Partner study description

TRAC is investigating the scope and spread of parasite resistance to artemisinin-based therapies at sites across Asia and Africa. The first TRAC study has been completed. This multi-centre, open-label randomised trial studied the clearance rates of peripheral blood P. falciparum parasitaemias in patients with acute uncomplicated falciparum malaria treated with two different doses of artesunate. Findings were used to validate the recently discovered kelch13 marker of artemisinin resistance. Working with MalariaGEN, TRAC samples have been sequenced and analysed for features of population genetics and signatures of selection, and contributed to the genetic basis of a genome-wide associations study for genetic markers of artemisinin resistance. Where samples were found to contain P. vivax data, for example due to mixed infection, this data was contributed to the P. vivax Genome Variation project.