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Zhao X, Hu Y, Zhao Y, Wang L, Wu Z, Soe MT, Kyaw MP, Cui L, Zhu X, Cao Y. Genetic diversity in the transmission-blocking vaccine candidate Plasmodium vivax gametocyte protein Pvs230 from the China-Myanmar border area and central Myanmar. Parasit Vectors 2022; 15:371. [PMID: 36253843 PMCID: PMC9574792 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-022-05523-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2022] [Accepted: 09/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Sexual stage surface antigens are potential targets of transmission-blocking vaccines (TBVs). The gametocyte and gamete surface antigen P230, a leading TBV candidate, is critical for red blood cell binding during exflagellation and subsequent oocyst development. Here, the genetic diversity of Pvs230 was studied in Plasmodium vivax parasite isolates from the China-Myanmar border (CMB) and central Myanmar. METHODS Plasmodium vivax isolates were collected in clinics from malaria-endemic areas of the CMB (143 samples) and Myanmar (23 samples). The interspecies variable part (IVP, nucleotides 1-807) and interspecies conserved part (ICP, 808-2862) of Pvs230 were amplified by PCR and sequenced. Molecular evolution studies were conducted to evaluate the genetic diversity, signature of selection, population differentiation, haplotype network, and population structure of the study parasite populations and publicly available Pvs230 sequences from six global P. vivax populations. RESULTS Limited genetic diversity was observed for the CMB (π = 0.002) and Myanmar (π = 0.001) isolates. Most amino acid substitutions were located in the IVP and cysteine-rich domain of Pvs230. Evidence of positive selection was observed for IVP and purifying selection for ICP. Codon-based tests identified specific codons under natural selection in both IVP and ICP. The fixation index (FST) showed low genetic differentiation between East and Southeast Asian populations, with FST ranging from 0.018 to 0.119. The highest FST value (FST = 0.503) was detected between the Turkey and Papua New Guinea populations. A total of 92 haplotypes were identified in global isolates, with the major haplotypes 2 and 9 being the most abundant and circulating in East and Southeast Asia populations. Several detected non-synonymous substitutions were mapped in the predicted structure and B-cell epitopes of Pvs230. CONCLUSIONS We detected low levels of genetic diversity of Pvs230 in global P. vivax populations. Geographically specific haplotypes were identified for Pvs230. Some mutations are located within a potential B-cell epitope region and need to be considered in future TBV designs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xin Zhao
- Department of Immunology, College of Basic Medical Science, China Medical University, Shenyang, 110122, Liaoning, People's Republic of China
| | - Yubing Hu
- Department of Immunology, College of Basic Medical Science, China Medical University, Shenyang, 110122, Liaoning, People's Republic of China.,Central Laboratory of the First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, China
| | - Yan Zhao
- Department of Immunology, College of Basic Medical Science, China Medical University, Shenyang, 110122, Liaoning, People's Republic of China
| | - Lin Wang
- Department of Immunology, College of Basic Medical Science, China Medical University, Shenyang, 110122, Liaoning, People's Republic of China
| | - Zifang Wu
- Department of Immunology, College of Basic Medical Science, China Medical University, Shenyang, 110122, Liaoning, People's Republic of China
| | - Myat Thu Soe
- Myanmar Health Network Organization, Yangon, Myanmar
| | | | - Liwang Cui
- Department of Internal Medicine, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, 3720 Spectrum Boulevard, Suite 304, Tampa, FL, 33612, USA
| | - Xiaotong Zhu
- Department of Immunology, College of Basic Medical Science, China Medical University, Shenyang, 110122, Liaoning, People's Republic of China.
| | - Yaming Cao
- Department of Immunology, College of Basic Medical Science, China Medical University, Shenyang, 110122, Liaoning, People's Republic of China.
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Tentokam BCN, Amaratunga C, Alani NAH, MacDonald NJ, Narum DL, Salinas ND, Kwan JL, Suon S, Sreng S, Pereira DB, Tolia NH, Fujiwara RT, Bueno LL, Duffy PE, Coelho CH. Naturally Acquired Antibody Response to Malaria Transmission Blocking Vaccine Candidate Pvs230 Domain 1. Front Immunol 2019; 10:2295. [PMID: 31636633 PMCID: PMC6788386 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2019.02295] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2019] [Accepted: 09/11/2019] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Plasmodium vivax malaria incidence has increased in Latin America and Asia and is responsible for nearly 74.1% of malaria cases in Latin America. Immune responses to P. vivax are less well characterized than those to P. falciparum, partly because P. vivax is more difficult to cultivate in the laboratory. While antibodies are known to play an important role in P. vivax disease control, few studies have evaluated responses to P. vivax sexual stage antigens. We collected sera or plasma samples from P. vivax-infected subjects from Brazil (n = 70) and Cambodia (n = 79) to assess antibody responses to domain 1 of the gametocyte/gamete stage protein Pvs230 (Pvs230D1M). We found that 27.1% (19/70) and 26.6% (21/79) of subjects from Brazil and Cambodia, respectively, presented with detectable antibody responses to Pvs230D1M antigen. The most frequent subclasses elicited in response to Pvs230D1M were IgG1 and IgG3. Although age did not correlate significantly with Pvs230D1M antibody levels overall, we observed significant differences between age strata. Hemoglobin concentration inversely correlated with Pvs230D1M antibody levels in Brazil, but not in Cambodia. Additionally, we analyzed the antibody response against Pfs230D1M, the P. falciparum ortholog of Pvs230D1M. We detected antibodies to Pfs230D1M in 7.2 and 16.5% of Brazilian and Cambodian P. vivax-infected subjects. Depletion of Pvs230D1M IgG did not impair the response to Pfs230D1M, suggesting pre-exposure to P. falciparum, or co-infection. We also analyzed IgG responses to sporozoite protein PvCSP (11.4 and 41.8% in Brazil and Cambodia, respectively) and to merozoite protein PvDBP-RII (67.1 and 48.1% in Brazil and Cambodia, respectively), whose titers also inversely correlated with hemoglobin concentration only in Brazil. These data establish patterns of seroreactivity to sexual stage Pvs230D1M and show similar antibody responses among P. vivax-infected subjects from regions of differing transmission intensity in Brazil and Cambodia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bergeline C Nguemwo Tentokam
- Laboratory of Malaria Immunology and Vaccinology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Chanaki Amaratunga
- Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health (NIH), Rockville, MD, United States
| | - Nada A H Alani
- Laboratory of Malaria Immunology and Vaccinology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Nicholas J MacDonald
- Laboratory of Malaria Immunology and Vaccinology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - David L Narum
- Laboratory of Malaria Immunology and Vaccinology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Nichole D Salinas
- Laboratory of Malaria Immunology and Vaccinology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Jennifer L Kwan
- Laboratory of Clinical Immunology and Microbiology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Seila Suon
- National Center for Parasitology, Entomology and Malaria Control, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
| | - Sokunthea Sreng
- National Center for Parasitology, Entomology and Malaria Control, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
| | | | - Niraj H Tolia
- Laboratory of Malaria Immunology and Vaccinology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Ricardo T Fujiwara
- Department of Parasitology, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Lilian L Bueno
- Department of Parasitology, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Patrick E Duffy
- Laboratory of Malaria Immunology and Vaccinology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Camila H Coelho
- Laboratory of Malaria Immunology and Vaccinology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD, United States
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