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Background: Wolbachia, obligate intracellular bacteria, infect the majority of arthropods, including many mosquito species of medical importance. Some Wolbachia strains interfere with the development of Plasmodium parasites in female Anopheles, a major vector of malaria. The use of Wolbachia as a means to block malaria transmission is an emerging vector control strategy in highly endemic areas. Hence, identification of native Wolbachia strains in areas where malaria transmission is low may uncover a particular Wolbachia strain capable of Plasmodium interference. This study aims to identify native Wolbachia strains in female Anopheles spp. that are predominant in a low-malaria transmission area in mainland Southeast Asia., Methods: Following a 2-year survey of malaria vectors in Umphang Valley of Tak Province, Thailand, DNA extracts of female An. minimus, An. peditaeniatus, and An. maculatus were subjected to amplification of the conserved region of the 16S rRNA-encoding gene. The DNA sequences of the amplicons were phylogenetically compared with those of known Wolbachia strains., Results: Among three Anopheles spp., amplification was detected in only the DNA samples from An. minimus. The DNA sequencing of amplicons revealed 100% similarity to Wolbachia pipientis, confirming the specificity of amplification. The Wolbachia-positive An. minimus samples were devoid of Plasmodium 18S rRNA amplification. The phylogenetic trees indicate a close relationship with Wolbachia strains in subgroup B., Conclusion: To the best of our knowledge, the data presented herein provide the first molecular evidence of a Wolbachia strain in An. minimus, hereinafter named wAnmi, in a low-malaria transmission area in the Umphang Valley of western Thailand. Further biological characterization is required to examine its potential for malaria transmission control in the field.

Background: Hip fracture has been regarded as a significant international health problem because of its negative impacts on things such as Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQOL). The determinants of HRQOL among patients with hip fracture after surgery during transition of recovery are still not clearly understood., Objective: To study HRQOL factors and determine the predictive power of elements such as age, gender, co-morbid disease, Body Mass Index (BMI), depression or social support on HRQOL among patients with hip fracture after surgery in Myanmar., Design: Descriptive correlational predictive study., Setting: Yangon Orthopaedic Hospital and Mandalay Orthopaedic Hospital in Myanmar., Results: The mean age was 60 years (range = 18-91). The level of HRQOL at the 6th week after surgery was moderate. In stepwise multiple regression analysis, gender (β = -.109, p = .044), depressive symptoms (β = -.564, p = .000) and social support (β = .287, p = .000) were the determinants of HRQOL. These three factors accounted for 59.1% of variance to explain HRQOL., Conclusion: In order to facilitate a healthy transition, comprehensive rehabilitation, including depressive symptoms screening and enhancing social support, and the health care services with less cost and psychosocial support especially for women, are recommended., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest There are no financial or commercial incentives for the authors and no conflict of interest regarding the publication of this manuscript. The authors are responsible for the content and writing of this manuscript., (Copyright © 2020. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)