Search

Genetic epidemiology can provide important insights into parasite transmission that can inform public health interventions. The current study compared long-term changes in the genetic diversity and structure of co-endemic Plasmodium falciparum and P. vivax populations. The study was conducted in Papua Indonesia, where high-grade chloroquine resistance in P. falciparum and P. vivax led to a universal policy of Artemisinin-based Combination Therapy (ACT) in 2006. Microsatellite typing and population genetic analyses were undertaken on available isolates collected between 2004 and 2017 from patients with uncomplicated malaria (n = 666 P. falciparum and n = 615 P. vivax). The proportion of polyclonal P. falciparum infections fell from 28% (38/135) before policy change (2004–2006) to 18% (22/125) at the end of the study (2015–2017); p<0.001. Over the same period, polyclonal P. vivax infections fell from 67% (80/119) to 35% (33/93); p<0.001. P. falciparum strains persisted for up to 9 years compared to 3 months for P. vivax, reflecting higher rates of outbreeding in the latter. Sub-structure was observed in the P. falciparum population, but not in P. vivax, confirming different patterns of outbreeding. The P. falciparum population exhibited 4 subpopulations that changed in frequency over time. Notably, a sharp rise was observed in the frequency of a minor subpopulation (K2) in the late post-ACT period, accounting for 100% of infections in late 2016–2017. The results confirm epidemiological evidence of reduced P. falciparum and P. vivax transmission over time. The smaller change in P. vivax population structure is consistent with greater outbreeding associated with relapsing infections and highlights the need for radical cure to reduce recurrent infections. The study emphasizes the challenge in disrupting P. vivax transmission and demonstrates the potential of molecular data to inform on the impact of public health interventions. Author summary: Genetic epidemiology is gaining widespread interest as a tool that can enhance conventional malaria surveillance. However, few studies have assessed the utility of molecular analyses in quantifying long-term changes in malaria transmission. The current study compared changes in the genetic diversity and structure of co-endemic P. vivax and P. falciparum populations sampled over 14 years (2004–2017) in Papua Indonesia, during which the incidence of both P. falciparum and P. vivax malaria halved. The study found larger genetic changes in P. falciparum than P. vivax, reflecting a greater impact of local interventions, including the implementation of a new drug policy (universal Artemisinin-Based Combined Therapy) in 2006, on P. falciparum. Both species exhibited decreasing complexity of infections over time, consistent with declining transmission. However, the P. falciparum population showed greater evidence of a recent bottleneck than the P. vivax population. Four subpopulations were observed amongst the P. falciparum isolates, one of which predominated in 2016–2017, potentially reflecting recent adaptation. The results concur with epidemiological studies performed in the same area, that found declining transmission in both species, with less impact on P. vivax infections. Radical cure to treat the dormant liver stages may enable larger reductions in P. vivax transmission. The results support the great potential of molecular surveillance in complementing traditional malariometric approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Outside of Africa, P. falciparum and P. vivax usually coexist. In such co-endemic regions, successful malaria control programs have a greater impact on reducing falciparum malaria, resulting in P. vivax becoming the predominant species of infection. Adding to the challenges of elimination, the dormant liver stage complicates efforts to monitor the impact of ongoing interventions against P. vivax. We investigated molecular approaches to inform the respective transmission dynamics of P. falciparum and P. vivax and how these could help to prioritize public health interventions. Methodology/ Principal Findings: Genotype data generated at 8 and 9 microsatellite loci were analysed in 168 P. falciparum and 166 P. vivax isolates, respectively, from four co-endemic sites in Indonesia (Bangka, Kalimantan, Sumba and West Timor). Measures of diversity, linkage disequilibrium (LD) and population structure were used to gauge the transmission dynamics of each species in each setting. Marked differences were observed in the diversity and population structure of P. vivax versus P. falciparum. In Bangka, Kalimantan and Timor, P. falciparum diversity was low, and LD patterns were consistent with unstable, epidemic transmission, amenable to targeted intervention. In contrast, P. vivax diversity was higher and transmission appeared more stable. Population differentiation was lower in P. vivax versus P. falciparum, suggesting that the hypnozoite reservoir might play an important role in sustaining local transmission and facilitating the spread of P. vivax infections in different endemic settings. P. vivax polyclonality varied with local endemicity, demonstrating potential utility in informing on transmission intensity in this species. Conclusions/ Significance: Molecular approaches can provide important information on malaria transmission that is not readily available from traditional epidemiological measures. Elucidation of the transmission dynamics circulating in a given setting will have a major role in prioritising malaria control strategies, particularly against the relatively neglected non-falciparum species. Author Summary: The malaria parasite Plasmodium vivax is a growing public health burden across the globe. Largely overshadowed by the more fatal P. falciparum parasite, increasing reports of anti-malarial drug resistance and life-threatening disease complications demand concerted efforts to eliminate P. vivax. Outside of Africa, P. vivax usually co-exists with P. falciparum. In these regions, malaria interventions have demonstrated greater success against falciparum. The authors genotyped P. vivax and P. falciparum parasites from 4 co-endemic sites in Indonesia, and used the data to gauge how frequently and how focally parasites were transmitted, and how much they spread between sites. Their results indicated that whilst the P. falciparum populations displayed evidence of low and unstable transmission, the P. vivax populations were more diverse and exhibited more stable transmission patterns, requiring different intervention approaches. Relative to P. falciparum, the P. vivax parasites demonstrated evidence of greater spread between populations, possibly facilitated by the dormant liver stage which enables P. vivax to be carried asymptomatically in patients for long periods of time. These findings highlight the need to reconcile the intervention requirements for non-falciparum malaria species in co-endemic regions, and the general utility of parasite genotyping to facilitate surveillance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drug resistant Plasmodium parasites are a major threat to malaria control and elimination. After reports of high levels of multidrug resistant P. falciparum and P. vivax in Indonesia, in 2005, the national first-line treatment policy for uncomplicated malaria was changed in March 2006, to dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine against all species. This study assessed the temporal trends in ex vivo drug susceptibility to chloroquine (CQ) and piperaquine (PIP) for both P. falciparum and P. vivax clinical isolates collected between 2004 and 2018, by using schizont maturation assays, and genotyped a subset of isolates for known and putative molecular markers of CQ and PIP resistance by using Sanger and next generation whole genome sequencing. The median CQ IC 50 values varied significantly between years in both Plasmodium species, but there was no significant trend over time. In contrast, there was a significant trend for increasing PIP IC 50 s in both Plasmodium species from 2010 onwards. Whereas the South American CQ resistant 7G8 pfcrt SVMNT isoform has been fixed since 2005 in the study area, the pfmdr1 86Y allele frequencies decreased and became fixed at the wild-type allele in 2015. In P. vivax isolates, putative markers of CQ resistance (no pvcrt-o AAG (K10) insertion and pvmdr1 Y967F and F1076L) were fixed at the mutant alleles since 2005. None of the putative PIP resistance markers were detected in P. falciparum. The ex vivo drug susceptibility and molecular analysis of CQ and PIP efficacy for P. falciparum and P. vivax after 12 years of intense drug pressure with DHP suggests that whilst the degree of CQ resistance appears to have been sustained, there has been a slight decline in PIP susceptibility, although this does not appear to have reached clinically significant levels. The observed decreasing trend in ex vivo PIP susceptibility highlights the importance of ongoing surveillance., (Copyright © 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)