Sweet Potato Weevil, Cylas formicarius

My Honours Degree (Biotechnology) project is related to sweet potato weevil, major pest of sweet potato. The title of my project is Morphological and molecular characterization of sweet potato weevil, Cylas formicarius and characterization of Chitin Synthase 1 (CHS1) gene. Sweet potato weevil infestation can cause the loss of sweet potato yield about 60-100% and it is more serious during dry season. Sweet potato farms are located in rural areas as source of income and sweet potato infestation affects all the sweet potato farmers. Therefore, this issue must be tackled in order maintain the supply of sweet potato to market as well as income of farmers. There are three parts of my project: morphology (the study of appearance and body parts), phylogenetic analysis (the study of relationship between sweet potato weevils in worldwide) and characterization of CHS1 gene (the study of CHS1 gene for pest control). My main findings are the sweet potato weevils in Malaysia are probably imported from Indonesia or Thailand based on phylogenetic analysis and CHS1 gene has great potential for weevil management strategy development due to its characteristics. 

My project was new and rare as I was the only one who did this in Malaysia so far. I have suffered a lot from experiment failure and frustration during this one year as I need to plan and carry out every experiment on my own. Brainstorming to finding solutions for problems related to experiments everyday was tiring. However, mastering the skills of operating machines and performing experiments was quite fun and it was a great experience for me. I have spent a lot of time and efforts on this project and hopefully my findings would be helpful for future works. 

Here are some of my collections.

My lab

White bands indicating DNA

Bukit Engku Busu

Bukit Engku Busu is the highest hill in Lumut, Perak with the height of around 300m. Its location is quite hard to find as there is no signboard at the roadside for guiding. Its entrance is a small road in front of the abandoned Lumut police station and old apartment and after driving less than one minute u will eventually see a signboard stating Bukit Engku Busu. There are ropes along the way up to the hill so climbers can climb along with the ropes. There are some monkeys at the bottom of hill. It took me around 40 minutes reaching the top as I rested for a while in the midst and 30 minutes going down the hill. It was quite tiring as some parts are quite slippery and slanted. U can enjoy the nice view up there and u can see Royal Malaysian Navy Base Lumut, islands and sea. It was quite enjoying with nice breeze in the morning at the top of hill after strenuous exercise. After hiking, u may take bath in the nearby public bathroom nearby old Pangkor jetty which only costs RM1.

Giant Panda Liang Liang and Xing Xing

Giant Panda is the latest attraction in Zoo Negara and it is worth visiting as it is one of the most endangered animals in the world. Liang Liang and Xing Xing are living inside a big conservation centre and visitors will be briefed inside a small room what to do and what not to do before visiting them. Visitors must remain silence during the visit for not disturbing them.The conservation centre is well equipped with daycare centre and other facilities to take care of them. There is a souvenier shop and a food court at the exit. 

Admission fee- RM22

Setiawan Tua Pek Kong Temple

Setiawan Tua Pek Kong Temple has became the most famous tourist attraction in Setiawan. It is located in Kampung Pasir Panjang where quite a long distance from the main town of Setiawan. Tua Pek Kong Temple was once a small and infamous temple which set up to protect the nearby fisherman. Massive constructions have been done in these few years due to the donations from public which then made it more majestic. The Chinese statue craving is breathtaking and the night view is even more awesome with colourful lighting. It is a must to visit place in Perak and it is admission free. Here are some of the photos. Enjoy.