Genomics and sero-epidemiology of Plasmodium falciparum malaria in a pre-elimination setting

项目总结/摘要 疟疾继续严重影响世界各国的公共卫生。厄瓜多尔等一些国家 在本世纪的头10-15年取得了令人瞩目的进展。然而，近年来， 停滞和疟疾病例再次增加。虽然西北地区的恶性疟原虫病例 厄瓜多尔似乎起源于哥伦比亚的太平洋沿岸，这种寄生虫的无症状宿主是 常见的，可能是重要的，在厄瓜多尔境内保持传播。其中一个主要问题是， 消灭疟疾的关键是无症状的宿主的存在。为了更好地了解疟疾的传播 动态在这个前消除地区，我们将表征遗传的寄生虫循环， 厄瓜多尔西北部（有症状和无症状），确定感染的血清学生物特征， 感染的临床结果、寄生虫遗传学和血清学标志物之间的关系。 最后，我们将验证获得性免疫在疾病严重程度、克隆持续性和爆发中的作用 通过创新的体外试验的出现。该项目将为厄瓜多尔的地方控制决策提供信息， 最重要的是，提供了一个模型，用于了解疾病在其他消除前环境中的持续性 世界各地

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT Malaria continues to severely impact public health in countries around the world. Some countries like Ecuador made impressive progress in the first 10-15 years of this century. Nevertheless, recent years have seen stagnation and malaria cases are increasing again. While most cases of Plasmodium falciparum in Northwest Ecuador appear to originate in the Pacific coast of Colombia, asymptomatic reservoirs of this parasite are common and may be important in maintaining transmission within Ecuador. One of the main problems for malaria elimination is the presence of asymptomatic reservoirs. To better understand the malaria transmission dynamics in this pre-eliminating region, we will characterize the genetics of the parasites circulating in northwest Ecuador (symptomatic and asymptomatic), identify serological biosignatures of infection and define the relationships between the clinical outcome of the infection, parasite genetics and serological markers. Lastly, we will validate the role of acquired immunity in disease severity, clonal persistence, and outbreak emergence through innovative in vitro assays. This project will inform local control decisions in Ecuador, and, most importantly, provide a model for understanding disease persistence in other pre-elimination settings around the world.