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A new species of the order Zoraptera, Zorotypuskomatsui Matsumura, Maruyama, Ntonifor & Beutel, sp. nov. , is described from Cameroon. The female and male morphology of another species, Z.vinsoni , is re-described, and its new distribution in Madagascar is recorded. A particular focus is on the male postabdominal morphology. This is apparently a crucial body region in the very small order with an extreme variation of the genital apparatus but otherwise a very uniform morphology. The male of the newly described species shares rudimentary male genitalia and well-developed postabdominal projections with the distantly related Spermozorosimpolitus , apparently a result of parallel evolution. Whether males of Z.komatsui also perform external sperm transfer like S.impolitus remains to be shown. The collecting of the material used for this study suggests that the present knowledge of zorapteran species diversity of the Afrotropical region is very fragmentary., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Yoko Matsumura, Munetoshi Maruyama, Nelson N. Ntonifor, Rolf G. Beutel.)

Background: Agriculture is a major contributor to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Cameroon, The South West region of Cameroon is known for its potential in the production of major agricultural commodities, but farmers' yields from various speculations are low, dwindling over time due to some major constraints. Maize production is hampered by adverse socio-economic factors, several pests and diseases as well as high rainfall with low solar radiation. Lepidopterous maize stem borers are a major threat to increase maize production. Therefore we hypothesized that the farmers of the South West region: (1) also perceived stem borers as an important pest of maize; (2) they have their own indigenous methods of control; (3) they use chemical pesticides because they have no alternative, but would prefer plant materials if these were standardized., Methods: A semi-structured questionnaire survey was administered in four villages: Maumu, Lower Bokova, Ekona and Bonduma. A total of 151 (male and female) farmers were randomly interviewed to document farmers' perception on stem borers, and their use of indigenous knowledge to manage key pests of maize., Results: Stem borers were present throughout the maize growing areas in the Fako division and ranked as one of the most important pests of the crop. Most farmers (82.1 %) perceived that stem borers caused significant damage on maize and were responsible for yield reductions in the crop. The increased impact of these pests was due to improper/untimely use of expensive conventional insecticides given the lack of a cheaper alternative method of control. About 50 % of respondent admitted not having any indigenous knowledge of stem borer control, while only 20 % had tried plant products. The most relevant indigenous stem borer control was the use of wood ash. Most (90 %) of the respondent would prefer plant-based insecticides in future because they are safer, cheaper and readily available., Conclusions: Farmers' knowledge would contribute in understanding the activities of stem borers and use of plant insecticides. Research is therefore needed to standardize the methods of using plant-based products and also identify the active ingredients of these plants to ensure their effectiveness against maize stem borers and other pests.

Artemisinin derivatives are now the most potent and rapidly acting antimalarials. The aim of this study was to assess the in vivo efficacy and tolerability of a combination of Malartin (an artesunate) and sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine (SP) in the treatment of uncomplicated falciparum malaria in Dibanda, Cameroon. A total of 197 subjects were recruited into the study and administered Malartin for 3 days and SP as a single dose on day 0. Only 174 of the subjects were successfully followed up on days 3, 7, and 14. The overall success rate of the drug combination was 92.53%. Parasite density decreased during the follow-up period in different age groups, sexes, and social classes. The prevalence of anaemia decreased from 22.99% at enrolment to 9.77% on day 14, and the difference was significant (P < 0.05) on all days of followup. The drug combination did not give rise to any serious side effects.

Objective: To document and test the efficacy of indigenous traditional personal protection methods against mosquito bites and general nuisance., Design: A prospective study based on a survey and field evaluation of selected plant-based personal protection methods against mosquito bites., Setting: Bolifamba, a rural setting of the Mount Cameroon region., Subjects: A structured questionnaire was administered to 179 respondents and two anti-mosquito measures were tested under field conditions., Main Outcome Measures: Identified traditional anti-mosquito methods used by indigenes of Bolifamba. Two plants tested under field conditions were found to be effective., Results: Of the 179 respondents, 88 (49.16%) used traditional anti-mosquito methods; 57 (64.77%) used plant-based methods while 31 (35.2%) used various petroleum oils. The rest of the respondents, 91 (50.8%) used conventional personal protection methods. Reasons for using traditional methods were because they were available, affordable and lack of known more effective alternatives. The demerits of these methods were: labourious to implement, stain dresses, produce a lot of smoke/ repulsive odours when used; those of conventional methods were lack of adequate information about them, high cost and non-availability. When the two most frequently used plants, Saccharum officinarium and Ocimum basilicum were evaluated under field conditions, each gave a better protection than the control., Conclusion: Most plants used against mosquitoes in the area are known potent mosquito repellents but others identified in the study warrant further research. The two tested under field conditions were effective though less than the commonly used commercial diethyltoluamide.

