A common DNA deletion altering the 3'UTR of mdr1 is associated with reduced mefloquine susceptibility in P. vivax parasites from Cambodian patients.

ABSTRACT: Artemisinin-combination therapies (ACTs) are now recommended for the treatment of uncomplicated malaria caused by Plasmodium vivax, the parasite responsible for the majority of malaria infections outside of Africa. We sequence the genomes of 206 P. vivax parasites collected from Cambodian malaria patients and show that more than 80% of them carry a DNA deletion located immediately downstream of the multidrug resistance 1 gene (mdr1) protein-coding sequence. This 837 bp deletion overlaps with a different deletion present at low frequency in South American isolates, suggesting a functional role despite not altering the coding sequence of mdr1. Using RNA sequencing, we show that these deletions alter the transcripts expressed from mdr1 and result in mRNAs with different 3' untranslated region

SUBMITTER: Ko K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12913641 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature