Origins of Drug Resistance in Malaria Parasite
Author Information
Author(s): Hawkins Vivian N, Auliff Alyson, Prajapati Surendra Kumar, Rungsihirunrat Kanchana, Hapuarachchi Hapuarachchige C, Maestre Amanda, O'Neil Michael T, Cheng Qin, Joshi Hema, Na-Bangchang Kesara, Sibley Carol Hopkins
Primary Institution: Department of Genome Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle WA, USA
Hypothesis
How do resistance-conferring mutations in Plasmodium vivax dihydrofolate reductase arise and spread?
Conclusion
Mutations in Plasmodium vivax dhfr that confer antifolate resistance have arisen multiple times in the Asian region.
Supporting Evidence
- Mutations in P. vivax dhfr that confer antifolate resistance have arisen several times in the Asian region.
- The double mutant dhfr allele has evolved from several origins.
- Triple and quadruple mutant alleles had at least three independent origins in Thailand, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea/Vanuatu.
Takeaway
Scientists studied how malaria parasites become resistant to drugs, finding that these changes happen in many places, not just one.
Methodology
The study sequenced the P. vivax dhfr coding region and its flanking regions from 137 patient isolates across various countries.
Limitations
The study's findings are based on a limited geographic sampling and may not represent all P. vivax populations.
Participant Demographics
Patient isolates were collected from Colombia, India, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vanuatu.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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