A unique single nucleotide polymorphism in Agouti Signalling Protein (ASIP) gene changes coat colour of Sri Lankan leopard (Panthera pardus kotiya) to dark black.

The Sri Lankan leopard (Panthera pardus kotiya) is an endangered subspecies restricted to isolated and fragmented populations in Sri Lanka. Among them, melanistic leopards have been recorded on a few occasions. Literature suggests the evolution of melanism several times in the Felidae family, with three species having distinct mutations.

Genetic features of Sri Lankan elephant, Elephas maximus maximus Linnaeus revealed by high throughput sequencing of mitogenome and ddRAD-seq.

Elephas maximus maximus Linnaeus, the Sri Lankan subspecies is the largest and the darkest among Asian elephants. Patches of depigmented areas with no skin color on the ears, face, trunk, and belly morphologically differentiate it from the others. The elephant population in Sri Lanka is now limited to smaller areas and protected under Sri Lankan law.

A study on knowledge, attitude and practices towards the COVID-19 pandemic among the non-COVID-19 patients at Outpatient Department in a Teaching Hospital, Northern Sri Lanka.

Background: Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus -2 (SARS-CoV-2) has infected millions of people all over the world and Sri Lanka is not an exception for the impact of Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19). As there are no effective therapeutic agents at present and newly developed vaccines are not freely available for many countries, preventive measures such as handwashing, social distancing, and respiratory etiquette are key to control of spread. The effective implementation of these measures depends on public knowledge and attitude towards COVID-19 and adherence to key practices.

Revisiting traditional SSR based methodologies available for elephant genetic studies.

Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) plays a significant role in natural ecosystems and it is considered as an endangered animal. Molecular genetics studies on elephants' dates back to 1990s. Microsatellite markers have been the preferred choice and have played a major role in ecological, evolutionary and conservation research on elephants over the past 20 years.

Nutritional and anthropometric assessment of the scope for dietary optimization during staging prior to pancreaticoduodenectomy.

Context: Although several studies have examined peri-operative nutritional supplementation in patients undergoing pancreaticoduodenectomy all provided support at various timepoints with a variety of protocols.

Objective: This study undertakes a detailed nutritional and anthropometric assessment of patients due to undergo pancreaticoduodenectomy with particular reference to pre-operative nutritional status and peri-operative outcome.

Patients: Twenty-six patients undergoing pancreaticoduodenectomy.