BACKGROUND The efficacy of artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) for Plasmodium falciparum malaria may be threatened by parasites with reduced responsiveness to artemisinins. Among 298 ACT-treated children from Mbita, Kenya, submicroscopic persistence of P. falciparum on day 3 posttreatment was associated with subsequent microscopically detected parasitemia at days 28 or 42. METHODS DNA...

Genotyping of the chloroquine-resistance biomarker pfcrt (Plasmodium falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter gene) suggests that, in the absence of chloroquine pressure, Plasmodium falciparum parasites in Malawi have reverted to chloroquine sensitivity. However, malaria infections in Africa are commonly polyclonal, and standard PCRs cannot detect minority genotypes if present in <20% of t...

Although efforts to understand the basis for inter-strain phenotypic variation in the most virulent malaria species, Plasmodium falciparum, have benefited from advances in genomic technologies, there have to date been few metabolomic studies of this parasite. Using 1H-NMR spectroscopy, we have compared the metabolite profiles of red blood cells infected with different P. falciparum strains. The...

OBJECTIVES The risk of malaria infection is increased during pregnancy, and many countries recommend chloroquine prophylaxis in pregnant women, despite Plasmodium falciparum chloroquine resistance. Chloroquine resistance is associated with the pfcrt gene K76T mutation. The aim of this study was to compare the prevalence rate of pfcrt T76 mutation in P. falciparum isolates from infected pregnant...

The involvement of Pfmdr1 (Plasmodium falciparum multidrug resistance 1) polymorphisms in antimalarial drug resistance is still debated. Here, we evaluate the association between polymorphisms in Pfmdr1 (N86Y, Y184F, S1034C, N1042D, and D1246Y) and Pfcrt (K76T) and in vitro responses to chloroquine (CQ), mefloquine (MQ), lumefantrine (LMF), quinine (QN), monodesethylamodiaquine (MDAQ), and dihy...

Chloroquine (CQ) resistance is widespread in Africa, but few data are available for Niger. Pfcrt haplotypes (aa 56-118) and ex vivo responses to CQ and amodiaquine were characterized for 26 isolates collected in South Niger from children under 15 years of age suffering from uncomplicated falciparum malaria, six years after the introduction of artemisinin-based combinations and the withdrawal of...

Hispaniola is the only Caribbean island to which Plasmodium falciparum malaria remains endemic. Resistance to the antimalarial drug chloroquine has rarely been reported in Haiti, which is located on Hispaniola, but the K76T pfcrt (P. falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter) gene mutation that confers chloroquine resistance has been detected intermittently. We analyzed 901 patient samples ...

Residents of malaria-endemic areas sometimes spontaneously clear Plasmodium falciparum infection without drug treatment, implying an important role for host factors such as immunity in this clearance. Host factors may also contribute to clearance of parasites resistant to a treatment drug. Chloroquine resistance is caused by point mutations in P. falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter (p...

BACKGROUND In 2005, Ghana adopted artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) for primary treatment of falciparum malaria. A comprehensive study of the drug-resistance-associated mutations and their genetic lineages will lead to a better understanding of the evolution of antimalarial drug resistance in this region. METHODS The pfcrt, pfmdr1, dhps, and dhfr mutations associated with chloroquin...

BACKGROUND Drug resistance is one of the greatest challenges of malaria control programmes, with the monitoring of parasite resistance to artemisinins or to Artemisinin Combination Therapy (ACT) partner drugs critical to elimination efforts. Markers of resistance to a wide panel of antimalarials were assessed in natural parasite populations from southwestern Cameroon. METHODS Individuals with...