Major subpopulations of Plasmodium falciparum in sub-Saharan Africa
Abstract
The population genetics of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum across Africa is poorly understood but important to know for grasping the risks and dynamics of the spread of drug resistance. Harnessing the power of genomics, Amambua-Ngwa et al. of the Plasmodium Diversity Network Africa found substantial population structure within Africa that is consistent with human and vector population divergence (see the Perspective by Sibley). Specific signatures of selection by antimalarial drugs were detected, along with indications of the effect of colonization and slavery. Furthermore, whole-genome sequencing showed that there is extensive gene flow among the different regions and that Ethiopia has a distinctive population of P. falciparum , which may be indicative of coexistence with another malaria parasite, P. vivax.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Aug 23, 2019
- Source ID
- 10.1126/science.aav5427
Entities
People
- Abdoulaye A. Djimde
- Alfred Amambua-Ngwa
- Anita Ghansah
- Archibald Worwui
- Ben Andagalu
- David Jeffries
- Deus Ishengoma
- Dominic P. Kwiatkowski
- Edwin Kamau
- Karim Mane
- Lemu Golassa
- Lucas Amenga-Etego
- Marielle Karine Bouyou Akotet
- Milijaona Randrianarivelojosia
- Oumou Maïga-Ascofaré
- Oyebola Kolapo
- Roberto Amato
- Tobias Apinjoh
- Umberto D'Alessandro
- Vikki Simpson
- William Yavo
Organizations
- Addis Ababa University
- Félix Houphouët Boigny University
- Kenya Medical Research Institute
- London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine
- Medical Research Council
- National Institute for Medical Research
- Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research
- University of Lagos
- University of Oxford
- University of Science Malaysia
- Université de Buea
- Walter Reed Army Institute of Research
- Wellcome Sanger Institute
- Wellcome Trust
- West African Centre for Cell Biology of Infectious Pathogens