Plasmodium vivax is a major cause of illness in many tropical regions, particularly South America and much of Asia. The biology of P. vivax parasites complicates efforts to study its genome: the parasites don’t grow well in culture, hampering in vitro studies, and infections are characterised by a lower density of parasites in the blood, making it difficult to isolate sufficient parasite DNA for sequencing.

The P. vivax Genome Variation project  is coordinated by the MalariaGEN Resource Centre and connects multiple research groups which are primarily concerned with understanding the population genetics and identifying the genetic causes of antimalarial drug resistance in P. vivax — a major public health concern. 

Our work is focused on three related objectives:

Building a catalogue of P. vivax genome variation

We aim to create a genome-wide catalogue of P. vivax polymorphisms generated by sequencing clinical samples from endemic countries, which we will then use to construct a high-resolution map of genome variation and population genetics. This resource will provide a foundation for genomic surveillance of P. vivax to guide malaria elimination.

Providing researchers with standardised genotype data on their samples

Our sequence data analysis pipeline provides researchers with high-quality genotype calls on their samples in a standardised format which enables reliable comparisons to be made with data from other studies and geographical locations.

Publishing global analyses of genome variation, population genetics and evolutionary selection

The data resources generated through this project will be valuable in addressing a range of scientific questions in addition to drug resistance. Although P. vivax causes much less mortality than P. falciparum, there is growing recognition that it can sometimes cause severe complications, raising the question of whether there are parasite genetic factors that cause some strains of P. vivax to be more virulent than others. There is also much interest in whether there are genetic types of parasite that can overcome the resistance to P. vivax infection possessed by African populations due to the Duffy negative blood group.