Lack of quadruple and quintuple mutant alleles associated with sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine resistance in Plasmodium vivax isolates from Brazilian endemic areas

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE Brazil is responsible for a large number of Plasmodium vivax cases in America. Given the emergence of P. vivax parasites resistant to chloroquine and the effectiveness of antifolates in vivax malaria treatment together with a correlation between mutations in P. vivax dhfr and dhps genes and SP treatment failure, the point mutations in these genes were investigated. METHODS Blood samples from 54 patients experiencing vivax malaria symptomatic episodes in the Amazonian Region were investigated. Genomic DNA was extracted using a DNA extraction kit (QIAGEN (TM)). Nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification was carried out followed by Sanger sequencing to detect single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). FINDINGS All tested isolates showed non-synonymous mutations in pvdhfr gene: 117N (54/54, 100%) and 58R (25/54, 46%). Double mutant allele 58R/117N (FRTNI, 28%) was the most frequent followed by triple mutant alleles (58R/117N/173L, FRTNL, 11%; 58R/61M/117N, FRMNI 5% 117N/173L, FSTNL, 4%) and quadruple mutant allele (58R/61M/117N/173L, FRMNL, 2%). A single mutation was observed at codon C383G in pvdhps gene (SGKAV, 48%). CONCLUSION No evidence of molecular signatures associated with P. vivax resistance to SP was observed in the Brazilian samples.