Table Of ContentBoo H. Kwa
The Parasite
Chronicles
My Lifelong Odyssey
Among the Parasites that
Cause Human Disease
The Parasite Chronicles
Stillness in motion
Dawn glows, and waking sky forsakes
The fading star’s slow lingerings.
Silent, misty, by the lakes,
A white crane spreads its wings.
The mighty pine dissolves in mist,
Yielding, but rooted to stay.
Branches relaxed, yet force resist -
Inspiring the Ultimate Way.
Half-moon floats o’er darkened eaves,
Cat glides with silent paws.
Tranquil, this night receives
Insights to the Seven Stars.
(By Ke Wuhe, a humble acolyte of Tai Chi
Master Chen Li-tsun)
Boo H. Kwa
The Parasite Chronicles
My Lifelong Odyssey Among the Parasites
that Cause Human Disease
BooH.Kwa
CollegeofPublicHealth
UniversityofSouthFlorida
Tampa,Florida,USA
ISBN978-3-319-74922-8 ISBN978-3-319-74923-5 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-74923-5
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To my parents whose sacrifices made this
journey possible; to my wife whose loving
companionship made this journey a joy; and
tomydaughtersandgrandchildrenwhomade
this journey worthwhile.
Foreword by B. Kim Lee Sim
I know why I cannot bring myself to eat raw fish. It is because of an incredibly
charismatic and inspirational professor who delivered theatrical lectures, about
intricate life cycles and the derivation of the complicated binomial nomenclature
ofslewsofscientificnamesforweirdorganisms,pepperedwithdelightfullyghastly
tales about these very icky creatures and what they could do to their human hosts.
Dr. Kwa’s fabled parasitology course at the University of Malaya was the most
popularcourseatouruniversity.IrememberclearlyDr.Kwa,withacrookedsmile,
drylyrelatingayarnabouthowstudentswerefooledbytheirprofessorintodrinking
pinwormeggsforthesakeofgoodexperimentalscience.Soitseemedmeanttobe
thatIsoughtDr.KwatobemymentorforPhDstudiesattheUniversityofMalaya.
Dr. Kwa has been a guiding force in my life for nearly four decades. I am not
alone. He has mentored, lectured, and educated generations of scientists over the
courseofhiscareeronbothsidesoftheglobe.Thisisinitselfalreadyexceptional,
butyet,noonetellsatalelikeKwa.
TheParasiteChroniclestakesusintoadimensionlesstraveled.Itisfilledwith
stories,narratedwithawry,slylyevilsmile,aboutthecurious,complicatedparasites
thathavebeenthefocusofhisscientificefforts.Thestoriesarewarmlyintoxicating
and you will not be able to stop reading, because what lies on the next page could
biteyou.Itisalsofilledwithvividdescriptionsofparasites,whicharesomeofthe
world’smostintriguingcreatures,inquitedetailedscientificvoice.Dr.Kwaweaves
the life of these parasites with his own life journey from Malaysia to Australia to
MalaysiaandtotheUnitedStates.Thisisdefinitelyabooktobevoraciouslyreadby
youngandold,particularlythosewhoseimaginationscanandwillrunwild.
WhenIreadtheParasiteChronicles,Icaughtmybreath,becauseIwasreminded
of deep, meaningful conversations Dr. Kwa and I had over the years. I was also
reminded of how fortunate I was to have taken Dr. Kwa’s course and been his
menteeasagraduatestudent,astheseinteractionslaunchedmeonawonderfuland
joyous career filled with studying parasites. It has also allowed us to become
colleagues and friends, a relationship that I treasure. Dr. Kwa and I both stepped
out of Malaysia, making footsteps, each of us. I think it is important and poignant
vii
viii ForewordbyB.KimLeeSim
thathehasmadeitsoclearthatweshouldnotexpectareturnforchallengesmetand
overcome but just pure gratitude and satisfaction for our footsteps taken. We are
happy because of the dreams we follow. Dr. Kwa’s joy in his professional and
personallifeisevidentinthepagesofthisbook.Throughthislenshetakeshisreader
onaremarkablejourneyusingparasitesasthevehicle.
ProteinPotentialLLC,Rockville,MD, B.KimLeeSim
USA
SanariaInc.,Rockville,MD,USA
Foreword by Stephen L. Hoffman
We have had vaccines to prevent diseases like smallpox, typhoid fever, tetanus,
diphtheria, rabies, polio, measles, mumps, and German measles for 50–200 years.
Virusesandbacteriacausethesediseases.However,in2017wedonothaveasingle
licensed and marketed human vaccine for diseases caused by parasites. These are
diseases with exotic names like elephantiasis, river blindness, Baghdad boil, kala-
azar, and bilharzia and diseases that are so common that we all know of them—
malaria,tapeworm,andhookworm.Wedonothavevaccinesforparasites,because
parasites are much more complex and larger than viruses and bacteria, making it
muchmoredifficulttouseavaccinetotrainthehumanimmunesystemtoattackand
destroythem.
In the Parasite Chronicles, Professor B.H. Kwa takes the reader on his half-
centuryodysseywithparasitesandintheprocessleavesuswithamuchclearersense
oftheidentityandimpactofthesecomplicated,oftenweirdorganisms,andhowwe
becomeinfectedwiththem.ThisisajourneythattookhimfromthetownofTaiping
in the state of Perak in peninsular Malaysia to the University of Malaya in Kuala
Lumpur to the Australian National University in Canberra back to Kuala Lumpur
andthenontoHarvardandfinallyandcurrentlytotheUniversityofSouthFloridain
Tampa. It is a journey that took him from parasitology to biomedical science and
eventuallytopublichealthinthegeneralpopulationandultimatelytoglobalhealth.
Itisastoryofhowasmall-townboyfromMalaysiaendedupasthefoundingchair
andprofessorofGlobalHealthandassociatedeanatauniversityinFlorida.Inother
words,itisthearchetypicalstoryofhowasmall-townboymakesgood,thestoryof
howweareonlylimitedbyourvisionandworkethic,andhowmuchweneedour
immediatefamily.
However,atthecoreofthisnarrative,hevividlyandentertaininglyexplainstous
about these often bizarre, sometimes romantic, but often deadly parasites, while
intertwining his remarkable professional and personal journey. His riveting stories
teachusoftheirimpactonNapoleon,JuliusCaesar,theancientChinese,andsadly
the 500,000 children who died of malaria last year. As stated in the preface, “This
bookisaimedatawideandeclecticaudience.”HavingreadtheParasiteChronicles,
ix
x ForewordbyStephenL.Hoffman
I am sure that whoever reads this book, regardless of age or walk of life, will take
withhimorheradeepsenseofandappreciationforthesephenomenalcreaturesand
fortheman,BooHoeKwa,whohasweavedtogetherawonderfultaleofhimself,his
family,andparasites.
P.S.ImetBooHoeKwaandhisgraduatestudent,Betty“KimLee”Sim,onthe
samedayatabiomedicalconferenceinKualaLumpur.Ihavealottothankhimfor,
asKimLeeandIhavebeenmarriedfor29years.
SanariaInc.,Rockville,MD,USA StephenL.Hoffman
