Genomic analysis of Plasmodium vivax describes patterns of connectivity and putative drivers of adaptation in Ethiopia
Year: 2023
Type: article
Abstract: Ethiopia has the greatest burden of Plasmodium vivax in Africa, but little is known about the epidemiological landscape of parasites across the country. We analysed the genomic diversity of 137 P. vivax isolates collected nine Ethiopian districts from 2012 to 2016. Signatures of selection were detected by cross-country comparisons with isolates from Thailand (n = 104) and Indonesia (n = 111), representing regions with low and high chloroquine resistance respectively. 26% (35/137) of Ethiopian infections were polyclonal, and 48.5% (17/35) of these comprised highly related clones (within-host identity-by-descent > 25%), indicating frequent co-transmission and superinfection. Parasite gene flow between districts could not be explained entirely by geographic distance, with economic and cultural factors hypothesised to have an impact on connectivity. Amplification of the duffy binding protein gene (pvdbp1) was prevalent across all districts (16-75%). Cross-population haplotype homozygosity revealed positive selection in a region proximal to the putative chloroquine resistance transporter gene (pvcrt-o). An S25P variant in amino acid transporter 1 (pvaat1), whose homologue has recently been implicated in P. falciparum chloroquine resistance evolution, was prevalent in Ethiopia (96%) but not Thailand or Indonesia (35-53%). The genomic architecture in Ethiopia highlights circulating variants of potential public health concern in an endemic setting with evidence of stable transmission.
Source: Scientific Reports
Authors: Alebachew Messele Kebede, Edwin Sutanto, Hidayat Trimarsanto, Ernest Diez Benavente, Mariana Barnes, Richard D. Pearson, Sasha V. Siegel, Berhanu Erko, Ashenafi Assefa, Sisay Getachew, Abraham Aseffa, Beyene Petros, Eugenia Lo, Rezika Mohammed, Daniel Yilma, Angela Rumaseb, Francois Nosten, Rintis Noviyanti, Julian C. Rayner, Dominic P. Kwiatkowski, Ric N. Price, Lemu Golassa, Sarah Auburn
Institutions: Addis Ababa University, Eijkman Institute for Molecular Biology, Charles Darwin University, Menzies School of Health Research, University Medical Center Utrecht, Wellcome Sanger Institute, Ethiopian Public Health Institute, BioReliance (United States), Armauer Hansen Research Institute, Drexel University, University of Gondar, Jimma University, Mahidol University, University of Oxford, Shoklo Malaria Research Unit, University of Cambridge, Mahidol Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit
Language: English
Topic: Malaria Research and Control
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,449
Awards: G1201428007, Developing Excellence in Leadership and Genetic Training for Malaria Elimination in Sub-Saharan Africa (DELGEME), G4153611809, G5816694778, G6282049359, G6868616705, Using parasite population genomics to improve understanding of malaria epidemiology, Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute - generic account for deposition of all core- funded research papers., G7597818247, Novel genetic tools for tracking the origins and spread of Plasmodium vivax, Improving the treatment of Plasmodium vivax, Menzies School of Health Research - to improve genomic surveillance of Plasmodium vivax in malaria endemic countries
OpenAlex ID: W4389049431