Changing pattern of the genetic diversities of Plasmodium falciparum merozoite surface protein-1 and merozoite surface protein-2 in Myanmar isolates

• Published in: Malaria Journal
• Main Authors: Hương Giang Lê, Jung-Mi Kang, Hojong Jun, Jinyoung Lee, Thị Lam Thái, Moe Kyaw Myint, Khin Saw Aye, Woon-Mok Sohn, Ho-Joon Shin, Tong-Soo Kim, Byoung-Kuk Na
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: BMC 2019
• Subjects: Plasmodium falciparum; Merozoite surface protein-1; Merozoite surface protein-2; Genetic diversity; Myanmar; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Infectious and parasitic diseases; RC109-216; Arctic
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12936-019-2879-7; https://doaj.org/article/822c25411662425993955c429693dd8a

Abstract Background Plasmodium falciparum merozoite surface protein-1 (PfMSP-1) and -2 (PfMSP-2) are major blood-stage vaccine candidate antigens. Understanding the genetic diversity of the genes, pfmsp-1 and pfmsp-2, is important for recognizing the genetic structure of P. falciparum, and the development of an effective vaccine based on the antigens. In this study, the genetic diversities of pfmsp-1 and pfmsp-2 in the Myanmar P. falciparum were analysed. Methods The pfmsp-1 block 2 and pfmsp-2 block 3 regions were amplified by polymerase chain reaction from blood samples collected from Myanmar patients who were infected with P. falciparum in 2013–2015. The amplified gene fragments were cloned into a T&A vector, and sequenced. Sequence analysis of Myanmar pfmsp-1 block 2 and pfmsp-2 block 3 was performed to identify the genetic diversity of the regions. The temporal genetic changes of both pfmsp-1 and pfmsp-2 in the Myanmar P. falciparum population, as well as the polymorphic diversity in the publicly available global pfmsp-1 and pfmsp-2, were also comparatively analysed. Results High levels of genetic diversity of pfmsp-1 and pfmsp-2 were observed in the Myanmar P. falciparum isolates. Twenty-eight different alleles of pfmsp-1 (8 for K1 type, 14 for MAD20 type, and 6 for RO33 type) and 59 distinct alleles of pfmsp-2 (18 for FC27, and 41 for 3D7 type) were identified in the Myanmar P. falciparum population in amino acid level. Comparative analyses of the genetic diversity of the Myanmar pfmsp-1 and pfmsp-2 alleles in the recent (2013–2015) and past (2004–2006) Myanmar P. falciparum populations indicated the dynamic genetic expansion of the pfmsp-1 and pfmsp-2 in recent years, suggesting that a high level of genetic differentiation and recombination of the two genes may be maintained. Population genetic structure analysis of the global pfmsp-1 and pfmsp-2 also suggested that a high level of genetic diversity of the two genes was found in the global P. falciparum population. Conclusion Despite the recent ...