a sexual cycle of replication (oocysts). In this study, cat faeces were collected from private clinics around Johore Bahru, Peninsular Malaysia. A total of 61 samples were tested using microscopy to detect for presence of T. gondii oocyst via two methods; namelythe Modified Kato-Katz with Kinyoun staining and Sheather’s sugar floatation methods. The results showed that 40.98% of the faecal samples tested were positive for T. gondii oocysts. These two methodswere successfully used in diagnosing toxoplasmosis in cats in this study. Morphological approaches for Toxoplasma oocysts identification have been neglected in recent years, due to the upsurge of moreprecise technologies. This study suggests that this modified technique could be introduced for screening and detection of oocysts excreted in faeces of suspected animals of the Felidae family.

Identification of processed animal protein in animal feedstuffs wasperformed under the feed safety programme to ensure that the products used locally to feed the livestock are safe and properly labeled to prevent unnecessary incidence that will affect both animal and human.A “silica-membrane technology” method was applied based on its fast and effective purification of nucleic acids from various matrices. The silica membranes were optimized for high DNA recovery and lowbinding efficiency for impurities. Results from 58 with various kinds of samples showed negative of unwanted processed animal protein.

Identification of microorganisms, including bacteria, are widely used especially in environmental studies, biotechnology, clinical microbiology, microbial forensics, and in research study. The conventional method of bacteria identification is based on phenotypic observation techniques by profiling an organism’s metabolic attributes or some aspect of its chemical composition. Then, interpretation of test results involves substantial subjective judgement. Currently, general 16S rRNA sequencing and specific PCR play an important role in the accurate and faster identification of bacteria. The aim of this study is to compare the identification of the genus or species of bacteria from agricultural waste using conventional microbiology biochemical test and molecular techniques PCR 16S rRNA universal amplified ribosomal region (UARR) sequencing. A total of 72 agricultural waste samples and 2 ATCC culture as positive control were tested. Out of two ATCC bacteria and fifteen bacteria isolates identified by the biochemical test, twelve species (71%) of bacteria gave exactly the same bacteria genus as the 16S rRNA sequencing results. Aeromonas hydrophilia, Alcaligenes faecalis and Acinetobacter calcoaceticus was revealed as Pseudomonas sp. from the sequencing results. As for Alcaligenes sp., the results from the sequencing is Stenotrophomonas maltophilia. Previous reports also showed different results of the same isolate which were from similar classification, and closely related to each other. The limited number of biochemical tests available in a laboratory will contribute to misidentification of a proposed specie.

Brucellosis in goats is mainly caused by the bacterium Brucellamelitensis, which is one of the most important pathogenic species in the world. In Malaysia, the annual prevalence data of brucellosis was recorded in goats and the control strategy of the disease basedon test and cull of infected animals. This strategy has caused huge economic losses to farmers and government alike. Therefore, whole genome sequencing of B. melitensis local strain is essential forimproving the current vaccine. B. melitensis strain VRI 6530/11 wasobtained from veterinary research institute biobank, Ipoh. The strain was submitted for classical identification procedures and the total genomic DNA was extracted by using DNeasy blood and tissue kit(QIAGEN). The concentration and purity of DNA were determined by using agarose gel electrophoresis and spectrophotometer (DNA/RNA) assay respectively. The genome was sequenced by using IlluminaHiSeq platform with insert size ~200 bp. A total of 1.0 Gb data was generated from the sample. More than 95% of sequencing data was retained in the sample after quality filtering, this indicatethe sequencing reads are of high quality. Final assembly had 33 scaffolds with total size ~3.28 Mb, 44 contigs, GC content is 57.25%, N50 is 293,291. A total of 3,238 protein coding genes, 48 tRNAs and 3rRNAs were predicted and over 87% of the genes were functionally annotated. Genome sequencing of a local B. melitensis strain is the first of its kind in Malaysia and work from this study can contribute towards the development of a new effective vaccine for the control ofthe disease in the country.

Recently, diagnostic cases of Mycoplasma screening from feline kept rising. In 2018, there were two cases in felines that were positively diagnosed as Mycoplasma co-infection in which one of the two cases was due to mycoplasmosis. Diagnosis of mycoplasmosis was based on isolation and identification using biochemical testing. Mycoplasma was successfully isolated from both cases. Based on the feline death case, the result indicated that Mycoplasma gateae was isolated from the blood-stained trachea sample. In contrast, none was isolated from the lung. As the infection was associated with other microorganisms, this case concluded that the cause of death of the cat was due to Parvovirus with secondary infection of Mycoplasma gateae.

A study was conducted on 240 scavenging chickens randomly obtained from various districts from the state of Penang, Peninsular Malaysia. The chickens were closely examined for visible ectoparasites in the laboratory. The ectoparasites were collected using a blunt forceps and stored in universal bottles containing 70% ethanol. Ten species of ectoparasites were noted which consisted of five species of lice, two species of mites, two species of ticks and one species of chigger. The lice identifi ed were Menopon gallinae, Menacanthus pallidulus, Lipeurus caponis, Goniocotes gallinae and Goniodes dissimilis. These lice occurred in the fl uff of the feathers of the body especially the neck, back, abdomen and wings. The mites were Megninia sp. and Pterolichus sp. Examinations of the ears and combs revealed Haemaphysalis sp., the hard tick. Meanwhile, Ornithonyssus sp., the soft tick was found on feathers, whereas chigger, Leptotrombidium sp. was found attached to the skins. The study also revealed that M. gallinae was the most common ectoparasite with 76.7% occurrence, followed by Pterolichus sp. (69.6%), L. caponis (63.3%), M. pallidulus (41.7%), Leptotrombidium sp. (17.5%), G. gallinae (9.5%), Haemaphysalis sp. (6.7%), Megninia sp. (3.8%) and Ornithonyssus sp. (3.8%). The least common ectoparasite was G. dissimilis occurring in 2.1% of the chickens.

The world widely distributed infection by Rhodococcus equi usually leads to pneumonia and associated respiratory signs. This study is aimed at detecting the occurrence of this pathogen in selected horse farms. A total of 12 R. equi isolates from few samples (13.89%) were successfully obtained from soil and faeces collected from two selected farms. However, based on the vapA gene classification, only one virulent R. equi isolate was identified.