ISSN 2756-3391
African Journal of Parasitology Research ISSN 2343-6549 Vol. 5 (12), pp. 371-379, December, 2018. © International Scholars Journals
Full Length Research Paper
Prevalence of Plasmodium falciparum pfcrt-K76T mutation in asymptomatic vs symptomatic school children in three epidemiological areas of Côte D’Ivoire
Gnagne AP1, Konate A1, Bedia-Tanoh AV1,2, Amiah-Droh M1, Menan EI1, N’guetta ASP3, Yavo W1, 2
1Centre de Recherche et de Lutte contre le Paludisme, INSP, Abidjan-Côte d’Ivoire.
2Département de Parasitologie-Mycologie, UFR Sciences Pharmaceutiques et Biologique, Abidjan-Côte d’Ivoire.
3Laboratoire de Génétique, Université de Cocody, Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.
Corresponding author. E-mail: [email protected]
Accepted 20 October, 2018
Abstract
Plasmodium asymptomatic carriers are considered as parasite reservoir in humans. Therefore, they can be at the origin of the expansion of chemoresistant plasmodial strains. In order to be effective, new strategies for malaria elimination must take into account these individuals. This cross-sectional study aimed to determine the prevalence of Plasmodium falciparum pfcrt76T allele in asymptomatic versus symptomatic children in different epidemiological areas of Côte d'Ivoire. It was conducted from May 2015 to April 2016 in the rural and urban areas of Grand-Bassam, Abengourou and San Pedro during the rainy and the dry seasons. A total of 2361 blood samples were collected from schoolchildren. The plasmodial prevalence was 40%. P. falciparum was the majority species with 95.7%. Fifteen percent or 360 blood samples were drawn for setting Nested PCR. The overall prevalence of pfcrt76T allele was 15.8%. This prevalence of pfcrt76T was 17% and 15% in asymptomatic and symptomatic patients respectively (p = 0.7098). The prevalence of pfcrt76T allele was not associated with the geographical area and the clinical status of the carrier. However, it was linked to the intensity of P. falciparum transmission.
Keywords: Plasmodium falciparum, Côte d'Ivoire, pfcrt, asymptomatic, malaria.