Inter-allelic recombination in the Plasmodium vivax merozoite surface protein 1 gene among Indian and Colombian isolates
Abstract Background A major concern in malaria vaccine development is the polymorphism observed among different Plasmodium isolates in different geographical areas across the globe. The merozoite surface protein 1 (MSP-1) is a leading vaccine candidate antigen against asexual blood stages of malaria...
Published in: | Malaria Journal |
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Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
BMC
2004
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Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/1475-2875-3-4 https://doaj.org/article/4f653504d45b43f8b959e89e66f18fd6 |
Summary: | Abstract Background A major concern in malaria vaccine development is the polymorphism observed among different Plasmodium isolates in different geographical areas across the globe. The merozoite surface protein 1 (MSP-1) is a leading vaccine candidate antigen against asexual blood stages of malaria parasite. To date, little is known about the extent of sequence variation in the Plasmodium vivax MSP-1 gene ( Pvmsp-1 ) among Indian isolates. Since P. vivax accounts for >50% of malaria cases in India and in Colombia, it is essential to know the Pvmsp-1 gene variability in these two countries to sustain it as a vaccine candidate. The extent of polymorphism in Pvmsp-1 gene among Indian and Colombian isolates is described. Methods The sequence variation in the region encompassing the inter-species conserved blocks (ICBs) five and six of Pvmsp-1 gene was examined. PCR was carried out to amplify the polymorphic region of Pvmsp-1 and the PCR products from twenty (nine Indian and 11 Colombian) isolates were sequenced and aligned with Belem and Salvador-1 sequences. Results Results revealed three distinct types of sequences among these isolates, namely, Salvador-like, Belem-like and a third type sequence which was generated due to interallelic recombination between Salvador-like sequences and Belem-like sequences. Existence of the third type in majority (44%) showed that allelic recombinations play an important role in PvMSP1 diversity in natural parasite population. Micro-heterogeneity was also seen in a few of these isolates due to nucleotide substitutions, insertions as well as deletions. Conclusions Intergenic recombination in the Pvmsp-1 gene was found and suggest that this is the main cause for genetic diversity of the Pvmsp-1 gene. |
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