Evolution and Genetic Diversity of the k13 Gene Associated with Artemisinin Delayed Parasite Clearance in Plasmodium falciparum.

ABSTRACT: Mutations in the Plasmodium falciparumk13 (Pfk13) gene are linked to delayed parasite clearance in response to artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs) in Southeast Asia. To explore the evolutionary rate and constraints acting on this gene, k13 orthologs from species sharing a recent common ancestor with P. falciparum and Plasmodium vivax were analyzed. These comparative studies were followed by genetic polymorphism analyses within P. falciparum using 982 complete Pfk13 sequences from public databases and new data obtained by next-generation sequencing from African and Haitian isolates. Although k13 orthologs evolve at heterogeneous rates, the gene was conserved across the genus, with only synonymous substitutions being f

SUBMITTER: Pacheco MA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6658766 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature