Founding and Development of the Institute
The European colonial powers at that time, the French, Dutch and the English moved almost simultaneously to establish new research institutions in the Colonies. The Pathological Institute in British Malaya was one such institution. It was to serve as a research outpost for the London School of Tropical Medicine, established a year earlier in 1899 at about the same time as that of the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine. Kuala Lumpur was chosen as the site for the new Institute because of its central position in the Malay Peninsula . The time was opportune as the country was beset by not only such tropical diseases as beri-beri and malaria , but also by dysentery, small pox, cholera, plague, rabies and other endemic, sporadic, infectious and contagious diseases. Sir Patrick Manson, who was the Medical Advisor through the British Colonial Office at that time, appointed Dr. Hamilton Wright, a pathologist at the London School of Tropical Medicine, to serve as the Institute's First Director. Much of Wright's time during the first year was taken up with the planning of the new Institute. When the buildings were completed, a formal opening ceremony was held in February 1901 and in August of the same year, the Pathological Institute became known as the Institute for Medical Research. The main events in the history of the IMR in chronological order in the following pages: 1901 – 1905 (The Early Years)
1906 –1914 (Before the First World War) • From an independent Federal Department the Institute became a branch of the Medical Department. Routine pathological work for the medical services was offered covering chemical, toxicological, pathological, bacteriological and medico-legal services. • The Institute's contribution towards the solution of the beri-beri problem, and the work done by Fraser and Stanton, is documented in the book 'The Cause and Prevention of Beri-beri' by Braddon. • The classification of Malayan mosquitoes was carried out by Leicester and Daniels, while Watson published a book on Malarial Control .
1914-1927 (The First World War and Thereafter)
• In 1918, the IMR contributed to the discovery of the cause of beri-beri , i.e., the disease was caused by the deficiency of an essential nutrient that resulted from the consumption of rice which had been excessively milled. • In 1924, a new series of Institute publications, the Bulletin series , was started, in which were included shorter articles and progress reports of investigations; on completion of the research, these articles and reports would form a basis of monograph or study.
1928 – 1929 (Reorganisation) • The Institute expanded to accommodate a South Block for the Administration, the Divisions of Pathology, Bacteriology and a Library. The North Block was taken up by the new Divisions of Entomology and Malaria Research. The Chemistry Division ceased to exist to give way to the creation of the Division of Biochemistry and the Division of Nutrition. The Ipoh branch laboratory of the Institute came into being.
1929 – 1941 (Between the Wars)
The courses were partly diverted later to the Institute where certain aspects of malariology could be studied to a better advantage. This opportunity for an international gathering of malaria workers was lost with the war. • The Fifth International Congress in Malariology opened in Kuala Lumpur in 1939 with delegates from most of the countries of the Far-East.
1941 – 1945 (War in Malaya ) • The IMR Ipoh branch laboratory transferred to Kuala Lumpur and there was the final evacuation of the IMR to Singapore with the recruitment of local and European IMR staff in the Defence Services (the details are illustrated in the original text of Field's '50 Years of Medical Research in Malaya' . • The period of Japanese Occupation in Malaya from 1942-1945 witnessed the breakdown of the high standards of disease control and a malaria epidemic broke out in Kuala Lumpur . The IMR became concerned mainly with the production of cholera and typhoid vaccines and the provision of some diagnostic services.
1945 – 1950s (Post-War Years) • The IMR addressed the problems of widespread malnutrition; smallpox in Kedah; rabies in Province Wellesley, Kedah and Kelantan; and sporadic cholera throughout the country. • Research into population nutrition, prophylactic trials with paludrine and other antimalarial drugs, penicillin sensitivity testing and insecticide trials with DDT and BHC in malaria control were also undertaken. • The British Scrub Typhus Research Team and the United States Army Medical Research Unit (USAMRU) researched into the problem of scrub typhus , a disease which was first described by Fletcher in 1926.
1948 – 1960 (The Emergency Years)
• With the Emergency and the threat of communism, the local defence forces worked together with the troops from the colonies and other Commonwealth countries. Leptospirosis was studied in depth because it was thought to pose a considerable health hazard to the security forces who operated in the jungles of Malaya . • With the East African troops operating in the jungles of Pahang, the introduction of schistosomiasis was a great possibility. Likewise with Fijian troops operating in the Johore jungles, the introduction of the non-periodic Bancroftian filariasis needed study. • The Central Block was added to the Institute's North and South Blocks in 1953. This building housed the British Colonial Medical Research Team, the USAMRU, the Division of Medical Zoology and Virus Research, the new Library and a Lecture Theatre. A year earlier, the Penang laboratory became a branch laboratory of the IMR along the same lines as those of the Ipoh IMR branch laboratory. • During this period, three International Scientific Meetings were held at the IMR, that is, the Conference on Yellow Fever and other Viral Diseases (1954); a symposium on Leptospirosis (June 1955); and the World Health Organisation (WHO) organised a study group of Filariasis (December 1955).
1957 – 1965 ( Independence and Post-Independence) • In 1960, the Ministry of Health requested assistance from international organisations such as the WHO and the Colombo Plan; at the same time, the US Public Health and the Hooper Foundation were permitted to undertake medical research at the IMR. • The period marked the discovery of 120 new species of chiggers by the Medical Zoology Division; rare blood types in Southeast Asia by the Haematology Division; and the existence of haemorrhagic fever in Malaya by the Virus Division.
