Allelic frequencies of mutants of the Plasmodium falciparum, quinoline and folate metabolizing genes in the west region of Cameroon
Innocent Mbulli Ali,
Valery Pacome Kom Tchuenkam,
Sandra Sob Tagomo,
Hornela Mawamba,
Marcel Nyuylam Moyeh,
Emmanuel Nfor Nfor,
Akindeh Mbuh Nji,
Calvino Tah Fomboh,
William Dorian Nana,
Jean-Paul Chedjou Kengne,
Peter Thelma Ngwa Niba,
Germaine Ekobo Ekoyol,
Dorothy Fosah Achu,
Jude Daiga Bigoga,
Wilfred Fon Mbacham
Affiliations
Innocent Mbulli Ali
MARCAD Program, The Biotechnology Centre, University of Yaoundé 1, BP 8094, Yaoundé, Centre Region, Cameroon; Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, BP 67, University of Dschang, Dschang, West Region, Cameroon; Corresponding author.
Valery Pacome Kom Tchuenkam
Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, BP 67, University of Dschang, Dschang, West Region, Cameroon
Sandra Sob Tagomo
Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, BP 67, University of Dschang, Dschang, West Region, Cameroon
Hornela Mawamba
Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, BP 67, University of Dschang, Dschang, West Region, Cameroon
Marcel Nyuylam Moyeh
Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Science, Uni-versity of Buea, BP 63, Buea, South West Region, Cameroon
Emmanuel Nfor Nfor
Malaria Program, Cameroon Baptist Convention Health Services, BP 01, Nkwen, Bamenda, North West Region, Cameroon
Akindeh Mbuh Nji
MARCAD Program, The Biotechnology Centre, University of Yaoundé 1, BP 8094, Yaoundé, Centre Region, Cameroon
Calvino Tah Fomboh
MARCAD Program, The Biotechnology Centre, University of Yaoundé 1, BP 8094, Yaoundé, Centre Region, Cameroon
William Dorian Nana
MARCAD Program, The Biotechnology Centre, University of Yaoundé 1, BP 8094, Yaoundé, Centre Region, Cameroon
Jean-Paul Chedjou Kengne
MARCAD Program, The Biotechnology Centre, University of Yaoundé 1, BP 8094, Yaoundé, Centre Region, Cameroon
Peter Thelma Ngwa Niba
MARCAD Program, The Biotechnology Centre, University of Yaoundé 1, BP 8094, Yaoundé, Centre Region, Cameroon
Germaine Ekobo Ekoyol
National Malaria Control Program, Ministry of Public Health, Yaoundé, BP 14386, Centre Region, Cameroon
Dorothy Fosah Achu
National Malaria Control Program, Ministry of Public Health, Yaoundé, BP 14386, Centre Region, Cameroon
Jude Daiga Bigoga
MARCAD Program, The Biotechnology Centre, University of Yaoundé 1, BP 8094, Yaoundé, Centre Region, Cameroon
Wilfred Fon Mbacham
MARCAD Program, The Biotechnology Centre, University of Yaoundé 1, BP 8094, Yaoundé, Centre Region, Cameroon; Corresponding author.
The emergence and spread of Plasmodium falciparum (P.f) drug resistance is still a major concern in Sub-Saharan Africa and warrants that its evolution be monitored continuously. The present study aimed at determining the distribution of key P.f drug resistance-mediating alleles in circulating malaria parasites in the West region of Cameroon. A cross sectional hospital-based study was conducted in Dschang and Ngounso in the West region of Cameroon. The Pfcrt, Pfmdr1, and the Pfdhps genes were amplified through nested PCR in 208 malaria-infected samples of the 301 febrile outpatients enrolled. The presence or absence of mutations in the K76T, N86Y, A437G and A581G codons of these P.f. genes respectively were determined through restriction digestion analysis. The proportion of different alleles were estimated as percentages and compared between two study sites using the Chi square test. A p value <0.05 was considered significant. A high prevalence (75.6%) of the 437G allele was observed. It was significantly different between Dschang and Ngounso (62% vs. 89.2%, X2 = 19.6, P = 0.00005). Equally observed was a 19.2% (95%CI: 13.3–25.6) of the dhps-581G mutant allele. Furthermore, we observed the Pfcrt-76T, Pfmdr1-N86 mutations in 73.0% (67.5–79.7) and 87.2% (83.2–91.9), and 3.0% (0.0–9.6) and 12.8% was observed for the Pfcrt-K76T and Pfmdr1-N86Y respectively. When biallelic haplotypes were constructed from alleles of the three genes, same pattern was seen. Overall, 73% and 87% of circulating P. falciparum isolates carried wild type alleles at Pfmdr1-N86Y and Pfcrt-K76T. On the other hand, we found more parasites with mutant alleles at dhps (437G and 581G) loci which may reflect possible drug-related selection of this mutant in the parasite population. Continuous monitoring of these mutations is recommended to pre-empt a loss in sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine efficacy in malaria chemoprevention programs.
