640 August 2012, Vol. 102, No. 8 SAMJ Register on the Mental Health Information Centre of Southern Africa database To the Editor: Nearly half a million South Africans look online for solutions to mental health problems every month. The Mental Health Information Centre (MHIC) of Southern Africa aims to provide the most complete and up-to-date online directory of mental health service providers i...

Analysis of DNA sequence diversity at the 12S to 16S mitochondrial genes of 165 African lions (Panthera leo) from five main areas in Zambia has uncovered haplotypes which link Southern Africa with East Africa. Phylogenetic analysis suggests Zambia may serve as a bridge connecting the lion populations in southern Africa to eastern Africa, supporting earlier hypotheses that eastern-southern Afric...

Psittacine beak and feather disease (PBFD), caused by Beak and feather disease virus (BFDV), is the most significant infectious disease in psittacines. PBFD is thought to have originated in Australia but is now found worldwide; in Africa, it threatens the survival of the indigenous endangered Cape parrot and the vulnerable black-cheeked lovebird. We investigated the genetic diversity of putativ...

Introduction Cervical cancer remains the second most common cancer among women worldwide and the most common cancer amongst black African women in South Africa. Annually there are 500 000 cases of cervical cancer worldwide, of which the mortality is about 50%. This is largely due to presentation at a late stage. Lack of availability of treatment facilities may be another factor contributing to ...