Asymptomatic Plasmodium vivax infections among Duffy-negative population in Kedougou, Senegal

Makhtar Niang (1) , Rokhaya Sane (2, 1) , Abdourahmane Sow (3, 4) , Bacary Sadio (3) , Sophy Chy (5) , Eric Legrand (6) , Ousmane Faye (3) , Mawlouth Diallo (1) , Amadou Alpha Sall (3) , Didier Ménard (7, 6) , Aissatou Touré-Baldé (1)

1 Institut Pasteur de Dakar
2 Department of Animal Biology [Dakar]
3 Arbovirus et Virus de Fièvres Hémorragiques [Dakar, Sénégal]
4 West African Health Organization
5 Laboratoire d'épidémiologie moléculaire
6 Biologie des Interactions Hôte-Parasite - Biology of Host-Parasite Interactions
7 IP - Institut Pasteur [Paris]

Background: In the southeastern Senegal, the report of Plasmodium vivax infections among febrile patients in Kedougou constitutes a new emerging health problem. Methods: Samples from 48 asymptomatic schoolchildren sampled twice a year over 2 years were used to explore the reservoir of P. vivax parasite infections in this region. Both Duffy genotyping and Plasmodium species diagnostic assays were performed. Results: PCR assays detected Plasmodium genomic DNA in 38.5% (74/192) of samples. Pure P. falciparum and P. vivax infections were identified in 79.7% (59/74) and 20.3% (15/74) of samples, respectively. All schoolchildren were classified as Duffy-negative by genotyping. P. vivax infections were detected in five children: in two children during both years, in one child in 2010 and on May 2011, and only in 2010 for the remaining two children. Conclusions: This unexpectedly high proportion of P. vivax infections in asymptomatic Duffy-negative children highlights to consider vivax malaria as an emerging problem in Senegal.

Mots clés: Asymptomatic carriage; Children; Duffy-negative; Malaria; Plasmodium vivax

Domaines: Sciences du Vivant [q-bio]; Maladies émergentes; Maladies infectieuses; Parasitologie

Makhtar Niang, Rokhaya Sane, Abdourahmane Sow, Bacary Sadio, Sophy Chy, et al.. Asymptomatic Plasmodium vivax infections among Duffy-negative population in Kedougou, Senegal. Tropical Medicine and Health, 2018, 46, pp.45. ⟨10.1186/s41182-018-0128-3⟩. ⟨hal-02558691⟩