The impact of some environmental factors on malaria parasite prevalence was investigated in rural Bolifamba, Cameroon. The study population comprised 1454 subjects aged 0 - 65 years. Malaria parasite prevalence was higher in the rainy (50.1 %) than in the dry season (44.2 %) with a significant difference (P = 0.001) in mean parasite density between seasons. Individuals < 15 years old had significantly higher malaria parasite prevalence (55.5 %) than those > 15 years (37.4 %). Malaria parasite prevalence (P = 0.001) and parasite density (P = 0.03) were higher in the individuals of wooden plank houses than those of cement brick houses. Inhabitants of houses surrounded by bushes or garbage heaps and swamps or stagnant water showed higher malaria parasite prevalence and densities compared with those from cleaner surroundings. Anopheles gambiae (63.8 %) and A. funestus (32.8 %) were associated with perennial transmission of malaria. Our data indicates that poor environmental sanitation and housing conditions may be significant risk factors for malaria parasite burden in Bolifamba.

We evaluated the impact of a malaria intervention in Bolifamba in rural Cameroon. The intervention consisted of educating the community on management of malaria and provision of a dispensary for early diagnosis and treatment. In July 2001, prior to the intervention, a questionnaire was used to obtain information on knowledge of and practices toward childhood malaria of 185 mothers of children aged 0-5 years. The same questionnaire was administered to 120 of the 185 mothers, one-year post-intervention. Clinical and laboratory investigations were carried out on children whose mothers were interviewed. A comparison of pre- and post-intervention data indicated significant changes in (i) the use of appropriate malaria treatment (from 50% to 81.7%); (ii) recognition of splenomegaly as a feature of malaria (from 18.4% to 80.8%); (iii) prevalence of splenomegaly (from 26.5% to 13.3%); (iv) prevalence of fever (from 27.8% to 13.3%); (v) parasite prevalence (from 60.5% to 44.2%) and (vi) severe malaria anaemia (from 2.6% to 0.0%). These findings revealed that proper education of villagers, particularly mothers, on malaria and the presence of health facilities, where treatment is readily available at affordable cost, close to villages, are important strategies that would reduce malaria morbidity and mortality significantly.

The prevalences of malarial parasitaemia, fever, splenomegaly and anaemia and the levels of parasitaemia were investigated, through part of one wet season (in 2001) and the following dry season (in 2002), in 2157 subjects in the village of Bolifamba, in south-western Cameroon. Overall, 55.9% of the villagers checked in the wet season but only 49.5% of those examined in the dry season were found smear-positive for malaria (P<0.0001). Rainfall was found to be significantly associated with the mean level of parasitaemia (P=0.001). The prevalences of fever (40.3% v. 19.6%), splenomegaly (37.4% v. 4.0%) and marked splenomegaly (i.e. a Hackett's score of 2 or higher; 25.8% v. 2.4%) were all significantly higher in the wet season than in the dry (P<0.0001 for each). No seasonal difference was observed, however, in the prevalence of anaemia. Parasitaemia, fever, splenomegaly and anaemia were all significantly more common in the young children investigated (i.e. those aged < 5 years) than in the older subjects. When the data were subjected to a multiple logistic regression, age-group, anaemia, fever, and month of examination were all found to be significantly associated with the presence of malarial parasitaemia. The results of this large-scale study, the first of its kind in the Buea district of Cameroon, indicate the intense transmission of malarial parasites in rural Bolifamba, with young children at greatest risk. The data collected provide a useful 'base line' for an ongoing study to assess the immune status of the residents of Bolifamba.

The Soxflo technique was evaluated for the rapid extraction of plant materials (<90 min) at room temperature. Qualitatively similar chromatograms were obtained by gas chromatography and thin layer chromatography (TLC) with Soxflo (SoF) and Soxhlet (SoL) extracts. Sequential solvent extractions by SoF gave slightly higher yields (132%) of five major sesquiterpenoids. TLC revealed that SoF extractions at room temperature were more selective as extracts contained compounds with a narrower range of R(f)() values. This means that the SoF technique offers the potential for one-step extractions and partial fractionation. This study also showed that there were large differences in the volatile composition of dried and fresh Piper fruits: dried fruits had predominantly sesquiterpenoids while fresh fruits had considerable quantities of both mono- and sesquiterpenoids. This is the first report of alpha-guaiene and alpha- and beta-selinene in Piper guineense fruits. It is suggested that the SoF technique can be useful for the screening of large numbers of plants for phytochemicals or for the preparation of plant extracts for subsequent bioassay studies.