1966 – 1969
• New Divisions of Oral Pathology, Cytology, and Helminthology and Protozoology were established. The Division of Filariasis and Malaria Research split to become independent divisions. Likewise the Division of Medical Zoology, which earlier on had been independent of Virology – also split into the Division of Vertebrate Zoology and the Division of Acarology. • Research in the IMR carried out independently or in collaboration with the Hooper Foundation and the USAMRU resulted in some 90-100 publications annually.
1971 – 1975 (Second Malaysia Plan)
• The main activities continued to be research, training, vaccine production and referral diagnostic laboratory services.
1975 – 1979 • The main thrusts of research was directed at investigating rural health problems; dengue, scrub typhus, leptospirosis and other viral diseases ; the vector biology of insect-borne diseases ; the ecology of zoonotic diseases in small animals; parasitic, bacterial and fungal infections including food and hygiene bacteriology; community nutritional status, nutritional biochemistry and nutritional disorders ; cancers ; abnormal haemoglobinopathies, G6PD deficiency diseases and genetic disorders ; cell mediated immunity, population immunity status and sexually transmitted diseases (STD) ; hormone disorders, clinical enzymology and toxicology; and behavioural science with particular reference to the study of the social, cultural and behaviour factors affecting health.
1980 – 1984
• In 1981, a team at IMR succeeded in culturing in vitro , the human filarial parasite Brugia malayi from the infective larval (L3) stage to the fifth (L5) stage. • Between 1981-1983, a new species of schistosome , called the Malaysian schistosome , was described. This schistosome was found in the riverine areas of Kuala Koyan in Pahang. • In 1983, the IMR established the use of the common local species of Presbytis monkey as a model for anti-filarial drug trials. • The opening of the IMR Snake Farm in Perlis on 3 rd March 1981 marked another milestone. In response to the high incidence of snake bites in the northern states of the country, the Snake Farm was expected to study the epidemiology, biology and ecology of snakes and produce antivenom against the Malaysian pit viper, the Malaysian cobra and sea snakes. A rapid diagnostic kit for snake bites was developed in collaboration with the Kangar General Hospital . • In 1982, the IMR Clinical Research Centre was established which began research into blood disorders , STD and myelomas on an outpatient basis. • On 4 th June 1983 , the Biomedical Museum was officially opened for the purpose of providing information to the scientific community on research activities and contributions of the IMR; the museum also has a valuable research reference collection dating back to 1900. • From 1st April 1984 , the IMR has provided HLA-tissue typing and HLA cross-matching services for renal transplant patients; it has the first and only HLA-Tissue Typing Laboratory in Malaysia . • The enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and the indirect fluorescent antibody (IFA) test for malaria were developed as seroepidemiological tools.
1985 – 1987 • Since 1984, a Dengue Surveillance and Cohort Study was initiated as a 5-year joined study with the University of Malaya and the Kuala Lumpur General Hospital . • With the emergence of the Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) , the Ministry of Health (MOH) formed an AIDS Task Force and the IMR virus laboratory was designated as the National Reference Laboratory for AIDS Diagnosis, which would screen sera from donors and high risk groups and help in the laboratory diagnosis of AIDS. • The Division of Virology was involved with the MOH Pilot Study on Rubella Immunisation from May to September 1985. • A WHO Collaborative Centre for Ecology, Taxonomy and Control of Vectors of Malaria, Filariasis and Dengue was established at the IMR in 1986. • A new division of Health Behavior Reseach was set up at the IMR in January 1987. • With the completion of the cobra antivenom project, the Snake Farm was fully functioning.
1988 – 1990 • In 1989, a local strain of Bacillus thuringiensis was discovered. This strain has been shown to be more potent than the internationally accepted strain Bacillus thuringiensis israelenisis . • The change in direction from disease-oriented research to problem-solving was in line with the implementation of the MOH health programmes. Thus, in addition to the thrust areas of research being continued, new areas were included with emphasis on behavioral and health systems research, non-communicable diseases and community health. • On 4 th July 1989 , the USAMRU officially closed its operation in Malaysia after 40 years of collaborative research into tropical diseases with the IMR. • Two organisational changes took place in 1990, and they were, the closure of the Vaccine Production Unit and the discontinuation of the production of antivenom by the Snake Farm. • The Allergy Programme was initiated in 1990 with the increase in awareness of morbidity and mortality due to allergies.
1991 – 1993
1994 – 2000 • The IMR was organised into 5 departments, namely, Tropical Medicine, Clinical Pathology, Community Medicine, Support Services and Administration. The Department of Tropical Medicine comprised the following Divisions: Acarology, Bacteriology, Medical Entomology, Parasitology and Virology. The Department of Clinical Pathology comprised the following Divisions: Biochemistry, Endocrinology, Haematology, Immunology, Molecular Pathology and Stomatology. The Department of Community Medicine comprised the following Divisions: Epidemiology and Human Nutrition. The Department of Support Services comprised the following Divisions: Biotechnology Centre, the Computer Unit, Laboratory Animal Resources, the Library, Information and Publication, Environmental Health Research Centre/Medical Museum, Electron Microscopy Unit, Medical Photography Unit. Administration consisted of: the Finance Unit, the Purchase and Supply Unit, and the Service and Administration Unit.
2001 – (The Present) • In 2001, the IMR was restructured whereby the former 22 divisions were re-configured to form six research and two support Centres. Within each of these Centres, scientists from the various disciplines collaborate to work together, and with other researchers out of the IMR on priority research projects. With this approach, research has become more focused with consolidation of resources; this builds on the strengths of the IMR. The greater focus will allow the IMR to venture into growth areas and bring research closer to the cutting edge of science and technology. • The details of the new structure of the IMR is illustrated in the organisational structure .
[ Sources : The Institute for Medical Research Kuala Lumpur 1900 – 1950
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